www.idosr.org Anyanwu and Udoh ©IDOSR PUBLICATIONS International Digital Organization for Scientific Research. ISSN: 2550-7958. IDOSR JOURNAL OF COMMUNICATION AND ENGLISH 5(1) 76-83, 2020.

Corpus Linguistic Analysis of Fear-Factor Lexemes of Selected Online Newspaper Headlines on Coronavirus Pandemic

Esther Chikaodi Anyanwu and Victoria Chinwe Udoh

Department of English Language and Literature, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka. Nigeria

ABSTRACT As the world expanded, so too did the spread of diseases and their vocabulary. The spread of the corona virus disease has altered the lives of billions of people, and has equally ushered in a new vocabulary to the general populace encompassing specialist terms from the fields of epidemiology and medicine. The aim of the study was to identify those lexemes that relate to corona virus (Covid-19) and which have dominated the language discourse of Nigerians. It has been observed that most of such lexemes project fear and death of human and economic resources. The researcher randomly collected data from online Nigerian newspaper headlines that were centred on corona virus related issues, and analyzed such data using the theoretical framework of corpus linguistics. The researcher identified those linguistic terms which are associated with Covid-19 as they have overwhelmingly dominated global discourse. The study revealed that so many lexemes that relate to Covid-19 project fear, disaster, confusion, restlessness, panic and death. The researcher was able to spot new words and senses associated with the pandemic and assessed the frequency of their usage. She concluded by reiterating that the lexical wealth of every language is not limited, but rather, there are lots of various lexical units created by different professions and epidemiology and medicine are not exceptions. Keywords: Lexeme, Covid-19, Language, Fear, Medical Register, Corpus Linguistics

INTRODUCTION Language plays a very pivotal role in has correspondingly ushered in a new every human society. Without language, vocabulary to the general populace there will be chaos and anarchy in the encompassing specialist terms from the society because through language, human fields of epidemiology and medicine. beings understand one another. This paper therefore was aimed at Communication is a two-way process that exploring those lexemes that relate to involves the interactants or interlocutors. corona virus disease and which project Feedback is given either by words, fear and death of human and economic gestures or gesticulations. Recently, in resources. The researcher reviewed online human history, the world has and is newspaper headlines that were centred on witnessing the „ravaging storm‟ of corona corona virus. The newspapers used were virus infection and this has given rise to randomly selected from Nigeria so as to the use of lexical items that inject fear, identify those linguistic items that signal disaster, confusion and death into human fear, panic, and death in order to find out minds. In fact, due to global crisis, there the impact of such linguistic terms on the is now an exponential rise in usage of society. The researcher adopts the words in a very short period of time, to theoretical framework of corpus linguistic refer to corona virus disease and such analysis to achieve the objectives of the words have come to overwhelmingly study. dominate the global discourse. Covid-19 Problem of the Study is an acronym for corona virus disease The current global crisis has seen the 2019. As the spread of the disease has appearance of genuinely new words, altered the lives of billions of people, it phrases, combinations, and abbreviations

