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Spanglish is Slowly but Surely Being Part of the U.S. Popular Culture
By Mari D. González
Bilingual youth who construct their vocabulary between what they learn at home in Spanish and what they learn at school or work in English are more comfortable with a casual language among their peers that mixes phrases and words of these two languages, commonly known as Spanglish. Spanglish, however, is not simply picking a word or two from Spanish and mixing them up with English as non-Spanglish speaking marketers would like to think and wrongly try it on their advertisement campaigns.
Spanglish is a delicate form of incorporating words to one’s vocabulary in the language they were learned first. In general, words associated with family, emotions, and close relationships might be in Spanish. Words learned first at school might be in English. Spanglish, then solidifies when a group of people shares the same set of words in both languages without the need to translate them into a second language.
According to my research study on language preferences in digital media among second-generation, Latinos/Hispanics, the less acculturated ones side with Spanglish-themed Netflix series and music such as the Bad Bunny phenomenon because traditional media does not resonate with who they are collectively.
*The image is by www.ushispanicministry.com
Spanish-dominant Bilingual Youth
Bilingual youth who construct their vocabulary between what they learned at home in Spanish and what they learned at school or work in English are more comfortable with a casual language among their peers that mixes phrases and words of these two languages.
According to my study of language preferences in digital media among 18-25 year-old Latinos/Hispanics, the less acculturated ones side with Spanglish-themed programming such as the no longer existing Univision-owned radio station “La Kalle,” because mainstream media does not resonate with who they are collectively.
“Spanglish” Speakers
To attract “Spanglish” speakers, you need to appeal, invite, and get close to a younger generation of Latinos who do not necessarily are fully fluent in Spanish but have acquired the emotional vocabulary of their parents’ language.
Speaking Spanglish represents having a dual and hybrid cultural identity. The language itself is a mix of what is relevant in Spanish but does not exist in English or cannot be completely expressed in English.
Aflac and Amateur Spanglish
I’m yet to see how “Tu vales por two” resonates with bilinguals because “two” sounds contrived. The Spanish phrase is, “Vales por dos.” Replacing “dos” for “two” does not make this phrase Spanglish. It makes it incorrect in English and in Spanish and for that matter in Spanglish.
This is a good example of amateur Spanglish, non-fluent Spanglish or Spanglish for beginners. For Spanglish to work, it has to be a mix of emotionally-charged words in Spanish that are commonly known among Spanish speakers which do not translate in well English or words that were first learned in English and never learned in Spanish because they are too long or impractical.
Spanglish is an “insiders” language that is learned through socialization and mingling with other Spanglish-speakers. Spanglish is spoken among a subculture of in-group members who grew up speaking Spanish and English simultaneously.
Classical Nahuatl
By Mari D. González
Here are two interesting quotes on Nahuatl, the language spoken in what is today Central Mexico and parts of Central America which has given Spanish many words.
“At the conquest, with the introduction of the Latin alphabet, Nahuatl also became a literary language, and many chronicles, grammars, works of poetry, administrative documents and codices were written in it during the 16th and 17th centuries.” Cagner, 1980:13
“This early literary language based on the Tenochtitlan variety has been labeled Classical Nahuatl and is among the most studied and best-documented languages of the Americas.” Cagner, 2002:195
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