Spanglish In Pop Culture

     Throughout the world, there are a variety of languages and dialects that are used interchangeably with other languages and dialects; one of these examples is the use of Spanglish. The use of Spanglish can be dated back to the middle of the 19th century, when the US went to war with Mexico. Eventually Mexico surrendered and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was signed. In result of this, Mexico lost half its territory to the United States, and the Mexican settlers that were already in the US automatically became citizens. This resulted in many more settlers into the US; with the Mexican settlers learning English, and the US settlers learning Spanish. 

     Spanish and English came crashing headlong into contact with one another, and this is what started Spanglish to take form. Spanglish is a hybrid language combining words and idioms from both Spanish and English. With 53 million Latinos living in the country, 59% of them are bilingual. It is a resourceful creation used by many Latino communities who share a bilingual and bicultural world. In many of these communities, residents may speak a range of languages that include formal and informal varieties of Spanish and English. Spanglish as well isn't exclusive to just the United States, but also to the rest of the Spanish speaking world as in other parts of the globe. There are also varieties of Spanglish - with using different patterns and forms. Spanglish is not a pidgin though - which is a grammatically simplified form of a language. As Spanglish can be the primary speech form for some individuals, there is a variety of Spanish with the heavy use of English.

Code-switching: Borrowing words from other languages

     While Spanglish would appear to be messy and chaotic, it is the result of the linguistic process that are common in language contact situations that include borrowing, code mixing, and creating calques. One of the many forms and patterns that is very prevalent in Spanglish is Code-Switching. This occurs when a Spanglish user alternates in a single sentence between Spanish and English. This is an automatic and simultaneous translation, where Spanglish users might use Spanish words exclusively, but follows an English-language mode. The use of this code-switching is generally for bilingual speakers sometimes to switch between two languages in order to sustain their interaction when there is a loss for words. The mixing of Spanish and English can occur at the word, clause, or sentence level. It can be used to gap in the vocabulary, lack of education, improper control of language, and the overall lack of proficiency in one or both of the languages. 

          Spanglish is still thriving in today's world. While there is much criticism about the use of Spanglish as a language, the younger generation especially have appropriated Spanglish as a positive signifier to refer to one of the communities innovative ways of speaking and communicating. This is shown as their becomes a major presence in Latin music. Latin music, with modern artists like
Pitbull, Prince Royce, and Enrique Iglesias, has become such a strong factor in the Spanglish community. Enrique Iglesias came out in 2014 with his popular song "Bailando", originally in Spanish and then coming out shortly afterwards with an English version, that includes the sort of Spanglish text. During the chorus, he sings "I wanna be contigo / And live contigo, and dance contigo". While he is using English for the primary portion of the song, he also adds the Spanish word "contigo" in this small section to find a word that fits the Spanish portion. 

How Did "Bailando" Become A Spanglish Crossover Hit?

     Spanglish has transitioned to such popularity throughout the past century, and it has integrated itself into popular culture that people that might not know Spanish, would try and sing along to the songs or at least appreciate the art that artists create. It has become so integrated into society, that it has become such a significant aspect of American culture. 

Culture Teaches Language: African American English

        One of the main differences between African American English or Vernacular and any other dialect of the English language is that there’s a deep history within the usage of language and why it is used in the manner that it is.  The dialect itself, is complex for multiple reasons, and one being that the dialect doesn’t have a geographical boundary, but is inclusive of mostly Southern and Western regions of the U.S.  In addition, many terms have been utilized in order to refer to African American English, such as Ebonics, as well as encompass different ethnic categorizations that all are tied back to this dialect.  This is directly related to the linguistic system itself, in the sense that it is the result of an outgrowing of European languages and West African languages that were combined during the times of slavery. Elements such as social class, degree of segregation among people, etc. cause the creation of words that aren’t necessarily seen in different areas of the country, but are present in other’s. What is meant by this is that specific social situations that effect the dialect’s development, consist of densely populated areas that share in the same dialect, and aren’t extensively exposed to other dialects or intrusion of their community by people that practice a different dialect.  Continuing from that, African American English in a sense has been developed as a way for those that practice it, to distinguish themselves from speakers of other English dialects.  Many children are incorporating these dialectal practices into their speech before they even begin schooling at age 5. 