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www.idosr.org Anyanwu and Udoh which were not necessarily coined for the term within one sphere and corona virus epidemic, but which have literary speech levels and reveals seen far wider usage since it began. Also, dialectal relations of the word many lexical items that tend to instill fear and term; a lexeme used as a on the Nigerian populace have been in use general consumed unit has a since the corona virus outbreak. The specialized terminological present researcher has observed that meaning in a given sphere „fear‟ has crept into the world especially, (1301). in Nigeria since the disease has been The study of the lexemes relating to termed pandemic. covid-19 was imperative as an addition to Objective of the Study linguistic studies on the epidemiological According to [1], some of the terms with and medical register. which we have become so familiar over Scope and Delimitations of the Study the past few weeks through the news, The study was limited to lexemes social media, and government briefings (linguistic items) that relate to Covid-19 and edicts have been around for years and which are imbued with fear and (many date from the nineteenth century), which appear on the headlines of online but they have achieved new and much Nigerian newspapers. These form the wider usage to describe the situation in scope of the study, and data collected was which we currently find ourselves. The analyzed using the theoretical framework aim of the study was to identify those of corpus linguistics. lexemes that relate to Covid-19 and which Research Questions now appear in Nigerian newspapers and 1. What are those fear-factor lexemes everyday discourse so as to find out such that relate to Covid-19? new occurring lexemes and the extent to 2. To what extent do they project fear which they appear to be harbingers of and death of human and economic fear to the masses. Thus, the study of this resources? nature is deemed relevant in the present 3. To what extent do such linguistic dispensation. M. Abdiev opines that: items enrich the medical register? the systematic construction of 4. What do such lexemes every sphere and general denote/connote in the face of linguistics assigns paradigmatic Covid-19 pandemic? relations of a definite word or CONCEPTUAL CLARIFICATION Lexemes obscurity. No wonder, [2] confessed that The term "lexeme" was introduced by he: Benjamin Whorf in the 1930s and used avoided the term lexeme (instead subsequently by Morris Swadesh and of word) for personal reasons Harold Conklin and others. It was brought and used the term „morpheme. In into neurocognitive linguistics under the the American structuralist sense, influence of Conklin. According to which means that a morpheme is Spencer, the notion of “lexeme” is central phonological substance and to realizational theories of morphology cannot be simply a unit of and to the notion of “morphology by meaning (55)? itself”. It is generally assumed that Lexeme is a unit of lexical meaning that “inherent” inflections such as Plural or underlies a set of words that are related Past Tense impart a meaning to the through inflection. It is a basic abstract inflected word. unit of meaning, a unit of morphological According to M. Abdiev, „the word analysis in linguistics that roughly „lexeme‟ being one of the notions of corresponds to a set of forms taken by a general and special lexicology has not single root word. . In neurocognitive found its definite scientific interpretation linguistics, a lexeme or lexicalitem is yet (1299). To some early linguists, the understood not as a unit but as a meaning of lexeme is shrouded in subnetwork, within the linguistic information system. In the words of [3],

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www.idosr.org Anyanwu and Udoh a lexeme is a theoretical respiratory illness and recover without construct that stands for the requiring special treatment. Older unitary meaning and shared people, and those with underlying syntactic properties of a group of medical problems like cardiovascular word forms. A lexeme is stripped disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory of any inflectional endings. Thus disease, and cancer are more likely to play, plays, played, and playing develop serious illness. The best way to are all inflected forms of the prevent and slow down transmission is to lexeme play. In a similar vein, cat be well informed about the COVID-19 and cats are inflected forms of virus, the disease it causes and how it the same lexeme, i.e., cat. spreads. One protects oneself and others Although inflection creates forms from infection by washing one‟s hands or of the same lexeme, derivation using an alcohol based rub frequently and creates new lexemes (42). not touching one‟s face. The COVID-19 The lexemes chosen in the pandemic era virus spreads primarily through droplets of corona virus have been seen to play on of saliva or discharge from the nose when the psyche of individuals. This is the an infected person coughs or sneezes, so rationale behind the choice of the lexical it‟s important that one also practices item „lexeme‟ in the exploration of the respiratory etiquette. Presently, there are work. no specific vaccines or treatments for The meaning of lexeme in the present COVID-19. (https://www.who.int/health- work is anchored on M. Lynne Murphy‟s topics/coronavirus#tab=tab1). perspective of the term. According to According to an online source, in 2019, him, „a linguistic form (i.e. a bit of speech the Centers for Disease Control and and/or writing) represents a lexeme if Prevention (CDC) started monitoring the that form is conventionally associated outbreak of a new corona virus, SARS- with a non-compositional meaning. CoV-2, which causes the respiratory Lexemes, and the information about them illness now known as COVID-19. in the lexicon, are conventional – that is, Information on the virus is scarce at these form–meaning pairings are common present. In the past, respiratory knowledge among the speakers of the conditions that develop from corona language, and we have had to learn these viruses, such as SARS and MERS, have particular associations of form and spread through close contacts. On meaning from other members of the February 17, 2020, the Director-General of language community‟. the WHO presented at a media briefing Corona virus (COVID-19) the following updates on how often the The name “corona virus” comes from the symptoms of COVID-19 are severe or crown-like projections on their surfaces. fatal, using data from 44,000 people with “Corona” in Latin means “halo” or a confirmed diagnosis: Symptoms vary “crown.” Corona virus disease 2019 from person-to-person with COVID-19. It (COVID-19) is defined as illness caused by may produce few or no symptoms. a novel corona virus now called severe However, it can also lead to severe illness acute respiratory syndrome corona virus and may be fatal. Common symptoms 2 (SARS-CoV-2; formerly called 2019- include: fever, breathlessness, cough and nCoV), which was first identified amid an potential loss of taste or smell. outbreak of respiratory illness cases in Pandemic Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China. It was The term pandemic relates to geographic initially reported to the WHO on spread and is used to describe a disease December 31, 2019. On January 30, 2020, that affects a whole country or the entire the WHO declared the COVID-19 outbreak world. A pandemic is the worldwide a global health emergency. On March 11, spread of a new disease. Pandemic is an 2020, the WHO declared COVID-19 a epidemic of disease that has spread global pandemic. across a large region, for instance Most people infected with the COVID-19 multiple continents, or worldwide. The virus will experience mild to moderate corona virus is pandemic. (Wikipedia).

