Sónia Marques presented at Semiofest 2018 on creating neologisms (new words) to legitimize new ideas and concepts, promote social change, and facilitate understanding. She provided numerous examples of Portuguese neologisms she created relating to topics like family relationships, technology, work-life balance, prejudice, and sustainability. Creating new words allows new phenomena to be discussed and shared, thus promoting their acceptance and social relevance. Semioticians play an important role in legitimizing emerging concepts through terminology.

1. Semiofest 2018, Mumbai
CREATING
NEOLOGISMS
TO PROVOKE
AND SHARE
CHANGE
Sónia Marques

2. New ideas are made real when
they are given a new name.
So new words are
a fundamental step to:
changing society
promoting new behaviours.
and giving people access to
new ideas.
Words are instruments
of innovation.

3. TO GAIN
LEGITIMACY
AND SOCIAL
RELEVANCE.
Le·git·i·ma·cy
le·git·i·mate·ly
le·git·i·mate·ness
le·git·i·ma·tion
de·le·git·i·mate,
de·le·git·i·mat·ed,
de·le·git·i·mat·ing.
de·le·git·i·ma·tion,
non·le·git·i·mate,
post·le·git·i·ma·tion,
qua·si-le·git·i·mate,
qua·si-le·git·i·mate·ly,
rel·e·vance,
rel·e·van·cy,
rel·e·vant·ly,
non·rel·e·vant,
un·rel·e·vant,
un·rel·e·vant·ly,

4. “A researcher that applies
Semiotics”
“A communication analyst”
“A cultural analyst”
“A specialist in interpretability”
Semioticista Semiotician

5. “It’s not a brother, but it’s like
one. It is the fruit of my
stepfather's first marriage and
I am the fruit of my mother's
first marriage.
With this ‘brother’ I do not
share my mother nor my
father, but, in fact, we share
years of daily living.
(...)
No, there is not a blood
relationship, but he is like my
brother.”
Dirmão
[Divorce + Brother]
Stepbrother.

6. Tampismo
[Work + Camping]

7. Empregaz
[Job + Ephemeral]

8. Genetor
[Genetically + Objector]
Someone that avoids
genetically modified food.

9. Falar “materialês”
Talk ‘objectlish’
[Material + Language]
To communicate through the
objects that one uses.

10. NEW WORDS
TO SHARE
THE CHANGING
CULTURAL
NORMS.
shar·a·ble, share·a·ble,
shar·er,
half-shared,
non·shar·ing,
un·shar·a·ble,
un·share·a·ble,
un·shared,
un·shar·ing,
chang·ed·ness
un·changed
un·chang·ing
un·chang·ing·ly
un·chang·ing·ness
cul·tur·al·ly,
an·ti·cul·tur·al,
an·ti·cul·tur·al·ly,
de-cul·tur·al,

11. Intatuado “Untattooed”
[Un + tattooed]
Someone that does not have
tattoos.

12. Despraiante
[Un + Beach + Person]
Someone that does not go to
the beach and has an
‘untanned’ body.

13. Partilhador
[Sharer]
High degree of usage of social
networks.
Despartilhador
[Unsharer]
Low degree of usage of social
networks.

14. Sóligado
[Lonely + Connected]
Tecnoalheado
[Tecno + Alienated]
Alienated behaviour due to
frequent use of new
technologies.

15. Paiscóptero
[Parents + Helicopters]
Filhocratas
[Children + Autocrat]

16. Brincasar
[Play + Home]
Play in the house.
Brincarruar
[Play + Street]
Play in the street.

17. NEW WORDS
FOR THE SAKE
OF CLARITY,
TO MAKE IT
EASIER TO SAY
AND UNDERSTAND
AN IDEA.
un·clar·i·ty
eas·y·like
o·ver·eas·y
say·er
self-mak·ing
pre·un·der·stand,
pre·un·der·stood,
pre·un·der·stand·ing.
un·der·stand·ing·ly,
non·un·der·stand·ing,
non·un·der·stand·ing·ly,
self-un·der·stand·ing,
i·de·a·less,
pre·i·de·a,
sub·i·de·a

18. Tazer Weisure,
[Work + Leisure]
Free time spent doing work or
work-related tasks.
Traférias
[Work + Vacations]
A vacation where a significant
amount of time is spent
reading email and performing
other work-related tasks.

19. Tempejado
[Time + Dashed]
An intersected time.

20. Telefobia Nomophobia,
[Mobile + Phobia]
also see Uaifaifobia
[Wifi + Phobia]
The fear of being without
mobile phone, to be
unreachable.

21. Telecasado
[Mobile + Married]
Someone married to his/her
mobile phone.
Tecnosó
[Techno + Lonely]
The isolation of technological
company.

22. Ventira
[Lie + Truth]
Half truth, half lie.
Quasidade
[Almost + Truth]
An almost truth.

23. Tempista
[Time + Specialist]
Nostalgic interior designer.

24. Mortista “Goodbyer”,
[Death + Specialist]
Someone specialised in
goodbyes.

25. Pandar “Strollalk”,
[Stroll + Walk]
Walk in walkways.

26. NEW WORDS TO
SHARE NEW IDEAS
AND CATEGORIES
IN ORDER TO
PROMOTE
NEW BEHAVIOURS
AND COMBAT
PREJUDICES.
shar·a·ble, share·a·ble,
shar·er,
half-shared,
non·shar·ing, adjective,
un·shar·a·ble,
un·share·a·ble,
un·shared,
pro·mot·able,
pro·mot·a·bil·i·ty,
pre·pro·mote,
pre·pro·mot·ed,
pre·pro·mot·ing.
be·hav·ior·al, adjective
be·hav·ior·al·ly,
in·ter·be·hav·ior,
in·ter·be·hav·ior·al,
in·ter·be·hav·ior·al·ly,

27. Segaz “Senioracious”,
[Senior + Sagacious]
Elder with health, sagacity and
vivacity.

28. Desidade “Unaged”,
[Un + Age]
Fights ageism, the prejudice
concerning age (see ‘ageism’).

29. Homenista ”Manist”,
[Man + Feminist]
Feminist man.

30. Matrismo “Womenist”,
[Women + “ist”]
A movement that
acknowledges and celebrates
the ways in which women are
different from men.

31. Mulherbono
[Women + Bono]
Reproductive work,
feminine pro-bono work;
one of the manifestations of
genre inequality.

32. Grante
[(Immi)grant and Emi(grant)]
An advocate for the end of
frontiers.
A person that questions the
concepts of ‘immigrant’ and
‘emigrant’.

33. Sociodependente
[Sociability + Addiction]
An alternative to the
expression ‘drug addicted’.

34. Biocidas “Biocides”,
An alternative to the
expression ‘pesticides’.

35. Indescartável
[Un + Disposable]
The opposite of disposable.

36. Semioticians can create new terms
to legitimise new phenomena,
thus promoting their social adoption and sharing.

37. Obrigada Thank you
Semiofest 2018, Mumbai
CREATING
NEOLOGISMS
TO PROVOKE
AND SHARE
CHANGE
Sónia Marques