<p>Spanish speakers in the United States, among linguists and non-linguists, have been denigrated for the way they speak, says UC Berkeley sociolinguist Justin Davidson. It’s part of the country's long history of scrutiny of non-monolingual English speakers, he says, dating back to the early 20th century.</p><p>"It’s groups in power — its discourses and collective communities — that sort of socially determine what kinds of words and what kinds of language are acceptable and unacceptable," says Davidson, an associate professor in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese.</p><p>But the U.S. is a Spanish-speaking country, he says, and it’s time for us as a nation to embrace U.S. Spanish as a legitimate language variety.</p><p>This is the first episode of a three-part series with Davidson about language in the U.S. Listen to other two episodes: <a href="https://news.berkeley.edu/2024/04/05/berkeley-voices-a-language-divided" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">"A language divided"</a> and <a href="https://news.berkeley.edu/2024/04/16/berkeley-voices-language-in-the-brain" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">"One brain, two languages."</a></p><p><a href="https://news.berkeley.edu/2024/03/29/berkeley-voices-legitimizing-us-spanish" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Listen to the episode and read the transcript on <em>Berkeley News</em></a><em> </em>(news.berkeley.edu).</p><p><a href="https://www.brittanyhoseasmall.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Photo by Brittany Hosea-Small.</a></p><p><a href="https://www.sessions.blue/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Music by Blue Dot Sessions.</a></p><br /><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

Berkeley Voices

UC Berkeley

121: A linguist's quest to legitimize U.S. Spanish

MAR 29, 202411 MIN
Berkeley Voices

121: A linguist's quest to legitimize U.S. Spanish

MAR 29, 202411 MIN

Description

<p>Spanish speakers in the United States, among linguists and non-linguists, have been denigrated for the way they speak, says UC Berkeley sociolinguist Justin Davidson. It’s part of the country's long history of scrutiny of non-monolingual English speakers, he says, dating back to the early 20th century.</p><p>"It’s groups in power — its discourses and collective communities — that sort of socially determine what kinds of words and what kinds of language are acceptable and unacceptable," says Davidson, an associate professor in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese.</p><p>But the U.S. is a Spanish-speaking country, he says, and it’s time for us as a nation to embrace U.S. Spanish as a legitimate language variety.</p><p>This is the first episode of a three-part series with Davidson about language in the U.S. Listen to other two episodes: <a href="https://news.berkeley.edu/2024/04/05/berkeley-voices-a-language-divided" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">"A language divided"</a> and <a href="https://news.berkeley.edu/2024/04/16/berkeley-voices-language-in-the-brain" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">"One brain, two languages."</a></p><p><a href="https://news.berkeley.edu/2024/03/29/berkeley-voices-legitimizing-us-spanish" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Listen to the episode and read the transcript on <em>Berkeley News</em></a><em> </em>(news.berkeley.edu).</p><p><a href="https://www.brittanyhoseasmall.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Photo by Brittany Hosea-Small.</a></p><p><a href="https://www.sessions.blue/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Music by Blue Dot Sessions.</a></p><br /><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>