Linguistic Diversity and Evolution of Spanish
Linguistic Families
Linguistic families are groups of languages categorized by shared characteristics and geographical distribution. Societies can be characterized by their language use:
- Monolingualism: A society where only one language is predominantly spoken.
- Multilingualism: A society where multiple languages are spoken, as is the case in parts of Spain.
- Bilingualism: The coexistence of two languages within a region or community.
Diglossia is a specific type of bilingualism where there’s a recognized inequality between the two languages, with one having higher social prestige.
Monolingual and Bilingual Areas in Spain
- Monolingual: Areas where only one language (Castilian) is spoken.
- Bilingual: Areas with two native languages (e.g., Galician, Catalan, Valencian) alongside Castilian.
The Evolution of Castilian
From the time of Alfonso X, Castilian began to gain cultural prestige among the other Iberian languages. From the 16th century onward, Castilian became the common language across most of Spain, coexisting with Catalan, Valencian, Balearic, Galician, Basque, Asturian-Leonese, and Aragonese. With the conquest of America, Castilian spread beyond Spanish borders.
The New Linguistic Norm
Until the 16th century, the language of scholars and the Alfonsí standard prevailed. However, the language continued to evolve differently in various regions. For instance, in northern Peninsular Castilian, the pronunciation of ‘B’ and ‘V’ merged early on, and there were phenomena like *seseo* (pronouncing ‘c’ and ‘z’ as ‘s’) and *yeísmo* (pronouncing ‘ll’ as ‘y’). To address these changes, a new standard was established, adopting the northern pronunciation.
Varieties of Castilian
Distinct varieties of Castilian exist in specific areas. A primary distinction is between Northern and Southern Spanish varieties.
Southern Spanish
Southern Spanish encompasses nearly half of the Iberian Peninsula, including Extremadura, La Mancha, Murcia, Andalusia, and the Canary Islands. There are two main sub-regions:
- Transitional Dialects: Extremadura and Murcia.
- Andalusian and Canary: These share specific characteristics.
Characteristics of Southern Spanish
- Yeísmo
- Weakening of the final ‘-s’
- Loss of intervocalic ‘-b-‘, ‘-d-‘, ‘-g-‘
- Confusion of final ‘-r’ and ‘-l’
Andalusian
Andalusian is the most representative Southern variety, though it’s not a uniform linguistic block. Two main areas are distinguished:
- Eastern Area: (Córdoba, Jaén, Almería, Granada)
- Western Area: Features aspiration of the initial ‘h’.
Characteristics of Andalusian:
- Ceceo and seseo
- Pronunciation of ‘s’ different from Castilian
- Unique and rich local vocabulary
Spanish in America
Before the discovery of America, over 100 linguistic families existed. Some have maintained a degree of stability, including Nahuatl (Mexico), Quechua (Peru), Guarani (Paraguay), and Aymara (Bolivia).
After the conquest, society was divided between Creoles and Indigenous populations. Initially, there was an attempt to impose Castilian and eliminate Indigenous languages. However, this was opposed by parts of the Church. In 1580, Philip II ordered the respect of Aboriginal languages. In 1770, Charles III imposed the use of Spanish.
Traits of Latin American Spanish
- Phonetic Features:
- Seseo
- Yeísmo
- Weakening of final ‘-s’
- Confusion of final ‘-r’ and ‘-l’
- Weakening of intervocalic ‘-b-‘, ‘-d-‘, ‘-g-‘
- Grammatical Features:
- Voseo: The use of “vos” instead of “tú” (disappeared in Spain, but persisted in parts of America).
- Tendency towards adverbialization of adjectives.
Judeo-Spanish (Ladino)
Conflicts between Christians and Jews persisted, leading to a worsening situation for the Jewish community. This culminated in the expulsion of the Jews in 1492. Most initially fled to Portugal, then dispersed to North Africa and the Netherlands. Others went to Italy and cities of the Ottoman Empire, where they preserved Spanish. These communities are called Sephardim.
The Nazi extermination decimated the Sephardic population. Many surviving Sephardim joined the new state of Israel, where their language has official status.