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40 pages, 5594 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Case, Concord and the Emergence of Default

by Luis López

Languages 2020, 5(2), 12; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages5020012 - 9 Apr 2020

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2894

This article provides initial evidence that the head K, which may spell out as case morphology, drives the operations of concord within the noun phrase. Evidence for this claim comes from three code-switching varieties: Basque/Spanish, German/Turkish and Russian/Kazakh. By placing the switch at [...] Read more.

This article provides initial evidence that the head K, which may spell out as case morphology, drives the operations of concord within the noun phrase. Evidence for this claim comes from three code-switching varieties: Basque/Spanish, German/Turkish and Russian/Kazakh. By placing the switch at the border between case morphology and the rest of the noun phrase the properties of K can be isolated and inspected. We find that if K is drawn from the lexicon of a non-concord language, constituents within the noun phrase adopt a default morphology. It is suggested that the data presented in this paper provide evidence for approaches that take Concord to be a form of Agree (probe, goal) and against an approach that takes it to be the result of feature percolation from the bottom up. An analysis of default morphology is proposed that argues that default forms are inserted as vocabulary items in syntactic terminals that, as a result of a failure of Agree, are populated with unvalued features. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bilingualism in the Hispanic and Lusophone world (BHL): Current Issues in Spanish and Portuguese Bilingual Settings)

22 pages, 5955 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Arabic-Spanish Language Contact in Puerto Rico: A Case of Glottal Stop Epenthesis

by Sherez Mohamed, Carolina González and Antje Muntendam

Languages 2019, 4(4), 93; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages4040093 - 18 Nov 2019

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 7168

Abstract

The current study examines the realization of adjacent vowels across word boundaries in Arabic-Spanish bilinguals and Spanish monolinguals in Puerto Rico, focusing specifically on the rate of glottal stop epenthesis in this context (e.g., hombre africano to [ˈom.bre.ʔa.fri.ˈka.no]). It was hypothesized that Arabic-Spanish [...] Read more.

The current study examines the realization of adjacent vowels across word boundaries in Arabic-Spanish bilinguals and Spanish monolinguals in Puerto Rico, focusing specifically on the rate of glottal stop epenthesis in this context (e.g., hombre africano to [ˈom.bre.ʔa.fri.ˈka.no]). It was hypothesized that Arabic-Spanish bilinguals would show a higher rate of glottal stop epenthesis than Spanish monolinguals because of transfer from Arabic. In addition, we investigated the possible effects of stress, vowel height, language dominance and bilingual type on the rate of glottal stop epenthesis. Results from a reading task with 8 participants showed no significant difference in glottalization between bilinguals and monolinguals. For monolinguals, glottalization was significantly more likely when the first vowel was low or stressed; significant interactions between vowel height and stress were found for the bilingual group. Language dominance was a significant factor, with Arabic-dominant bilinguals glottalizing more than the Spanish-dominant bilinguals. In addition, early sequential bilinguals favored glottalization slightly more than simultaneous bilinguals, without reaching significance. Our data suggests some effects of syllable structure transfer from Arabic, particularly in Arabic-dominant participants. To our knowledge, our study is the first exploration of Arabic and Spanish in contact in Puerto Rico, and the first to acoustically examine the speech of Arabic-Spanish bilinguals. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bilingualism in the Hispanic and Lusophone world (BHL): Current Issues in Spanish and Portuguese Bilingual Settings)

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39 pages, 2706 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Development of Subject Position in Dutch-Dominant Heritage Speakers of Spanish: From Age 9 to Adulthood

by Brechje van Osch, Elisabet García González, Aafke Hulk, Petra Sleeman and Suzanne Aalberse

Languages 2019, 4(4), 88; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages4040088 - 7 Nov 2019

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 5503

Abstract

This exploratory study investigates the knowledge of word order in intransitive sentences by heritage speakers of Spanish of different age groups: 9-year-olds, 13-year-olds and adults. In doing so, we aim to fill a gap in the heritage language literature, which, to date, has [...] Read more.

