The History of American Slang Essays

The History of American Slang Essays The History of American Slang Essay The History of American Slang Essay When thinking of American slang, you may think that is just something that youth have made up to make themselves sound cool when they speak. This is not the case. Slang has been used in America since the late 1800’s. It is defined as â€Å"a type of language that consists of words and phrases that are regarded as very informal, are more common in speech than writing, and are typically restricted to a particular context or group of people.† A lot of slang that was used back then is still used today. I will give just a brief overview of popular slang that has been used over the last century. By the 18th century, the differences between American English and other English speaking countries began the evolution of slang. For a while, any word not used in Britain was considered slang. As early as 1870, slang was prominent in the early years of the United States. The word â€Å"bad† has been used to mean â€Å"good† and â€Å"dude† to refer to a guy, for example, were some of the first slang to be used among Americans. Each decade has originated its own slang that has stood out from the decade prior. Here are a few common slang words and expressions from recent decades. From the 1950’s, â€Å"boo boo† to mean a mistake, â€Å"garbage† to mean nonsense and â€Å"hot† to describe someone attractive were commonly used. In the 1960’s, the terms â€Å"far out† meaning amazing, using â€Å"hassle† instead of annoy and getting good â€Å"vibes†, or feelings, were popular. The 1970’s originated words such as â€Å"bogus† to replace unfair, â€Å"gross† to mean something disgusting and â€Å"no brainer, to describe an easy problem. From the 1980’s, 1990’s, and 2000’s there were quite a few phrases originated that are still prominent in today’s society. For example; using â€Å"crib† instead of house, â€Å"bling† for jewelry or glitter, â€Å"hood† to describe a juvenile delinquent and â€Å"buzz†, referring to someone shaving their head. Most rec