Assessment Of Zinza Language Lexical Change: A Case Of Kome Island Sengerema District

ABSTRACT

The principal concern of this study was the assessment of lexical change in Zinza

language. In particular, the study firstly explored the extent of Zinza lexical change

in Kome Island; secondly, it examined linguistic factors for Zinza lexical change;

and thirdly, described non linguistic factors behind Zinza lexical change. This study

employed both purposive and simple random sampling methods. The data were

gathered from four villages namely Luhiza, Isenyi, Bugolo, and Buhama located in

Kome Island, Sengerema district through semi structured interview, introspection

and elicitation. The study was guided by the theory, known as Assimilation Theory.

The findings in this study revealed that, Zinza has been affected heavily by lexical

change. There are a lot of lexical replacements which have been borrowed from other

languages. These replacements are used alongside proto Zinza lexical items while

others are used without proto lexical items. However, there are some aspects of

language use where lexical items in this language enjoy maintenance. These aspects

include greetings, parts of the body, gender reference, and how to offer condolences.

The study also found that, linguistic factors such as the nature of Zinza language and

language contact were the driving force for Zinza lexical change. Moreover, non

linguistic factors such as intermarriage, education, advancement of science and

technology, decline of socialization gap between the youth and elders, immigration

and children shift in language transmission were recorded to influence lexical change

in Kome Island. It is recommended in this study that, further study should be carried

out to examine whether or not the other linguistic aspects such as phonology,

morphology, and syntax have been subjected to changes.