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www.idosr.org Anyanwu and Udoh Medical Register portray the extent to which the disease Every profession has its technical term. has spread and also to explain the The medical profession is imbued with measures that have been put in place to medical jargons that are used at one point curb the spread of the virus and also to or the other. In the era of Covid-19, express what should be done or not to be certain linguistic terms have been used to done. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK Corpus Linguistics word. It is indeed the literal, explicit of The theoretical framework for the present factual meaning. On the other hand, study is corpus linguistics. According to connotative meaning is implied or hidden [4], corpus linguistics is an area which meaning of a word. Knowledge of these focuses upon a set of procedures, or terms become imperative here since they methods, for studying language… focuses will also be employed in the analysis of upon a group of methods for studying the data collected for the present language. This is an important research. observation, but needs to be qualified. Corona virus and Its spread in our Corpus linguistics is not a monolithic, Contemporary Society consensually agreed set of methods and Coronavirus was first identified the virus procedures for the exploration of in Wuhan, China. Since then, the virus has language. While some generalizations can spread to other countries, both in and be made that characterize much of what outside Asia, leading the World Health is called „corpus linguistics‟, it is very Organization (WHO) to declare this as a important to realize that corpus pandemic. As of March 23, more than linguistics is a heterogeneous field. 340,000 people have contracted the virus Differences exist within corpus linguistics worldwide, causing over 14,000 deaths. In which separate out and subcategorize the U.S., the virus has affected over varying approaches to the use of corpus 35,000 people, resulting in more than 450 data (20). Corpus linguistics is the study deaths. The first people with COVID-19 and analysis of data obtained from a had links to an animal and seafood corpus. The main task of the corpus market. This fact suggested that animals linguist is not only to find the data but to initially transmitted the virus to humans. analyze it. However, people with a more recent Denotative and Connotative meaning diagnosis had no connections with or [5] speaks about the „centrality of exposure to the market, confirming that meaning to virtually all linguistic humans can pass the virus to each other. concerns‟. In his view: According to an online source, Meaning is what language is all researchers first isolated a corona virus in about, the analyst who ignores 1937. They found a corona virus it to concentrate solely on responsible for an infectious bronchitis matters of form severely virus in birds that had the ability to impoverishes the natural and devastate poultry stocks. Scientists first necessary subject matter of the found evidence of human corona viruses discipline and ultimately (HCoV) in the 1960s in the noses of distorts the character of the people with the common cold. Among phenomena described (12). humans, corona virus infections most According to [6], the notion of meaning in often occur during the winter months and linguistics, concerns that which is early spring. People regularly become ill expressed by sentences, utterances and with a cold due to a corona virus and may their components. Meaning is the content catch the same one about 4 months later. conveyed in communication by language, This is because corona virus antibodies the message or thought in the mind of a do not last for a long time. Also, the speaker or writer encoded in language antibodies for one strain of corona virus and sent to a hearer or reader who may be ineffective against another decodes it (129). The denotative meaning one.(https://www.medicalnewstoday.com of a word is the ordinary meaning of that /articles/256521).

