An analysis of linguistic creativity among international audiences in the Hallyu fandom

Abstract

Fandom is seen as a unique community that has somehow developed a unique language used among themselves. Korean Wave (Hallyu) fandom is one of the fandoms that has been receiving a considerable amount of public and media attention due to its worldwide popularity. Because of that, Hallyu fans from around the world, especially K-pop fans, frequently engage or communicate using certain terms and phrases that individuals outside of the fandom may well not understand, whether through in-person interactions or online communication. Hence, the present study intends to investigate the language use pattern and attitudes of transnational K-pop fans in online text communities on social networking site, Twitter. The study primarily focuses on global fans with diverse backgrounds. Sociolinguistic data obtained from ethnographic observations, with fan tweets being the major source, and qualitative surveys, provide insights into types of fandom language use within the community and the thoughts behind using those terms. The findings revealed three main patterns of fandom language use: Korean subcultural, English with K-pop meanings, and English Korean words. Moreover, this study provided fans’ language attitudes and how fans felt a sense of belonging as a reflection through using fandom language in the community.