Blending languages online

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You’ve likely noticed the increase in multilingual or blended content online.

English, preferably flawless, is no longer the assumed default online, and users question traditional notions of how “pure” English, or their respective language, should be.

Good or bad, this can be challenging for editors and localization experts.

Digital multilingualism—blending multiple languages—reflects both internet globalization and the complex cultural idiosyncrasies people around the globe want to keep. They want to protect their identity from growing outside influence.

Many users are increasingly bilingual and fluent in “translanguaging”. They create hybrid expressions like Spanglish, Denglish (German/English), or Hinglish, often adopting platform-specific conventions.

Multilingual memes require multicultural competence. That can be puzzling and even uncomfortable when localizing content. 

Germans, for example, use profane and explicit words in English they would never use in German, e.g., shitstorm, even on national TV. Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel used the word in 2013 to describe the Eurozone crisis. Maybe Germans don’t fully understand the meaning? They do, but it doesn't bother them when used in English.

Young Germans have also adopted hip-hop language that resembles the original English in sound but lacks the same negative connotations. For example, terms like “Dicker,” “Digga,” or “Dicka” (which all mean “fat man”) and “Alter” or “Alta” for “dude,” which translates to “old man.” 

“Shitstorm” is recognized in the reputed German dictionary Duden, the equivalent of the Oxford Dictionary. It is not flagged as a slang word but simply as “Noun, masculine–a storm of protest in a communications medium of the internet, which is associated in part with insulting remarks.” 

The word was named “Anglicism of the Year” in 2013 by a panel of language experts who said it “filled a gap in the German language”. 

Can you imagine an anchor on an American TV or radio station using “shitstorm” with such ease? It would be bleeped out.

Now, imagine you translate and localize German content and the word “shitstorm” appears. Would you sanitize it or keep it as a “German” quip? 

The French, on the other hand, draw a line at “le Weekend”. The centuries-old language watchdog Académie Française has warned that the growing use of English by public and private bodies risks poor communication and could even undermine social cohesion. 

Translation tools and multilingual interfaces often overlook these subtle methods of mixing languages for expressive purposes or conveying their unique perspective on the world. A case in point is how animal sounds are rendered differently in other languages, even though we all hear the same. 

So, someone fluent in German who plays with an English-speaking child could be misunderstood when using “wauwau” to depict a dog’s bark.

As a writer, translator, or editor, be aware that 

Digital multilingualism reflects cultural identities, not a linguistic deficiency

Code-switching and translanguaging follow sophisticated patterns

Multilingual memes function as cultural shorthand and strengthen community bonds

Language boundaries are increasingly fluid

What makes you cringe may leave people in other cultures indifferent 

Bottom line: As you write or edit content, recognize that digital multilingualism isn’t a temporary trend but a fundamental shift in how global audiences express themselves.

And since the web has no borders, a viral “shitstorm“ in Germany could reach France by “le Weekend”.

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