Abstract
The study aimed at evaluating the social motivations behind the use of swearwords in the language of miraa traders. The study was carried out in Ka?ra?tira? open-air miraa (khat) market in Mbeere South sub-county within Embu County. Twelve negotiations involving both male and female traders were recorded and subsequently analyzed. The analysis indicates that swearing is an intricate social practice that is highly gendered, and which is used to not only socialize but also to achieve highly precious transactional goals in the miraa market. Significantly, swearing is a way in which the Miraa traders establish both their social and linguistic identity.
Highlights
The findings of our study may suggest that swearing behavior in the language of male and female traders is dictated by offensive judgments with which both groups perceive swearing
This paper aimed at evaluating the social functions that swearing serves in the language of traders in a khat market
The analysis shows that swearing is employed as means of achieving varied social goals and trading compellingly
Summary
In almost all languages, swearing is a linguistic device that serves both personal and interpersonal functions. It is for this reason that this linguistic phenomenon deserves the attention of linguists and others interested in language [1]. From a sociolinguistics point of view, swearing may be used to identify with friends or age mates and show solidarity, or to isolate people. This is especially in consideration of contextual variables such as the speaker-listener relationship including gender and the social-physical setting [4]
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