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Presentation of Data on Fear-Factor Lexemes in Newspaper Headlines S/N Lexemes Denotation cum Frequency of Degree of fear: connotation Occurrence High (H+), Mid (M+), Low (L) 1. Pandemic Global 82.5% H+ 2. Lockdown Social distancing 77% H+ strategy 3. Confirmed cases Relating to the virus 80% M 4. Total rises Increase in number 52.5% H+ of cases 5. Diseases In relation to other 16.2% L flu infections (e.g. SARS) 6. Contract tracing To determine new 10% L cases 7.` Dangerous pathogen Relates to the virus 1% H+ 8. Discharged After treatment 66% L 9. Spread Contagious 92.2% H 10. Coronavirus Pandemic, not 75% H+ outbreak endemic 11. Symptoms Visible signs on 57.1% M carrier 12. Treatment Centre Improvised clinics 35% H 13. Plunges World Effect on Economy 55% H+ Economy Into Brutal Recession 14. No mask, no To curb spread 21% H+ movement 15. Palliatives Measure 5% M 16. Coronavirus test For confirmation 66.2% M 17. Covid-19 Severity of cases 20% H+ Complication 18. Traditional medicine Relating to use of 2.1% L herbs 19. Stay at home order Social distancing 78% M 20. Centre for disease Body in charge 35% L control 21. Survivor Ex-patient 5% L 22 Infectious disease Contagious 76% H+ 23 Social gathering 6 feet apart 68% M directive 24 Second death Loss of a patient 22% H+ 25 Tally hit (232) Increase in number 27% H+ of cases 26 New cases recorded After coronavirus 40% H+ test (test result) 27 Stronger immunity Boost of immune 32% L system 28 No reinfection Reoccurrence of the 43% L disease 29 Evacuation Move 30 Isolation centres Improvised 67% H

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www.idosr.org Anyanwu and Udoh 31 FG reduces 2020 Consequence of the 2% L budget over outbreak coronavirus 32 Orders production Consequence of the 33% H+ of face masks outbreak 33 Test negative After coronavirus 78% M test (test result) 34 Test positive After coronavirus 65% H+ test (test result) 35 Killed Terminal 48% H+ 36 Self-isolating Form of distancing 55.4% H+ 37 Self-quarantining Form of distancing 38% H+ 38 Vaccine Possible treatment 10% L 39 Ventilator Form of assistance 13% L to patient 40 Covid-19 Disease 95% H+ (Where Degree of Fear =High (H+), Mid (M+), Low (L) Analysis and Findings 2020). The predominant use of the lexeme A total of 37 linguistic items were „Covid-19‟ in so many headlines of randomly selected for the study. The Nigerian newspapers is explicated below: table above shows the lexemes that relate i. ‘Covid-19 Lockdown: Covid-19 and the frequency of occurrence Akeredolu makes U-Turn, of the lexical items as used in the cancels Easter Services in Nigerian newspaper headlines. The Ondo‟ percentage rate of the occurrence is ii. Covid-19: Easter Panic Buying, equally specified for each lexeme. The Extended Lockdown Hits column that bears the degree of the fear Deltans over First death factor and this is designated high plus, iii. Covid-19: Details of Buhari‟s high, mid, and low. The analysis above meeting with Osibanjo on reveals that Covid-19 carries an aura of Friday fear, dread, and confusion. This is evident iv. Covid-19: Obasa continues in the choice of linguistic items/lexemes Food Support Programmes in in the Nigerian newspapers. For instance, Lagos Communities terms like social distancing, and lock v. Panic as Policemen prevent down are fearful but stringent ways of suspected Covid-19 patient avoidance of the virus. Nigerians live in from visiting isolation centre in fear of the dreaded virus. Covid-19 was Lagos described as an „infectious disease‟, quite vi. Covid-19 patient dies in Lagos contagious (lexical item 22). Some of the hospital words were consistently used. For vii. Covid-19: FG may extend instance, in Punch newspaper, we were lockdown as cases rise to 305. told that: viii. Covid-19: Ondo Govt makes u- the president of the academic turn on Easter services after Staff union of Universities, .Prof. meeting with CAN Biodun Ogunnyemi on Thursday, ix. How Warri Pastor died of asked both the federal and state Covid-19 –Messy details of why governments to make basic Okowa did not mention his needs available for the masses name during the lockdown period x. Covid-19: Pastor Kumuyi (2ndApril, 2020). Breaks Silence Covid-19 has also become a regular term. xi. Covid-19: GTBank has put The headline of independent newspaper smiles on the Faces of Their says „Covid-19: ASUU donates protective Customers in These Trying items to Anambra Government (9 April, Times

