KUALA LUMPUR, Oct. 7 -- These days, chatting with Malaysian youth can feel like stepping into a live TikTok feed, confusing and packed with words you have never heard before.

One viral TikTok and suddenly everyone is speaking in what sounds like alien code, leaving teachers, parents and even some millennials wondering if subtitles are required in real life.

But what do linguists and language experts make of this phenomenon?

The evolution of language

Former Malaysian Linguistic Association president Prof Emeritus Datuk Nik Safiah Karim said this is not the downfall of language -or of Bahasa Melayu for that matter -but simply language doing what it has always done best: evolving.

Every generation, the professor pointed out, has invente...