Drug Slang

Slang is a culture movement along with hip hop and graffiti that since the 20^th century did not begin to boom. Since slang originated from small social groups not wanting the larger powerful social groups to understand conversations, one can only imagine how slang is commonly used in the illegal drug industry.  Terms are used to not only hide the names of the drugs themselves but they are also used for weight or amount, and even locations.  There are plenty of slang terms used on the streets for Marijuana, Crack, Heroin, and a number of different Opiates. Some include; pot, snow, smack, and bars. These terms are the most commonly used amongst the hundreds more that have evolved throughout the years that have passed. Words are evolving daily because of the law legal enforcement catching up with the terms and being able to spot certain meanings, hence changing the slang in a dramatic way, because they are able to decode their vocabulary.

                 

    Since drug slang is constantly changing it is considered to be one of the most effective ways to stay undetected, keeping legal enforcement on their toes at all times during their search. This contained and constantly changing system, unlike other types of slang like regional, internet, or even cultural, makes drug slang the type that has the widest vocabulary and most diverse usage throughout the world.  It can also spread across varying age groups and socioeconomic groups, as drug usage is not specifically restricted to one specific set of people. This makes drug slang the most widespread and diverse type of slang not only in the U.S., but the entire world.

Slang Across Regions

  


All throughout the United States slang is used in different context. The North has a different slang then the South, and East differs from the West.  Yet each region makes these words their own. Not only do all these regions have their own accent but because of the different ethnic backgrounds and locations cause slangs to differ. Each state, or country, seems to have its own “slanguage.” Slang has developed immensely over the years and for the most part is known to have originated in New York City. Most of the slang that has developed is a result of cultural history. "These words about the city, individually and taken together, retell in a new voice the story of metropolitan life down to the 1950's" (Allen 3). 

   When people speak these words of slang they tell us something about the history and culture of cities which teaches us what was popular during that time and what most people enjoyed participating in. A lot of the times you will hear people simply greet each other in there on slang but not understand one word they are saying unless you are familiar with that type of slang yourself. Usually slang is often used in even the simplest forms , for example simply saying “hello” can be rephrased in slang as “what’s good dog” or usually in the southern regions they will use “how’s it goin”. Because of the different ethnic backgrounds these terms are not corrected and pushed on to the next generations to fit their active culture.

Slang In America

For decades, slang has allowed young people around the world to share a common culture, but American slang has had a huge impact in how the world converses today. With the extent of communication devices now reaching many areas previously blocked from mainstream communication channels, along with the emergence of wireless networks, the power of dominant language has been tapped like never before. Vernacular English is powerfully expressive because it is, paradoxically, both exclusive and global. In any host society, American slang lives in a world of linguistic and cultural knowledge not available at school or in mainstream media at least not yet (Androutsopoulos). 

   

   As social media becomes an everyday task to the common person, third parties are increasingly looking towards these networks to learn about people. Ironically, slang can say as much about a person as their formal writing, if anything even more so than the latter. Since slang is so easily spread without physical borders, and as previously mentioned is highly expressive in its exclusivity, it’s not a far-fetched idea that others would look to how you personally use slang in your everyday social life to learn more about you. This is highly evident in local communities, but with the ease provided by technology, be it the internet or text messaging, these local ideas are spreading farther away across the world. Inevitably the very advent of American innovation and advances in communication has allowed its own vernacular to spread across the world as well.

Modern American Slang's Origin

American society in the 1920's provided a breeding ground for new slang terms to arise. The decade was characterized by the first notable youth movement in American history, as newly liberated women began to define fashion and social trends known as the "flapper" movement. This movement had its roots in the speakeasy society created by prohibition. History has shown that most slang terms emerge when a social group needs a way to communicate without society at large being able to decipher their speech. Hence, the speakeasy society brought forth many new terms, some of which are still in use today. Some examples include words like "baloney," "blind date," "double-cross," and "bootleg." A term widely used today to describe having a conflict with another person, "beef," also originated during the speakeasy era.

Although prohibition was a time of crime and hardship for America, it created the first true subculture to be acknowledged by society at large. This allowed youth of the time to define themselves as something outside the norm and establish their own lexicon. Without this movement, we may not have had such a rich foundation for slang and variety of subcultures in our nation today. 


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Technology drives new slang into our language

It is worth recognizing that technology has its advantages and disadvantages in the formation of language, and in particular the cryptic sub-culture languages that make up slang. As mobile devices spread more commonly throughout the world, more languages are subject to participate in the international arena of ‘texting’ as small screens and services like Twitter encourage the application of shortened words and abbreviations. Slang has even been found to emerge as a result of predictive language software where, for example, while typing the word ‘cool’ he software would first suggest ‘book’ before being manually corrected. This has led to the adoption, albeit a slow one, of the word ‘book’ being used as a form of ‘cool’ (Hughes) Likewise, the technical term for missing web page, code 404, has been adopted by some to mean ‘clueless’.  However, it is equally arguable that as more of our software determines the way we write our own writing skills are dwindling as a result. 

   It was recently found that among a group of 55 students asked to send and read out text messages either in standard English or its cousin 'textese', nearly half the students took twice as long to read messages aloud in comparison to standard English versions. As more of this slang spreads into the mainstream, much of which include blatant spelling errors and unnecessary abbreviations, ultimately it is this over-reliance in spelling technologies that may eventually redefine the formal informal.