In this exploratory study of subtractive bilingualism in Spanish-English bilingual children, we present evidence that crosslinguistic influence has a selective effect on heritage first language loss. Differences in feature strength between English and Spanish in interrogative and negative polarity item (NPI) sentences seem to affect the…

This essay explores the relationship(s) between English and Spanish in the novel "Raining Backwards" (1988) by Cuban American Roberto G. Fernandez. While the many linked plots and characters suggest many protagonists, this study demonstrates how language itself takes on the role of protagonist. Through the author's use of calques…

Dialectal differences are frequently cited by members of a majority group as their main means of identifying members of a minority ethnic group. However, existing stereotypes of minority language varieties and their speakers often suggest that social prejudices influence attitudes towards minority groups and their linguistic varieties. The present…

Isleno Spanish speakers maintain few contexts firmly in the subjunctive (for example, adverbial clauses with the conjunctions "para que" and "antes que" and nominal clauses with "querer"), with most other semantic or syntactic categories optionally licensing the subjunctive. This study will outline the obligatory and optional uses of present and…

Linguistic research has shown that Spanish speakers mark clauses with the subjunctive when they consider the information value of those clauses to be low. Despite widespread agreement among linguists, however, the information-value approach to the subjunctive is largely ignored in textbooks and workbooks. This article explains how the…

The aim of the present paper is to provide an overview of the so-called "Spanglish" phenomenon and its linguistic repertoires (code-switching utterances). We propose that it is necessary to link all different forms of analysis in order to verify hypotheses regarding the relationship among social, linguistic, and cognitive processes behind…

This pilot study examines the face work in two students' e-mail requests for letters of recommendation, to investigate whether and how the type and amount of face work differs in requests written in English and Spanish by native speakers of each language. The results do not conform to those of previous comparisons of requestive behavior between…

In this essay, I apply current linguistic theory to reanalyze earlier research on the acquisition of "ser" and "estar" (e.g., VanPatten 1985, 1987). Using insights from Roby and Schmitt ("Semi-Copulas"), for example, I argue that the acquisition of the copular verbs is an issue of the acquisition of their aspectual properties (see also Bruhn de…

I provide an update on the state of the art of the research--the last one being Collentine (2003)--on the acquisition of the function of the subjunctive and mood selection, as well as the research's implications for pedagogy. The article considers what we currently know about the role of universal grammar, psycholinguistic perspectives on the…

This study examines the potential native language (L1) attrition of the ongoing value of the Spanish present tense among long-term Spanish immigrants. Based on the assumption of second-language (L2) transfer and proposals on the permeability of interface-conditioned structures, it is hypothesized that long-term Spanish immigrants will show…

A pedagogical idea for addressing National Standard 4.1 (Students demonstrate understanding of the nature of language through comparisons of language studied and their own) suggests the deliberate use of the online translator to illustrate to students the syntactical errors that occur when translating idioms from one language to another. (VWL)

The adverbial phrase "a lo mejor" (at best) does not take the subjunctive, although other adverbial expressions of possibility may be followed by either indicative or subjunctive. Examines statements co-occurring with "a lo mejor" from the viewpoint of statement and mood, taking into account communicative discourse function. The study shows that…

Presents a review of selected influential works in Spanish applied linguistics in the twentieth century, with an accompanying bibliography. The research is divided into four eras, which are defined by "paradigm shifts" that occur when significant changes are perceived in the following areas: psychological/second language acquisition theories,…

The dequeismo phenomenon is occurring more frequently in spoken Spanish in both Spain and in Latin America. Introduction of the preposition "de" before "que" in nominal complements exploits one recourse in Spanish, namely the deictic capacity of prepositional "de" as a marker or introducer of the speaker's expressions, opinions, or thoughts. This…

Notes that the employment of databases to the study of the history of a language is a method that allows for substantial improvement in investigative quality. Illustrates this with the example of the application of this method to two studies of the history of Spanish developed in the Language and Information Seminary of the Independent University…