Abstract:

Code-switching is a kind of language variety, which is characterized by being ubiquitous and complicated. Fruitful achievements have been obtained in different fields such as sociolinguistics, syntax, psycholinguistics, pragmatics and conversational analysis. In the process of globalization, people from various countries and nations have more chances to communicate in the aspects of politics, economy and culture. The bilinguals or even multilinguals become more and more as well. Inevitably, in daily communication, code-switching has become a noticeable language phenomenon with high frequency. Based on the theories of linguists from home and abroad, the thesis tries to explain the reasons, classification, and motivations of code-switching, thus to explore the role that code-switching plays in different areas of life. There is practical significance on promoting language communication by using code-switching reasonably.

Keywords: code-switching; language variety; classification of code-switching

摘  要：

语码转换是一种普遍存在的复杂的语言变体现象，在社会语言学、语法学、心理语言学、语用学、会话分析等领域都取得了丰硕的研究成果。随着全球化趋势的逐渐发展，不同国家、民族在政治、经济、文化等各个方面的交流日益增多，出现越来越多的双语人或多语人，不可避免地频繁出现语码转换。在日常交流中，语码转换已经成为一种正常的语言现象。在结合国内外语言学家理论研究的基础上，本文旨在说明语码转换现象存在的原因、语码转换的类型及语码转换的使用动机等，进而探究语码转换在不同生活领域发挥的作用，这对于合理使用语码转换，促进语言交流有重要的现实意义。

关键词： 语码转换；语言变体；语码转换类型

1 Introduction
As a common language phenomenon of language contact, code-switching had always been attached to considerable attention in many major fields. Researchers study the phenomenon by different modes and methods, and they reach different conclusions. It is difficult for us to understand the complex code-switching and to study the phenomenon.
According to the American linguist Carol Myers-Scotton (1993), code refers to language or any kind of language variety. Unlike dialects, Pidgin, Creole or standard language, code is a neutral term without any emotional coloring.
With regard to code-switching, American linguist Zwicky (2004) holds that in one conversation, people who are bilingual or multilingual may keep changing their language from one to another now and then, and this phenomenon can be defined as code-switching. Generally speaking, the code-switching defined by sociolinguists is not only a switch among the natural languages, but also among dialects and language varieties. In summary, code-switching refers to circumstances in which speakers use two or more language varieties. To put it another way, two or more languages alternate in many forms of words, phrases, clauses or a whole sentence.