Hybridisms in the word formation of contemporary Italian

Abstract

This paper addresses the creation of hybridisms in contemporary Italian word-formation. Based on a sample of new words attested in the last two decades, hybridisms (mainly between Italian and English) are described according to morphological parameters. The study highlights that the presence of English elements is concentrated in derivation and compounding but is attested in almost all the mechanisms used in Italian for the creation of new words. English elements frequently appear as derivational bases, combining forms and compound constituents, sporadically as affixes.