In linguistics, a protologism is a newly used or coined word, a nonce word, that has been repeated but not gained acceptance beyond its original users or been published independently of the coiners. [1] [2] The word may be proposed, may be extremely new, or may be established only within a very limited group of people. [3] [4] A protologism becomes a neologism as soon as it appears in published press, on a website, or in a book, independently of the coiner [5]—though, most definitively, in a dictionary. [6] A word whose developmental stage is between that of a protologism (freshly coined) and a neologism (a new word) is a prelogism. [7]
Protologisms constitute one stage in the development of neologisms. A protologism is coined to fill a gap in the language, with the hope of its becoming an accepted word. [8] [9] As an example, when the word protologism itself was coined—in 2003 [10] by the American literary theorist Mikhail Epstein—it was autological: an example of the thing it describes. [11]
About the concept and his name for it, Epstein wrote:
I suggest calling such brand new words 'protologisms' (from Greek protos, meaning 'first, original' and Greek logos, meaning 'word'; cf. prototype, protoplasm). The protologism is a freshly minted word not yet widely accepted. It is a verbal prototype, which may eventually be adopted for public service or remain a whim of linguo-poetic imagination. [12]
According to Epstein, every word in use started out as a protologism, subsequently became a neologism, and then gradually grew to be part of the language. [12]
There is no fixed rule determining when a protologism becomes a stable neologism, [13] and according to Kerry Maxwell, author of Brave New Words:
[A] protologism is unlikely to make the leap to neologism status unless society connects with the word or identifies a genuine need for it [...] there's no guarantee that simple exposure to these creations will be effective in getting them used, as discovered by British inventor Sir James Dyson when he fruitlessly attempted to promote a verb dyson (by analogy with hoover) in the early 2000s. [14]
protologism.
In linguistics, a protologism is a newly used or coined word, a nonce word, that has been repeated but not gained acceptance beyond its original users or been published independently of the coiners. [1] [2] The word may be proposed, may be extremely new, or may be established only within a very limited group of people. [3] [4] A protologism becomes a neologism as soon as it appears in published press, on a website, or in a book, independently of the coiner [5]—though, most definitively, in a dictionary. [6] A word whose developmental stage is between that of a protologism (freshly coined) and a neologism (a new word) is a prelogism. [7]
Protologisms constitute one stage in the development of neologisms. A protologism is coined to fill a gap in the language, with the hope of its becoming an accepted word. [8] [9] As an example, when the word protologism itself was coined—in 2003 [10] by the American literary theorist Mikhail Epstein—it was autological: an example of the thing it describes. [11]
About the concept and his name for it, Epstein wrote:
I suggest calling such brand new words 'protologisms' (from Greek protos, meaning 'first, original' and Greek logos, meaning 'word'; cf. prototype, protoplasm). The protologism is a freshly minted word not yet widely accepted. It is a verbal prototype, which may eventually be adopted for public service or remain a whim of linguo-poetic imagination. [12]
According to Epstein, every word in use started out as a protologism, subsequently became a neologism, and then gradually grew to be part of the language. [12]
There is no fixed rule determining when a protologism becomes a stable neologism, [13] and according to Kerry Maxwell, author of Brave New Words:
[A] protologism is unlikely to make the leap to neologism status unless society connects with the word or identifies a genuine need for it [...] there's no guarantee that simple exposure to these creations will be effective in getting them used, as discovered by British inventor Sir James Dyson when he fruitlessly attempted to promote a verb dyson (by analogy with hoover) in the early 2000s. [14]
protologism.