Algospeak
How Social Media Is Transforming the Future of Language
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4.5 • 8 Ratings
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From linguist Adam Aleksic, known as @etymologynerd on social media, comes a captivating exploration of how internet algorithms are transforming language and communication in unprecedented ways.
“Packed with fascinating facts, of-the-moment observations, and a sparkling voice, Algospeak is a gift to any word nerd. Deftly covering everything from emoji etymologies and trendbait to Taylor Swift fanilects... Adam Aleksic is the wise, yet accessible internet linguistics oracle we need.”—Amanda Montell, author of The Age of Magical Overthinking and Cultish
From “brainrot” memes and incel slang to the trend of adding “-core” to different influencer aesthetics, the internet has ushered in an unprecedented linguistic upheaval. We’re entering an entirely new era of etymology, heralded by the invisible forces driving social media algorithms. Thankfully, Algospeak is here to explain. As a professional linguist, Adam Aleksic understands the gravity of language and the way we use it: he knows the ways it has morphed and changed, how it reflects society, and how, in its everyday usage, we carry centuries of human history on our tongues. As a social media influencer, Aleksic is also intimately familiar with the internet’s reach and how social media impacts the way we engage with one another. New slang emerges and goes viral overnight. Accents are shaped or erased on YouTube. Grammatical rules, loopholes, and patterns surface and transform language as we know it. Our interactions, social norms, and habits—both online and in person—shift into something completely different.
As Aleksic uses original surveys, data, and internet archival research to usher us through this new linguistic landscape, he also illuminates how communication is changing in both familiar and unexpected ways. From our use of emojis to sentence structure to the ways younger generations talk about sex and death (see unalive in English and desvivirse in Spanish), we are in a brand-new world, one shaped by algorithms and technology. Algospeak is an energetic, astonishing journey into language, the internet, and what this intersection means for all of us.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Etymology meets the algorithm in this sharp debut from linguist Aleksic. Drawing on archival research and his own posts on TikTok and Reddit, Aleksic explains how social media triggers innovations in language and creates "algospeak," in which algorithms, which filter and prioritize certain information, "shape who gets exposed to certain words, how those words spread, and how popular" they become. Once a new word or phrase is introduced on an online platform, Aleksic notes, it often becomes part of a site's metadata through repeated use. Such new terms frequently emerge in specific online communities on short-form video platforms then slowly filter into other groups, eventually spreading to other social media sites and real life. The use of "evasive language" for sensitive content is one of Aleksic's case studies—TikTok users, for example, began using unalive (for "dead") and seggs (instead of "sex") for "algorithmic optimization." Aleksic steers clear of vilifying algospeak, demonstrating instead that social media amplifies linguistic development and convincingly arguing that evolving language is part of the history of human creativity: "Our language, culture, and identity are inevitably molded by our environment, but we work through these molds to keep doing silly, ingenious things with language, because we're resilient," he writes. It makes for an energetic and eye-opening study.
