“Yo word is yo bond”: Black Semantics, Discourse Communities and Translanguaging Spaces

The term “Black Semantics” refers to a core of words and phraseological units typical of African American culture. Many of these expressions are, in a sense, translingual, as Black English is not a dialect, but a distinct language that coexists with Standard English, and the interaction between them in the African-American linguistic repertoire is governed by the same principles as those that usually govern languages in contact. The present paper aims to offer an overview of the translanguaging spaces where code-meshing between Black Semantics and Standard English occurs, focusing on the interplay of conventionality and creativity, which may be detected both in the lexicon and in the numerous linguistic practices and cultural modes of discourse. Further consideration on linguistic prejudice as a covert form of racism will be offered.