Argo is ... Meaning, history of the origin of the "secret language", examples

After a flurry of mantula in a smoke boiler on coal. My partner, a guy-kiryuhu, was tricked by a scoop on a flywheel and a cloak in a clueless clue to one animal with fornication, he scratched anthracite from his ball.

What did it just happen? - you ask. Some people call such things thieves' jargon, slang, profanity, and so on. But it’s more correct to say that this is an example of argo. How often have you heard this concept? Probably not. But believe me, you meet him every day and don’t even think about knowing the basics of a secret language.

What is the "secret" language of argo?

Argo` - from fr. argo`t, cf. R. Argo is a special, "secret" language that is characteristic of a narrow social or professional group. It consists of a specific dictionary, which includes elements taken from foreign languages ​​(gypsy, German, English). Argo is a widespread phenomenon in the thieves 'world (thieves' argo), among the aeon-peddlers and artisan-workers.

Argo is a language that is distinguished by the instability of the dictionary, the rapid variability of words and their meanings. In this regard, among philologists, the question of the initial origin of argo is still debatable.

Origin

It is impossible to determine exactly when this language was born. In the same way, it is difficult to date the appearance of any language, especially since argo is a very peculiar linguistic phenomenon. There are two main theories of its origin:

1. Monogenetic theory. She was defended by the English writer and traveler George Borrow. In favor of his views is the fact that all European languages ​​of argos have words similar in writing and pronunciation, denoting the same objects. In particular: lenza, arto, bisto in the meaning of "water", "bread" and "priest". This is due to the missionary work of priests who, since the time of the Great Geographical Discoveries, have traveled to almost all corners of the planet and left there knowledge of the sacrament and Christian teaching.
2. Polygenetic theory. It was defended by the Italian linguist Graciadio Isaia Ascoli. It was the theory of argo polygenesis that spread to a greater extent among the late researchers. Since the terminology of this language changes with extraordinary speed and unpredictability under the influence of sometimes completely random events, the origin of individual words is rather difficult to determine.

Argo and jargon: what is the difference

It should immediately be said that there is still a difference between them. But why are they confused? Both jargon and argo are varieties of sociolect. The etymology of both words goes back to the French language. Both jargon and argo differ from the generally accepted language by the presence of specific vocabulary and expressiveness of vocabulary. However, they are different in their functions:

• The goal of the jargon is to relate itself to a narrow social group, to determine its involvement in it through language. That is, jargon only shows belonging to a particular stratum of society (jargon of programmers, drivers, youth jargon, etc.).
• The goal of argo is to keep a secret in communication, fencing itself off from others. Although there is some convention. Suppose a criminal argo is well known to those who are somehow involved in this environment, that is, investigators and forensics. Nevertheless, the preservation of some secret, the desire to make their words understandable only to a narrow group, distinguishes argo from jargon.

Argo Examples

And now again we will consider an excerpt from the text, which, most likely, remained incomprehensible to the majority.

After a flurry of mantula in a smoke boiler on coal. My partner, a guy-kiryuhu, was tricked by a scoop on a flywheel and a cloak in a clueless clue to one animal with fornication, he scratched anthracite from his ball.

Baldaev et al., 1992, p. 325-327

Pretty complicated, huh? It is very difficult for an unenlightened person to understand what is at stake. This is an excerpt from the everyday life of a prisoner, and if we translate it into a language that we understand, we get something like the following:

After the hospital I work in a stoker. My partner, a prisoner who does not belong to the thieves' world, was put in a punishment cell for a fight. He shoved a shovel over the head of a crook (the one with the knife) who stole bread from his jacket.

Translation by D. S. Baldaev

So much clearer, isn't it? But if you think about it, then you and I own argo at a minimum level, without even thinking about it. Check this in the table.

Many of the words that originally belonged to the arrogated language migrated into our vocabulary. At the same time, some of them retained their original value, and some changed it.