Spanish in Context - Volume 9, Issue 3, 2012

The struggle of L1 English learners of Spanish with the clitic se has been documented (Montrul, 2000; Toth, 2000; Zyzik, 2006), but there have not been studies to document the use of the Spanish se by L1 Portuguese speakers. Although Portuguese is structurally similar to Spanish in many ways, including the existence of se, this clitic has subtle usage differences in the two languages. In Spanish, Whitley (2002) and Zyzik (2006) have identified seven different categories of se; Portuguese has fewer uses and applies it less frequently (Azevedo, 2005; Cunha &Cintra, 2001; Scherre, 2005). The current study, which is a modified replication of Zyzik (2004), examines the use of se by L1 Brazilian Portuguese (BP) students of Spanish. These northeastern Brazilian students narrated a short story from the picture book Pancakes for Breakfast (DePaola, 1978) and then performed a stimulated recall task. Using this data, correct uses of se, omissions of se in obligatory contexts, and overgeneralizations of se by the L1 BP participants were analyzed. In addition, the participants’ noticing of errors with se was also examined through an analysis of the stimulated recall, and the results indicate that the participants did not notice any of their errors with the clitic se. The results also indicate that positive L1 transfer can partially account for the L1 Portuguese speakers’ interlanguage; however, factors other than L1 transfer need to be considered when discussing interlanguage development.

Many Latin Americans who emigrate to Spain arrive in Barcelona, where they encounter Catalan for the first time. Many find jobs in bars shortly after arriving, where they have to deal with not understanding Catalan-speaking customers. In this article, I present selected data from interviews from a four-year qualitative, ethnographic study of the languages, migration, and identities of Latin American immigrants in Barcelona, in which participants describe their first and early encounters with Catalan. One theme that recurred in interviews was that of bar workers not understanding orders for a tallat, an espresso coffee with a shot of warm milk, known as a ‘cortado’ in Spanish. I also bring in data from a government media campaign promoting Catalan use with immigrants and a comedic sketch that parodies the same campaign using the ordering of a tallat as an example. Together, the data illustrate the multilayered, discursive construction of the story of the tallat.

This paper examines the variation between null and overt subject pronouns found in Romance null subject languages (NSL). While it is well known that several factors regulate the distribution between these two forms, it is also well known that not all null subject languages behave the same. The contexts in which null and overt subject pronouns are required or forbidden vary across dialects, as well as their rates. This paper examines such quantitative and qualitative differences and proposes two mechanisms to explain them. In the first place, a change in progress in some varieties is responsible for the qualitative and quantitative differences found. I apply Yang’s (2000) model of language change and show that NSLs can become non-NSLs only if there is enough migration, which is what happened in the varieties undergoing the change. In the second place, following Cameron (1992) and Cameron and Flores-Ferrán (2004), I claim that priming effects also play an important role in explaining the quantitative differences across several dialects.

The purpose of this study is to determine the relationship between students’ cultural sensitivity and changes in their pronunciation while abroad. The relationship between L2 pronunciation in Spanish and cultural sensitivity is explored in the study-abroad context. A significant correlation is discovered between the students’ score on the Inventory of Cross-cultural Sensitivity and improvements in the accuracy of their pronunciation as judged by a panel of native Spanish speakers. This study provides empirical evidence that cultural factors enhance language learning. Implications for teaching include the need to incorporate cultural education as a basic component of the language classroom.