Words as Mirrors of Social Ills: Acronymisation and Discursive. Strategies in the Face of Insecurity in Burkina Faso

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Résumé

This article examines the role of acronyms in political, media, and institutional discourses related to terrorism in Burkina Faso. It shows that, in a context of insecurity, acronym formation is not merely a communication technique but a strategic tool of discursive construction that helps structure the security narrative. The methodology, based on purposive sampling combined with a qualitative approach, draws on both institutional and media sources.
The findings identify 22 acronyms drawn from crisis-related discourse, revealing a discursive asymmetry. Most acronyms highlight state response mechanisms, while human consequences are reduced to impersonal abbreviations. This imbalance reflects a form of symbolic violence, in Bourdieu’s sense, whereby language serves to legitimize
state action while trivializing collective suffering. The analysis shows that these acronyms, which have become part of everyday language, contribute to the lexicalization of terror and to the social internalization of the conflict.
The study concludes that rethinking the language of security is a political and ethical necessity, in order to prevent discourse from becoming complicit in the erasure of victims from collective memory.

Mots-clés

acronym, terrorism, discourse, sociolinguistics, sociology of language, Stylistic