Youth slang as a social phenomenon

The article is devoted to youth slang as a social phenomenon, taking into account the traditional linguistic approach. The main results of the study are related to the study of youth slang and the reasons motivating young people to use slang in communication with each other. In this regard, youth slang has some similarities with argot – the language of socially closed group of people, but with cardinal differences: slang does not have the original purpose of separation from the rest of society and conspiracy, does not “close” the social group – these processes are secondary, not expressed in the same extent and are a consequence of the phenomenon of intragroup favoritism, also youth slang has a much greater number of speakers than any argot language. The application of analytical method in the study of slang as a social phenomenon on the material obtained from the sociological survey of students allowed to determine the role and place of slang in the life of young people. Thus, based on the data obtained as a result of the survey, it is possible to talk about a high degree of integration of youth slang into the student environment. The social dialect under consideration has become a natural language for the majority of the youth social group. The obtained data and the conclusions made on them are confirmed by the provisions in the theoretical part, and determine the general trends associated with the development of youth slang.