Abstract

This study aims at investigating the Facebook language in terms of content and form as used by Jordanian university students from a sociolinguistic perspective. It also attempts to examine the effect of the sociolinguistic factors such as sex and religion. Moreover, this study seeks to throw light upon the types of linguistic choices employed by the students and to figure out the motivations behind using this form of writing. The data were collected by means of interviews. In addition, the researcher collected some data and messages from students’ profiles after taking their permission. The findings of this study showed that there are certain linguistic features and functions used in the Facebook language. Besides, the major argument developed in such a study is that the language used in the Facebook has some peculiarities which distinguish it from other forms of language. Furthermore, it was quite noticeable that the language of Facebook appears to be conditioned by sociological factors such as sex and religion.

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