Par reklāmu un sludinājumiem
On Advertising and Advertisements

Summary/Abstract: One of the most powerful instruments to influence the potential customer is language, through direct language use – vocabulary, word forms or syntax – as well as phraseology, different kinds of metaphors and puns. Parallel to the standardized written language, an e-language is emerging, promoted by the dynamic development process of the IT field. This e-language is characterized by brief, concrete and precise expression and is widespread in advertising. Such expression requires a creative approach to the language, a development of new words which, on the one hand, become the brands of the products; on the other hand, they have to be accepted and used by clients. The e-language advertisements increasingly show another novelty, namely that clients are frequently addressed by the second person singular instead of plural, which is the traditional form to address unknown or respectable persons in the Latvian language. This phenomenon is perceived in the advertisements of mobile phones and communications as well as in the advertisements of cars and supermarkets, which leads to the assumption that the sellers are only addressing the youth. In general, it is pleasant to note that many companies are paying attention to a cultivated and harmonious language even in advertisements, but there also are tendencies which should be eradicated because they are jeopardizing the system of the Latvian language, for instance, the use of the Latvian genitive in a wrong word-order.

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