'African American English' differences from 'Standard English' practices

Many of the examples seen within the chart above are relevant particularly to the dialect’s growth culturally as opposed to growth in an educational setting, although often times the dialect is attempted to be brought to the classroom by educators.  The linguistic construct that is African American English is extensive because it is expressed in cultural elements such as music, particularly in the work from the artist Tupac Shakur.  Shakur, born Lesane Parish Crooks in Harlem, New York, became a hip hop icon and esteemed writer before his untimely death in 1996.  Having lived the majority of his life in Los Angeles, California, this echoed in his writing and musical work especially showcased in the song titled, “Keep Ya Head Up.”  Not only is the music produced by Tupac inclusive of African American English vocabulary such as, ‘holla’, ‘ain’t’, and ‘be real’, but also proclaims phrases like, ‘And I ain’t tryna gas ya up’ and ‘2Pac cares if don’t nobody else care.’  This musical example of African American English is practical because it is an idolized form of the dialect that is still listened to today, while including structural and vocabulary elements repeated today.  Although there is no way to study the entire expansiveness of African American English, scholars have concluded that many similar characteristics and features appear in the speech and literature of African Americans throughout the United States. 

The Appalachian Dialect

When someone asks if there are dialects of English in North America, an American may be compelled to answer, "There's a northern dialect and a southern one," but in truth there are actually a plethora of dialects and accents, many of which are secluded to a particular region. The Appalachian Dialect is among those. A rather loose term, it can span across the Appalachian Mountain Range, but some scholars may argue that each state has its own brand of southern style, as the case may be for West Virginia. For the sake of this post, the Appalachian Dialect will act as an umbrella term.

 What Is It and How Does it Work?

It’s a set of speech patterns native to the Appalachian Mountains, having evolved over the length of centuries. Much of the literature surrounding the region has rural themes, coal mining being one of the biggest. In Lee Howard’s poem “The Last Unmined Vein,” the sentence structure can be seen. Take for example these lines: “A pick and shovel…was all that was took/ and didn’t hurt nothing / and kept a fire real good / and that’s it / but that ain’t what they got in mind…” Here, the reader can see the unusual syntax through “kept a fire real good,” meaning kept it alive and burning. Notice, too, the use of “took” instead of taken and “nothing” instead of “anything.” “Ain’t” is also a common auxiliary verb in this poem, as can be seen in “that ain’t” instead of “that is not.”

Some other examples of words and phrases include: “allers” for “always,” “ax” for “ask,” “sarce” for “sauce,” and “widder” for “widow.” Other common conventions includes the contractions of words like in “s’pose” for “suppose,” “nat’ral” for “natural,” and “’spect” for “expect.”



Common Examples of the Appalachian Dialect

Such language can be found in a clever translation Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland into Appalachian English. Heavy linguistic changes gave Alice a twang unlike ever before. This translation is especially interesting to analyze since it encompasses the dialect in its rawest form. Take this excerpt of dialogue from the Cheshire cat as an example: “Up the crick,” the Bobcat says, wavin hits right paw roun…” The first thing a reader may notice is the use of eye-dialect to get the accent across, meaning that the words are being spelled as they’re sounded out. Notice the word “crick” substituted for “creek.” Even “his” has a “t” added to it in “hits paws,” signifying pronunciation.

Endings of words have been dropped as well in “wavin” for “waving” and “roun” for “round” or “around.” The dropping of “-g” in endings is quite common. The addition of “-ed” on past-tense verbs such as “knowed” instead of “knew” and “telled” instead of “told,” is also a common grammatical feature.

The Stigma

A negative stigma surrounds the Appalachian Dialect. Some may call it the "hillbilly" language. That is, people from other regions assume that because they speak this way they must be uneducated. This may be due to the idea of a “standard” way to speak English. In school, students are taught one way to speak, and other dialects are shunned as improper. However, the stereotype of the hillbilly is an old one, going as far back as the nineteenth century and possibly further. This can be blamed partly on its appearances in pop culture as well as literature throughout the years as a joke. Michael Ellis explores this theory in detail, discussing how the use of the dialect was used as a sign of stupidity, and was thus meant to not be taken seriously. It’s also been grouped in with other southern dialects, and lasting tensions since the Civil War could mean that this stereotype was implemented as a way of the Union exerting its authority, not to the extent of propaganda, but somewhat similar.