This exploratory study investigates the knowledge of word order in intransitive sentences by heritage speakers of Spanish of different age groups: 9-year-olds, 13-year-olds and adults. In doing so, we aim to fill a gap in the heritage language literature, which, to date, has mainly focused on adult heritage speakers and preschool bilingual children. The results from a judgment task reveal that child- and adolescent heritage speakers do not entirely resemble monolingual age-matched children in the acquisition of subjects in Spanish, nor do they assimilate adult heritage speakers. The data suggest that several different processes can occur simultaneously in the acquisition of word order in heritage speakers: monolingual-like acquisition, delayed acquisition, and attrition. An analysis of the influence of extraneous variables suggests that most of these effects are likely to be the consequence of quantitatively reduced input in the heritage language and increased input in the majority language. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bilingualism in the Hispanic and Lusophone world (BHL): Current Issues in Spanish and Portuguese Bilingual Settings)

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20 pages, 2642 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Lack of Syllable Duration as a Post-Lexical Acoustic Cue in Spanish in Contact with Maya

by Nuria Martínez García and Melanie Uth

Languages 2019, 4(4), 84; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages4040084 - 31 Oct 2019

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 3327

Abstract

This paper focuses on the duration of stressed syllables in broad versus contrastive focus in Yucatecan Spanish and examines its connection with Spanish–Maya bilingualism. We examine the claim that phonemic vowel length in one language prevents the use of syllable duration as a [...] Read more.

This paper focuses on the duration of stressed syllables in broad versus contrastive focus in Yucatecan Spanish and examines its connection with Spanish–Maya bilingualism. We examine the claim that phonemic vowel length in one language prevents the use of syllable duration as a post-lexical acoustic cue in another. We study the duration of stressed syllables of nouns in subject and object position in subject-verb-object (SVO) sentences (broad and contrastive focus) of a semi-spontaneous production task. One thousand one hundred and twenty-six target syllables of 34 mono- and bilingual speakers were measured and submitted to linear mixed-effects models. Although the target syllables were slightly longer in contrastive focus, duration was not significant, nor was the effect of bilingualism. The results point to duration not constituting a cue to focus marking in Yucatecan Spanish. Finally, it is discussed how this result relates to the strong influence of Yucatec Maya on Yucatecan Spanish prosody observed by both scholars and native speakers of Yucatecan Spanish and other Mexican varieties of Spanish. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bilingualism in the Hispanic and Lusophone world (BHL): Current Issues in Spanish and Portuguese Bilingual Settings)

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24 pages, 2582 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Bilingual Alignments

by Liliana Sanchez

Languages 2019, 4(4), 82; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages4040082 - 31 Oct 2019

Cited by 24 | Viewed by 4991

Abstract

The issue of how to distinguish bilingual syntactic representations from processing preferences or strategies is addressed by postulating the concept of permeable bilingual alignments as memory storage devices that include information from different language components. Supporting evidence from phenomena such as the emergence [...] Read more.

The issue of how to distinguish bilingual syntactic representations from processing preferences or strategies is addressed by postulating the concept of permeable bilingual alignments as memory storage devices that include information from different language components. Supporting evidence from phenomena such as the emergence of innovative mappings across different components (phonology, morphology, syntax, the lexicon, and information structure), bidirectional transfer, and frequency effects is presented, and some possible consequences of adopting this proposal are discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bilingualism in the Hispanic and Lusophone world (BHL): Current Issues in Spanish and Portuguese Bilingual Settings)

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34 pages, 1953 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Late(r) Bird Gets the Verb? Effects of Age of Acquisition of English on Adult Heritage Speakers’ Knowledge of Subjunctive Mood in Spanish

by David Giancaspro

Languages 2019, 4(3), 69; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages4030069 - 7 Sep 2019

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3881

Abstract

Many previous studies have found that adult heritage speakers exhibit significant variability in their production and comprehension of mood morphology in Spanish. Nonetheless, it remains unclear what specific factors predict heritage speakers’ likelihood of exhibiting such variability. The present study contributes to this [...] Read more.

Many previous studies have found that adult heritage speakers exhibit significant variability in their production and comprehension of mood morphology in Spanish. Nonetheless, it remains unclear what specific factors predict heritage speakers’ likelihood of exhibiting such variability. The present study contributes to this question by testing the effect of both (a) age-of-acquisition of English and (b) Spanish proficiency on heritage speakers’ productive and receptive knowledge of mood morphology. Seventeen “early” heritage speakers (age of acquisition of English: 0 to 3.5 years), 20 “late” heritage speakers (age of acquisition of English: 4 to 6 years), and 18 later childhood immigrants (age of arrival in the US: 8 to 12 years) completed a Contextualized Elicited Production Task and a Mood Preference Task. Results of the two experiments suggest that the later childhood immigrants, despite “overusing” subjunctive in +Presupposition adjectival relative clauses, are significantly more likely than “early” and “late” heritage speakers to produce and prefer subjunctive mood in expected subjunctive contexts (with para que and in -Presupposition adjectival relative clauses). Within the heritage speaker groups, however, Spanish proficiency was a stronger predictor of subjunctive knowledge than age of acquisition of English, a finding with implications for both heritage language research and pedagogy. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bilingualism in the Hispanic and Lusophone world (BHL): Current Issues in Spanish and Portuguese Bilingual Settings)

