THE PRAGMATIC FUNCTIONS OF YALLA IN JORDANIAN SPOKEN ARABIC
The idiomatic expression 'yalla' is frequently used in the daily interactions of Jordanian Arabic speakers. Apparently, this expression has various pragmatic functions besides its literal meaning, 'let' and which is derived from the standard form ya Allah. Jordanians tend to say ya Allah as a vocative expression when they seek Allah's (God's) support during adverse life situations. When the literal meaning of 'yalla' is not invoked, the listener can ascertain the pragmatic function which is intended by the speaker. The main objective of this study is to identify the pragmatic functions of the idiomatic expression yalla, as used by the students at the Jordanian universities who speak Jordanian Arabic. The study has found 27 pragmatic functions which are: approval/ acceptance, drawing attention, calling out/ vocation, encouraging/ cheering, showing emphasis, spreading enthusiasm, signaling the start of an action, choosing/ selecting, ridiculing/ mocking, entreating, commanding/ ordering someone, request for approval, rest assured or continue, asking for patience/ calming someone down, prompting to act in a certain manner, making a suggestion, showing anger and boredom, speeding up/ urging, warning/ advising, alerting, expressing surrender or submission, wishing, stimulating, showing courtesy, expressing comfort, asking someone to forget about the subject and announcing the start of a new stage.