In any case, one’s dialect should not be the defining factor of him or her as a person. A dialect can be a sign of heritage or even culture, something that ties them to the region they hail from. Though the Appalachian Dialect has this stigma, it is still a dialect spoken today and should be respected as such.

 

A Negro Love Song: The African American Dialect in English

"A Negro Love Song" by Paul Laurence Dunbar is an example of the African-American English dialect, also known as African-American Vernacular English. Dunbar, a writer in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, was known for using the African-American English dialect in his poems and songs. These were called "negro ballads," a term also associated with minstrel songs, which used mispronunciations and misspellings to imitate African-American speech. These forms were performed with racist blackface and were meant to make fun of AAE. While minstrel songs were a form of degradation, negro songs such as Dunbar's were meant to be authentic songs that accurately portrayed African-American speech in a non-mortifying way.

Dunbar was born and raised in the North after the end of the American Civil War, but he wrote Southern poetry that centered on things like lingering racial tension. His dialect poetry was meant to imitate negro spirituals and songs during the antebellum period, or the period before and during the Civil War. At the time, the African-American dialect was associated with the minstrels and coon songs, which played on the stereotypes of African-American people rather than provide an authentic view of the dialect and the people who spoke it. Although Dunbar's poetry was meant as a tribute to AAE, many saw it, too, as degrading. Even with Dunbar's good intentions, many upper and middle class African-Americans felt that the dialect was associated with slavery before the Civil War.

Dunbar's "A Negro Love Song" several elements common to the African-American English dialect. Line 3 shows the dropping of the final consonant with, "Hel' huh han' an' sque'z it tight,". Here, we see almost every word differs from Standard English. The 'd' is dropped in "held," "hand," and "and," and the "e" and last "e" is missing in "squeeze." Another interesting thing to note is how "her" is spelled. Dunbar uses "huh" to demonstrate how AAE speakers turn the "r" sound into an "h" sound, as in "rider" turns to "ridah," for example. It is also interesting to note line 9, "Hyeahd de win' blow thoo de pine," where in "the," the "th" is replaced by "d," and the "r" sound is left out in "through." The word, "heard" is pronounced like "hyeahd," again with the "r" being left out.

There is an argument that it is important to present AAE in schools and that children should be educated in its history. As with other North American non-standard dialects, such as Southern or New England English, it is not something that is a "lower" form of English. Rather, it is an important part of American history, as well as a dialect that many people speak daily. People need to stop seeing African-American English speakers as "less intelligent" or "less likely to be successful." There is nothing wrong with speaking in a way that is different than the "standard" way of speaking. When really reflected upon, there is no such thing as a spoken standard. Standard English is only standard when writing, but there are many varieties of spoken English, and one way of speaking is not better than another.

Image Credit.

African American Vernacular Dialect as a Social and Political Statement

The use of dialect in literature provides not only a reflection of realistic character speech patterns, but also an opportunity for social and political commentary within a text. In short fiction, such as Charles Chesnutt’s “Po’ Sandy” (1888), the use of African American Vernacular English (AAVE) in this seemingly-simple Conjure Tale adds an element of realism and also the opportunity for the reader to adopt a racialized perspective on an American Gothic tale, utilizing the dialectic language to provide commentary on social and political issues. African American Vernacular English (AAVE), or the distinct African-American dialect of English, is a language distinct in its grammar and vocabulary, often racially discriminated-against and dismissed as “slang” or a degradation of Standard English, which it is clearly and completely not. AAVE, with its own rules and structure, serves as a complete language in its own right. The below chart shows a gradient from the least-to-most expressions of AAVE in literature, with "Po' Sandy" ranking with a high expression of true AAVE, with the use of both AAVE phonological forms and AAVE grammatical forms.

 Chesnutt, in his short stories, utilizes and normalizes AAVE in his storytelling, promoting understanding and acceptance of the dialect in popular literature.

