Neology and Discourse: A European Perspective

Neologisms do not emerge by chance; rather, they reflect how societies respond to new challenges and which conceptual tools they require to make complex realities comprehensible. This book offers a comparative bibliography of neologisms that have shaped central European discourses in recent years, e.g., climate change and the climate crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic, Brexit, digital transformation, feminist debates, migration, and the war in Ukraine. Particular attention is devoted to the European perspective: How do neologisms differ across individual countries? Which expressions circulate transnationally and which remain culture-specific? Where are neologisms readily accepted and where are they subject to intense debate? This volume is indispensable for linguists working contrastively as well as for scholars in cultural and media studies with an interest in language who wish to understand how neologisms function as keys to interpreting contemporary European discourses.