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How Hip Hop Is The Rapid Development Of Its Lexicons Essay

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One of the most obvious signs of a changing language is the rapid development of its lexicons. As society changes, so does its language. American dictionaries have been expanding vastly over the past thirty years, with words created for many different purposes. Words are created for many different reasons including scientific use, technological advances, and lastly, words that are created in contemporary culture. Expressions that have been created by the youth have become such a part of American culture, that they often times end up being added to the dictionary. A large portion of these words coined by the youth are making their way into mainstream media through Hip Hop music. The creation of these words stems from the youth feeling the need to label their realities with new expressions and phrases that represent ideas, activities and new ponderings. Hip hop was at one point, was limited to urban American music and dance, but is now a prominent culture around the globe. Hip Hop was not the first genre of music that influenced the youth and culture, Rock ‘n’ Roll had the same effect on language, and held its own set of ideas, concepts, style and values, just like hip hop. These types of music are creative means of self-expression and heavily influences culture as well as the way we speak. Through the influence of Hip Hop culture, many words and phrases have become integrated and commonly used by communities who understand the context and definitions of these lexicons. Hip

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