The short story involves the Marambo family and their slave Sandy, who is transformed into a tree by his lover to stop the Marambo family from sending Sandy away to labor for their grown-up children in their own households. The story, told in a frame-narrative, features a narrator who is a black former slave in the Postbellum south (Julius) who is recounting stories of the pre-Civil War plantation to the new owners, a white Northern couple. Told by Julius and in his Southern African-American Vernacular English, the short stories serve to provide a kind of moralistic tale, to ingratiate hoodoo and African-American folktales with the American Gothic tradition, and to serve a purpose for Julius within the narrative of his frame: for example, “Po’ Sandy” serves Julius by encouraging the new owners to not destroy an old school house on the property (purported in the story to have been built from the wood of Sandy’s tree) in which he plans to hold his own church services. That Julius is telling the conjure tales in his own words, and using his own dialect to persuade and manipulate the plantation’s new owners, asserts a larger narrative of racial acceptance by forcing the standard dialect to understand and accept the African-American dialect. There is purpose, too, in having Julius tell the story to John and Annie, the new white owners. John continuously tries to assert a distinction between fantasy and reality in Julius’s conjure tales, while Annie seems to understand that the tradition of the conjure tale is representative of “an authentic effort to ‘articulate the past historically.’” With AAVE essential as the voice in this articulation.

In a description of Chesnutt’s works, fellow critic Richard E. Baldwin said that Chesnutt himself serves as “the ultimate conjure man, hoping that by ‘wukking de roots’ of black culture he might be able to work a powerful goopher on White America and lead it accept the equality of the black” that Baldwin uses dialect in this description of Chesnutt reinforces the purpose of the linguistic choice in-text: the story is empowered by the language, and subversively the common or standard dialect is forced to understand and accept the African-American dialect as it appears in literature—reflecting Baldwin’s hopes that Chesnutt’s works will have a similar impact on American racial relations. Chesnutt, himself a white-passing African-American, wrote and published a number of political essays, though “Po’ Sandy” comes from a short story collection titled The Conjure Woman. That popular American literature—and furthermore the standard dialect—was infiltrated by Chesnutt (a white-passing author) who promoted storytelling in African-American dialect establishes a paradigm for the linguistic role in social and political commentary. 

Hawaiian Language Usage

As seen in the song “Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride” from the 2002 Disney movie Lilo and Stitch,code switching between the Hawaiian language and English is common for literary works such as poems or songs. Code switching is when a bilingual person switches between the two or more languages that they know while they are speaking, but in a song, it is clearly done on purpose. There is a movement to preserve the Hawaiian language, culture, and history because within the past few decades there has been a decline of the Hawaiian identity. 

The Hawaiian language has gone through some tough history. The United States forced the islands to assimilate, or actively fit in, to American culture. Because of that, schools were forced to be taught in English, in order for students to partake in standardized testing that happens nationwide. Newer generations are not being taught to be active participants in the language, instead, now they can barely understand their grandparents when they talk to them. Children in schools are also learning about American history, rather than just Hawaiian history. However, even if they did learn about Hawaiian history in schools, Noelani Arista explains in her article that Hawaiian history has been overwritten by the United States. They did this because there was no formal written history of Hawaii, everything was shared through oral tradition, or simply stories being passed down. When people wrote the “history” of Hawaii as a state, they disregarded mayor events and cultural elements prior to the island’s statehood. Additionally, writers of Hawaiian history even sugar coated it with Christianity and omitted any other beliefs. Overall, younger generations are not exposed to the real history of their land, or even to their own language because of the pressure the United States school system puts on their schools, and writers that have altered Hawaii’s history.

But what does all this mean for the language? The Hawaiian language can be considered in danger of becoming extinct. William Wilson and Kauanoe Kanana, explain that newer generations are only understanding words or phrases of the language now, and cannot even communicate with their elders. This causes the problem with history too, now these younger generations cannot learn about Hawaiian history and culture through oral tradition. Recently, however, there has been an influx of youth starting to bring the language back. Wilson and Kanana found that young people are interested in using the language when it comes to participating in certain cultural activities. Which ties us back to Lilo and Stitch, code switching helps the language be exposed to non-native speakers, and even native speakers who need a boost of confidence to still be interested in keeping their language alive. While code switching can be seen as lazy or informal, it can be considered a unique technique for literary productions. In this case, the song “Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride” has continuous switching between Hawaiian and English to showcase the beauty of the two languages together to viewers of the movie.

     

                       

Graph to compare what languages are spoken in Hawaii versus the U.S. as a whole. Here, one can see that Hawaiian is one of the lowest percentages of a type of language spoken in Hawaii today.