Abstract
The Hybridization of Turkish through English: An Analysis of the Shop and Place Names in Samsun
This study is a descriptive one and covers the investigation of shop and place names with English words or sounds gathered as a result of the two-month observation of the researchers in the centrum of Samsun. Names reflecting any effect of English were collected in a pool, and following an in-depth analysis, they were categorized by the researchers under the framework of the hybridization of Turkish through English. The covered shop and place names were considered in terms of morphological and syntactical features while placing them under different categories. The yielded categories indicate that Turkish is hybridized through English by using totally English words and sounds (The Garden Cafe, Europcar, Kids Castle), beginning the syntax in English and then continuing in Turkish (Ultraline Dış Cephe Sistemleri, Eurofix Gemicilik, Sunrise Kuaför), beginning the syntax in Turkish and then continuing in English (Aksa Botanic Center, Vatan Computer, Yataş Bedding), English-izing the Turkish words (Marca Cafe, İlhan’s Halı, Caploonba), Turkish-izing the English words (Campüs Cafe, Kempıl, Rengarenk Cosmetik & Accessories), and combining Turkish and English components in one word (Samwin Cam Balkon, Efetech, Atamark). These categories yielded by this study clearly explain how the interlanguage relationship between English and Turkish appears in the context of shop and place names located in the centrum of Samsun. As an integral part of daily life and a readily-observable phenomenon, this inter-language relationship handled on a limited scale under this study provides remarkable clues as to the direction the general relationship between Turkish and English moves towards. <
Keywords
Turkish, English, hybridization, dominance, shop and place names