A sociolinguistic analysis of terms of address in Xitsonga literary texts

Terms of address are typically used by interlocutors in spoken and written discourse. These terms serve a variety of functions across languages and cultures, reflecting social hierarchies, politeness, familiarity, and interpersonal relations. Despite the prominence of terms of address in Xitsonga, they have received limited scholarly attention in literary texts. This study examines the use of terms of address in Xitsonga literature from a sociolinguistic perspective, employing a descriptive qualitative approach. Data were drawn from three Xitsonga literary works: Ndlandlalati ya Malenga, Byi le Tintihweni, and Xivoni xa Vutomi and were subjected to content analysis. The study is underpinned by politeness theory, which provides a framework for understanding how terms of address function in negotiating social relationships and regulating interpersonal dynamics. The findings indicate a diverse array of terms of address, encompassing kinship terms, personal names, hypocoristic names, nicknames, personal titles, pronouns, teknonyms, and terms of endearment. Their usage varies according to social relationships, degrees of formality, and specific contextual factors within the literary texts. These results provide insight into the functional role of terms of address in Xitsonga written discourse, highlighting how they reflect and negotiate broader sociolinguistic dynamics and socio-cultural norms. Contribution: This study provides insight into the pragmatic uses of address forms in Xitsonga literature. It reveals that these forms are used to fulfil socio-cultural functions and maintain social relations in the written discourse. The study also highlights that Xitsonga address forms are shaped by the social environment in which they are employed.