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www.idosr.org Anyanwu and Udoh xii. Covid-19: Nnamdi Kanu xiv. Federal Government concluded Delivers Trailer Full of Rice to plans to extend the lockdown South East curfew imposed on Nigerians. xiii. Covid-19: FG releases names of xv. Onu to unveil first Nigerian- 13 Nigerian who died abroad made ventilator today FINDINGS The study conducted revealed that „fear‟ „quick spread‟. The word „survivor‟ which has become a serious dehumanizing refers to „ex-patient‟ connotes „won factor that the populace is experiencing. battle‟. That is to say that the nation is The use of the lexeme „second death‟ involved in a battle; the individual who relates to mortality rate (in this case, the survives it is termed a „survivor‟ becomes death of the patient). However, the lexeme he/she has won the battle. has a biblical allusion which is also The researcher equally found out that second death. The fear of second death is lexical units of professionals can also be equally high as recorded on lexical item used by those who have no connection 24. „Tally hit 232‟ explicated on linguistic with their profession. In fact, most of the item 25 depicts the anxiety and people who are now using restlessness evident in the country at the epidemiological and medical linguistic time of the virus. The recommendation to words and lexemes do not have any resort to „traditional medicine‟ portrays connection with such profession. This is the confusion Covid-19 has generated, indeed a boost to linguistic knowledge. although not by the generality of the CONCLUSION populace with a frequency of 2.1%. The Words are indeed at the core of every lexeme „Covi-19 is predominantly used in human communication. The words we use Nigerian newspapers. embody a lot of meanings. As noted It was discovered that the intensity of the earlier, the people involved in any fear factor did not tally with the communication process react either percentage use of the lexeme. Again, the positively or negatively depending on the rate at which the lexeme occurs in the chosen lexemes or linguistic items and newspaper in most cases, differ also on the situation at hand. The lexical significantly from the result or impact of items used in relation to the Covid-19 are such lexemes on the individuals on the harbingers of fear, confusion, loss, death people. For instance, lexeme number 25 (both human and economic), suspense, tagged „Tally hit‟ at the rate of 27%, while anxiety, restlessness etc. The use of the degree of fear and fear related issues words like social distancing, palliatives, is still high. Thus, a lexeme which is traditional medicines are measures that consistently used in communication may could provide solace to the mind. Thus, have a low impact on an individual. The while some lexical items can trigger off rate at which the populace reacts to the fear and anxiety, some can be comforting. use of certain lexemes depends greatly on In fact, the outbreak of Covid-19 has the denotation or connotative meanings ushered in new lexemes which have come of such linguistic items rather than on the overwhelmingly to dominate global frequency of use of such lexical items. discourse, even to the exclusion of most In addition, the study also revealed that other societal issues. We must conclude there are so many lexemes that denote by categorically stating that the lexical fear, disaster, confusion, restlessness. wealth of every language is not limited; Such terms also depict the extent to but there are lots of various lexical units which Covid-19 endangers both life and created by different professions and economy of a nation. Words like: epidemiology and medicine are not pandemic, infectious, contagious signify exceptions. REFERENCES 1. Bernadette Paton, (2020). Social (https://public.oed.com/blog/the- Change and Linguistic Change: The language-of-covid-19/) Language of Covid-19. 2. Ronald W. Langacker ,1987. Foundations of Cognitive

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