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22 pages, 984 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Control Stimuli in Experimental Code-Switching Research

by Bryan Koronkiewicz

Languages 2019, 4(3), 67; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages4030067 - 29 Aug 2019

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3882

Abstract

The current study investigates whether there is variation among different types of control stimuli in code-switching (CS) research, how such stimuli can be used to accommodate heterogeneity, and how they can also be used as a baseline comparison of acceptability. A group of [...] Read more.

The current study investigates whether there is variation among different types of control stimuli in code-switching (CS) research, how such stimuli can be used to accommodate heterogeneity, and how they can also be used as a baseline comparison of acceptability. A group of native Spanish–English bilinguals (n = 20) completed a written acceptability judgment task with a 7-point Likert scale. Five different types of control stimuli were included, with three types considered to be completely acceptable (complex-sentence switches, direct-object switches, and subject–predicate switches) and two types considered to be completely unacceptable (pronoun switches and present–perfect switches). Additionally, a set of present–progressive switches were included as a comparison, as their acceptability status is still actively debated. The participants as a whole exhibited the expected grammatical distinctions among the control stimuli, but with a high degree of individual variability. Pronoun switches and auxiliary verb switches were rated significantly lower than the complex-sentence switches, direct-object switches, and subject–predicate switches. These results show that control stimuli can also establish a baseline comparison of acceptability, and recommendations for inclusion in experimental CS research are provided. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bilingualism in the Hispanic and Lusophone world (BHL): Current Issues in Spanish and Portuguese Bilingual Settings)

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22 pages, 607 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Measuring Language Dominance in Early Spanish/English Bilinguals

by Cecilia Solís-Barroso and Sara Stefanich

Languages 2019, 4(3), 62; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages4030062 - 13 Aug 2019

Cited by 15 | Viewed by 7773

Abstract

This paper analyzes the comparability of language dominance assessments with the purpose of determining whether they yield similar results. Language dominance is an important construct in the field of bilingualism as it allows for a more thorough classification of bilinguals and is thought [...] Read more.

This paper analyzes the comparability of language dominance assessments with the purpose of determining whether they yield similar results. Language dominance is an important construct in the field of bilingualism as it allows for a more thorough classification of bilinguals and is thought to play a role in both bilingual production and perception. Yet, there is no unified methodology for assessing language dominance. To that end, we ask the following research question: Do different language dominance measures predict the results of one another? Twenty-nine Spanish/English early bilinguals completed four language dominance assessments. Results indicate that three of the four assessments are highly correlated with each other while the fourth, a repetition task, is not significantly correlated with any of the assessments. Further, twenty of the participants were categorized differently across the individual measures; the more “balanced” a bilingual was, the greater likelihood of being categorized differently. These results indicate that certain language dominance assessments are not comparable with one another and suggest that it could be the case they do not even measure the same variable. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bilingualism in the Hispanic and Lusophone world (BHL): Current Issues in Spanish and Portuguese Bilingual Settings)

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14 pages, 385 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Exploring Learning Context Effects and Grapho(-Phonic)-Phonological Priming in Trilinguals

by Cintia Avila Blank and Raquel Llama

Languages 2019, 4(3), 61; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages4030061 - 2 Aug 2019

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3028

Abstract

A growing body of research on bilingual word recognition suggests that lexical access is language non-selective in nature. This claim aligns with the Dynamic Systems Theory (DST) approach to (multilingual) language acquisition, according to which complex systems involve a large number of elements [...] Read more.

