International Journal of Slang Studies (ISSN: 2286-3893)

Description

The history of slang lexicography is as fascinating as slang itself. It would be quite impossible for anyone to engage in the systematic study of slang without relying on the contribution of the lexicographers. For centuries on, they have recorded and preserved linguistic facts, often short-lived ones. The current issue of Argotica is dedicated to the slang lexicography of the past, the present and the future, inviting contributors to tackle issues like
1) the comparative study of slang lexicography in various Western cultures (its ori-gins and evolution);
2) the migration of slang items from one culture / language to another in various historical ages, which is detectable thanks to lexicography;
3) the revival of slang lexicography in formerly Communist countries where, for several decades, slang was a taboo subject; 4) the current stage of slang lexicography in various countries.
It also invites answers to questions referring to the future of this branch of linguis-tics:
1) has a global slang emerged in the "global village" brought about by the Internet?;
2) is the expansion of the "linguistic imperialism" of English apparent in slang, too?
3) is there, especially in ex-Communist countries, an opposite tendency at work, of a flourishing "local" slang?;
4) given the current dynamics of all languages, can a slang dictionary be compiled by a single author or will slang dictionaries become the result of team effort (as in the case of the on-line, so-called "urban" dictionaries compiled by collective, anonymous authors)?;
5) is slang invading, nowadays, public space, and are the traditional frontiers be-tween slang and the generally accepted literary language getting more and more blurred?
These are just a few suggestions that may be used as points of departure for contri-butions focused on the specific elements of slang in various languages, on the interaction among cultures, which is obvious in the migration of slang, as well as on the aforemen-tioned globalization tendencies.