International Journal of Language and Linguistics

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Kiswahili ya Jela: The Features of the Kenyan Prison Argot

Received: 01 October 2018    Accepted: 15 October 2018    Published: 01 November 2018
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Abstract

Many scholars have attempted to analyze prison argot in different countries in the world. Nevertheless, the features of this variety of language have been fragmentary treated. Furthermore, in the Kenyan context, the area of prison argot has received the total silence of scholars in the linguistic field. The main aim of this study is to analyze the features of the Kenyan prison argot which is generally referred to as Kiswahili ya jela. Kiswahili ya jela is an ungrammatical Swahili phrase which in standard usage should mean the Swahili language of prisons. However, in the prison context, Kiswahili ya jela means a language full of tricks or lies. Thirty prisoners were randomly selected from Kibos and Kisumu Maximum Prisons to participate in the study. The contextual-dynamic method was used to collect data from the respondents. This method mainly involves the use of observation and dialogue. Because of its qualitative nature, the data is subjected to content analysis. From this work, the following features are evident; borrowing of terms from other languages, reversing of syllables, coining of new prison-contextual lexemes and the formation of argot terms through affixation. This study also reveals that the Kenyan prison argot exhibits code-mixing and the use of ungrammatical structures. Synonymy and polysemy as semantic features are also revealed. This paper thus concludes that the Kenyan prison argot is a highly creative slang.

DOI 10.11648/j.ijll.20180606.11
Published in International Journal of Language and Linguistics (Volume 6, Issue 6, November 2018)
Page(s) 186-195
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Prison, Argot, Lexemes, Word Formation, Slang

References
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Author Information
  • Department of Language and Linguistics, Kisii University, Kisii, Kenya

  • Department of Language and Linguistics, Kisii University, Kisii, Kenya

  • Department of Language and Linguistics, Kisii University, Kisii, Kenya

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    Ogutu Peter Okoth, Opande Nilson Isaac, Oluoch Stephen. (2018). Kiswahili ya Jela: The Features of the Kenyan Prison Argot. International Journal of Language and Linguistics, 6(6), 186-195. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijll.20180606.11

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    Ogutu Peter Okoth; Opande Nilson Isaac; Oluoch Stephen. Kiswahili ya Jela: The Features of the Kenyan Prison Argot. Int. J. Lang. Linguist. 2018, 6(6), 186-195. doi: 10.11648/j.ijll.20180606.11

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    AMA Style

    Ogutu Peter Okoth, Opande Nilson Isaac, Oluoch Stephen. Kiswahili ya Jela: The Features of the Kenyan Prison Argot. Int J Lang Linguist. 2018;6(6):186-195. doi: 10.11648/j.ijll.20180606.11

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ijll.20180606.11,
      author = {Ogutu Peter Okoth and Opande Nilson Isaac and Oluoch Stephen},
      title = {Kiswahili ya Jela: The Features of the Kenyan Prison Argot},
      journal = {International Journal of Language and Linguistics},
      volume = {6},
      number = {6},
      pages = {186-195},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ijll.20180606.11},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijll.20180606.11},
      eprint = {https://download.sciencepg.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijll.20180606.11},
      abstract = {Many scholars have attempted to analyze prison argot in different countries in the world. Nevertheless, the features of this variety of language have been fragmentary treated. Furthermore, in the Kenyan context, the area of prison argot has received the total silence of scholars in the linguistic field. The main aim of this study is to analyze the features of the Kenyan prison argot which is generally referred to as Kiswahili ya jela. Kiswahili ya jela is an ungrammatical Swahili phrase which in standard usage should mean the Swahili language of prisons. However, in the prison context, Kiswahili ya jela means a language full of tricks or lies. Thirty prisoners were randomly selected from Kibos and Kisumu Maximum Prisons to participate in the study. The contextual-dynamic method was used to collect data from the respondents. This method mainly involves the use of observation and dialogue. Because of its qualitative nature, the data is subjected to content analysis. From this work, the following features are evident; borrowing of terms from other languages, reversing of syllables, coining of new prison-contextual lexemes and the formation of argot terms through affixation. This study also reveals that the Kenyan prison argot exhibits code-mixing and the use of ungrammatical structures. Synonymy and polysemy as semantic features are also revealed. This paper thus concludes that the Kenyan prison argot is a highly creative slang.},
     year = {2018}
    }
    

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    T1  - Kiswahili ya Jela: The Features of the Kenyan Prison Argot
    AU  - Ogutu Peter Okoth
    AU  - Opande Nilson Isaac
    AU  - Oluoch Stephen
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    DO  - 10.11648/j.ijll.20180606.11
    T2  - International Journal of Language and Linguistics
    JF  - International Journal of Language and Linguistics
    JO  - International Journal of Language and Linguistics
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    EP  - 195
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2330-0221
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijll.20180606.11
    AB  - Many scholars have attempted to analyze prison argot in different countries in the world. Nevertheless, the features of this variety of language have been fragmentary treated. Furthermore, in the Kenyan context, the area of prison argot has received the total silence of scholars in the linguistic field. The main aim of this study is to analyze the features of the Kenyan prison argot which is generally referred to as Kiswahili ya jela. Kiswahili ya jela is an ungrammatical Swahili phrase which in standard usage should mean the Swahili language of prisons. However, in the prison context, Kiswahili ya jela means a language full of tricks or lies. Thirty prisoners were randomly selected from Kibos and Kisumu Maximum Prisons to participate in the study. The contextual-dynamic method was used to collect data from the respondents. This method mainly involves the use of observation and dialogue. Because of its qualitative nature, the data is subjected to content analysis. From this work, the following features are evident; borrowing of terms from other languages, reversing of syllables, coining of new prison-contextual lexemes and the formation of argot terms through affixation. This study also reveals that the Kenyan prison argot exhibits code-mixing and the use of ungrammatical structures. Synonymy and polysemy as semantic features are also revealed. This paper thus concludes that the Kenyan prison argot is a highly creative slang.
    VL  - 6
    IS  - 6
    ER  - 

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