The Spanish Language Today

The Spanish Language Today ‘The Spanish Language Today is a lively and valuable addition to the bookshelf of students and teachers in Spanish studies. It is quite unprecedented in the topics it covers and in the authenticity of the materials on which it draws. This book is highly accessible and useful.’ Professor Ralph Penny Queen Mary and Westfield College, University of London The Spanish Language Today describes the varied and changing Spanish language in the world today. As conflicting forces work towards the unification and fragmentation of both Peninsular and Latin American Spanish, this book examines: • where Spanish is spoken on a global scale, from its decline in the Philippines to its vitality in the southern states of the US • the status of Spanish within the realms of politics, education and media, including reference to the English-only movement in the US • the standardization of Spanish • specific areas of linguistic variation and change including: phonetics and phonology, orthography, lexis, and morphosyntax • the effects of language contact on Spanish which is spoken widely in contexts of bi- and multilingualism • the linguistic and pragmatic factors which underlie variation and change • whether new technologies are an opportunity or a threat to the Spanish language The Spanish Language Today contains numerous extracts from contemporary texts, a glossary of technical linguistic terms and selected translations. It is suitable for those engaged with the modern Spanish language, from beginning students with no prior linguistic knowledge to researchers. Miranda Stewart is Senior Lecturer in Spanish and Latin American Studies at the University of Strathclyde The Spanish Language Today Miranda Stewart London and New York First published 1999 by Routledge 11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2002. © 1999 Miranda Stewart All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Stewart, Miranda, 1954– The Spanish language today/Miranda Stewart. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references. 1. Spanish language—20th century. I. Title. PC4087.S84 1999 460'.9'049–dc21 98–54089 CIP ISBN 0-415-14258-X (hbk) ISBN 0-415-14259-8 (pbk) ISBN 0-203-06120-9 Master e-book ISBN ISBN 0-203-21590-7 (Glassbook Format) To Ian and Julia Contents Preface Acknowledgements xi xv PART I Spanish as a world language 1 1 3 The extent and status of Spanish in the world 1.0 Introduction 3 1.1 The e