In the article “Latin American Dialects and Spanish Translations”, the author explores the basis dialects that exist throughout the Latin American regions. This person identifies 15 different languages: Latin American Spanish in general, Amazonian, Bolivian, Caribbean, Central American, Andean, Chilean, Colombian, Ecuadorian, Mexican, Northern Mexican, Paraguayan, Peruvian, Puerto Rican and Argentine Spanish. The purpose of this article is so that people who may be traveling to these different regions can familiarize themselves with certain aspects of the dialect. With acknowledgment of different pronunciations, spelling, grammar, and a nudge to the history of the different dialects, the article offers a great start to getting to know the diversity of the Spanish language. This article brings backs some memories of the different families that I had lived and worked with for most of my life. It sounds strange I know, but I have experienced some of these different dialects plus a few that this article does not mention. First off, my family is from Guatemala, so I understand both Guatemalan and Central American Spanish. Yet my family has moved from house to house for about 7 years. We have lived with a Chilean woman from Santiago, a family from Havana with a strong and FAST Cuban accent, my sister’s godparents who are Salvadorians, a man from Peru and another from Colombia, and families from both Northern and Southern Mexico (there are interesting and significant differences between the two). Also from high school, some of the people I knew are Latin Americans. I knew an Uruguayan, a Dominican, Puerto Ricans, Hondurans, a few Costa Ricans, and those born here in the US who speak both Spanglish and Chicano Spanish. With this, I can pick out the different dialects I would come across. I’m not saying I’m an expert on all these dialects, but I converse to the point where I can somewhat sound like a person from these countries.
http://www.trustedtranslations.com/spanish-language/latin-american-dialects.asp
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To me, being Latin American and embracing the heritage I was trying to be raised in while growing in the United States has a different definition from the opinion of Webster Dictionary. According to Webster Dictionary, a Latin American is defined as a person from Spanish America and Brazil with ancestral tries to Spain (the incorporation of the Southern United States and the West into Latin America is still in debate). I would agree to this to an extend; this is only a regional description of what is Latin America, but it fails to recognize the culture of Latinos and those born in other countries who have family from Latin America. Being Latin American means having an open mind to other ideas while having firm beliefs of your own and your family. Being Latin American means having a sense of pride for your nation and your region. “Todos somos Latinomericanos”- “We are all Latin Americans”[1]. Being Latin American means trying to maintain your heritage in an ever-changing world that places labels on you and/or forces you to give your identity. Heritage and family are what we as Latin Americans honor the most and see as defining a person. But because of either assimilation or fear of being judged, many educate their children at home and “Americanize” them in schools when talking about the American dream. This is what Villa relates to when he wrote his essay, “No nos dejaremos: Writing in Spanish as an Act of Resistance”. What families are wanting and what the education system present in the United States are pressuring: English over “heritage”. I am not saying that this is the pure intentions of American education system, but it would not be wise to overlook what these systems put on high pedestals and what is considered “unwanted”. If the Latin American population is growing, why is heritage not a part of school? Why is not valued the way we see it? If American culture to blame, or is it decisions to have certain aspects over overs?
*Ps: I understand I’m ranting on Latinos in The US and there are other cultures in the US. I’m trying to connect the source with what I grew up believing and the growth of the Latin American presence in the US. [1] http://www.voicesofyouth.org/es/posts/what-does-it-mean-to-be-latin-american- , 3rd Paragraph ***Sorry it has been some time since i blogged!***
Abstract of Project 2: “No nos dejaremos: Writing in Spanish as an Act of Resistance” by Daniel Villa adds a new perspective to the idea of multilingualism in respect to the “combatting” forces of English and Spanish in academic writing. As broad theme to his essay, Villa believes “this to be the case in our profession as we will encounter more and more students who bring a bilingual background with them to the classroom, and that bilinguality demands attention that research and theory only in English or in Spanish cannot address”(85). In short, the rise of bilingualism in America when talking about English and Spanish cannot be addressed only by one language over the other, rather incorporating both. According to Villa, educators who encounter bilingual students (English and Spanish) should not ignore the heritage of their students and should embrace it; he goes into detail with this by offering a broad image of the huge impact of Spanish on traditional “standard” writing (labeling, rising population, monolingualism vs multilingualism) and telling a story from the backgrounds and experiences with Spanish from former students of his, Luz and Jesús. He continues his argument by introduction an idea that heritage language has an incredible power to literally change the world and to name it. “Human beings are not built in silence, but in word, in work, in action-reflection” (Villa, 94)[1]. As a final point, Villa urges others to view the impact that Spanish, or just the heritage students have in general, has on styles and “literacy” and how it preserves the culture of these students to help slow the trend of the “lost generations”. [1] Also in the Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Paulo Freire, Page 69 (English translation) Villa, Daniel. "No Nos Dejaremos: Writing in Spanish as an Act of Resistance."Latino/a Discourses: On Language, Identity & Literacy Education. Ed. Michelle Kells, Valerie Balester, and Victor Villanueva. Portsmouth: Boynton/Cook, 2004. 85-95. Print. What is defined as "correct writing" or "Standard English"? How do writers or even linguists create certain guidelines that define correct methods of grammar, sentence structure, and vocabulary usage? Vershawn Young creates an essay that illustratively and boldly depicts his point of view on the standard model presented by Fish in his New York Times article, "What College Should Teach". From the very start on page 61, words such as "cuz", "sho", "tryin", and "don't no". Yet the point that Young presents that really stood out to me is the "dominant language ideology" (62), which is the "belief that there is one set of dominant language rules that stem from a single dominant discourse". Young refutes this in Pages 64 and 65 specifically with the promotion of exploration of English as a multi-dialect culture rather than discriminating all other English and relying on one standard model for writing
A lot of this reminds me of my high school years in the suburbs. Many people I knew would speak in this sort of way to everyone, including to teachers and the administration. Even some of the honor students, including myself, would the same because of its powerful presence in our everyday lives. The connection between this and Young that I am trying to make is that this view of English among scholars and education is so singular and structured and it refuses to acknowledge the other forms of English. English, as said by Young (64) and even Canagarajah (8 & 9 of his book), is a melting pot of regional and cultural dialects and if this is neglected, it shows the ignorance of those who believe these forms of English are of those who cannot speak correctly. I myself can speak standard, common, black, and southern English, as well as Spanglish. So why is English viewed so strictly and proper, but other forms that are commonly spoken and written by everyone are being rejected? Where is the sense in that?!?! Thinking about multilingualism, I want to relate it to the way I was brought up and raised in America and balancing my Spanish home and my English school life. Probably the weirdest experience I have gone through would be conversations with my father. Obviously most of them were in Spanish, but every time I would me a remark or make fun of him in English and his American accent, he would catch on and get angry with me. I finally realized that this sort of barrier of languages that I thought existed between us was beginning to deteriorate. He would be able to put out certain words that were similar to Spanish words and sort of make an idea of what I would be saying. I actually did the same when I was younger and talking to my relatives in Spanish. It was very interesting to see that I could finally maintain a conversation with my father in two different languages.
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April 2015
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