Author Description

This book presents the first comprehensive historical, social, and linguistic overview of Spanish in contact with other languages in all of its major contexts-in Spain, the United States and Latin America. Carol A. Klee and Andrew Lynch explore the processes of variation and change that shaped the use of Spanish in societies that also speak another language. In some cases-in Spain and Spanish-speaking Latin America-it is the majority language, politically and socially dominant, while in others--such as in the United States, Gibraltar, the Philippines and Ecuatorial Guinea-- it is considered a minority language. The authors consider the social contexts that have shaped significant changes in the Spanish language. Synthesizing the principle arguments and theories about Spanish language change, they offer a critical examination of the instances in which there is sufficient information to determine the effects of language contact. Principle linguistic areas of change discussed are phonology, morphology and syntax, and pragmatics.