A growing body of research on bilingual word recognition suggests that lexical access is language non-selective in nature. This claim aligns with the Dynamic Systems Theory (DST) approach to (multilingual) language acquisition, according to which complex systems involve a large number of elements that interact. In language learners, these interactions lead to the creation and dissolution of patterns as the tasks and environments around them change. In this study, we extend the scope from previous research on word recognition to include the role immersion plays on the transfer of grapho(-phonic)-phonological patterns among (Brazilian Portuguese–French–English) trilinguals. Two groups of participants—one group living in their L1 environment and the other in an L2 setting—were presented with a primed lexical decision task. Besides revealing a high impact of L2 immersion on the processing of grapho(-phonic)-phonological related primes, our results provide further support for the notion of language non-selective access to the lexicon, which seems to generalize to trilingual word recognition. Implications for the DST view of multiple language acquisition are briefly discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bilingualism in the Hispanic and Lusophone world (BHL): Current Issues in Spanish and Portuguese Bilingual Settings)

19 pages, 596 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Using Eye-Movements to Track Bilingual Activation

by María Teresa Martínez-García

Languages 2019, 4(3), 59; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages4030059 - 26 Jul 2019

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3702

Abstract

Recent research found that the languages of bilingual listeners are active and interact, such that both lexical representations are activated by the spoken input with which they are compatible. However, the time course of bilingual activation and whether suprasegmental information further modulates this [...] Read more.

Recent research found that the languages of bilingual listeners are active and interact, such that both lexical representations are activated by the spoken input with which they are compatible. However, the time course of bilingual activation and whether suprasegmental information further modulates this cross-language competition are still not well understood. This study investigates the effect of stress placement on the processing of English–Spanish cognates by beginner-to-intermediate Spanish-speaking second-language (L2) learners of English and intermediate-to-advanced English-speaking L2 learners of Spanish using the visual-world eye-tracking paradigm. In each trial, participants saw a target (asado, ‘roast’), one of two competitors (stress match: asados, ‘roast (pl)’; stress mismatch: asador, ‘rotisserie’), and two unrelated distracters, while hearing the target word. The experiment included a non-cognate condition (asado-asados-asador) and a cognate condition, where the stress pattern of the English word corresponding to the Spanish competitor in the stress-mismatch condition (inventor) instead matched that of the Spanish target (invento, ‘invent’). Growth-curve analyses revealed cognate-status and stress-mismatch effects for Spanish-speaking L2 learners of English, and cognate-status and stress-mismatch effects, and an interaction for English-speaking L2 learners of Spanish. This suggests that both groups use stress for word recognition, but the English stress pattern only affects the processing of Spanish words in the English-speaking L2 learners of Spanish. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bilingualism in the Hispanic and Lusophone world (BHL): Current Issues in Spanish and Portuguese Bilingual Settings)

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18 pages, 1208 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Gender Assignment to Spanish Pseudowords by Monolingual and Basque-Spanish Bilingual Children

by Rocío Pérez-Tattam, Maria José Ezeizabarrena, Hans Stadthagen-González and Virginia C. Mueller Gathercole

Languages 2019, 4(3), 58; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages4030058 - 22 Jul 2019

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 4415

Abstract

This study examines gender marking in the Spanish of Basque-Spanish bilingual children. We analyze data collected via a production task designed to elicit 48 DPs, controlling for gender of referents and for number and types of morphological cues to grammatical gender. The goals [...] Read more.

This study examines gender marking in the Spanish of Basque-Spanish bilingual children. We analyze data collected via a production task designed to elicit 48 DPs, controlling for gender of referents and for number and types of morphological cues to grammatical gender. The goals were to determine the extent to which participants rely on biological cues (female referent =>FEM gender, male referent =>MASC gender) and morpho-phonological cues (-a ending =>FEM, -o ending =>MASC, others =>MASC or FEM) to assign gender to pseudowords/novel words; and whether bilinguals’ language dominance (Spanish strong/weak) has an effect. Data were collected from 49 5- to 6-year-old Spanish-speaking children—28 monolingual L1 Spanish (L1_Sp) and 21 Basque-dominant (L1 Basque-L2 Spanish) bilinguals (BDB). Results reveal a general preference for MASC gender across conditions, especially in BDB children, who produced masculine modifiers for 83% of items, while the L1_Sp children did so for only 63% of items. Regression analyses show that for both groups, morphological cues have more weight than the nature of the referent in participants’ assignment of gender to novel words, and that the L1_Sp group is more attentive to FEM morphological markers than the BDB group, pointing towards the existence of differences in the strength of cue-patterns for gender marking. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bilingualism in the Hispanic and Lusophone world (BHL): Current Issues in Spanish and Portuguese Bilingual Settings)

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16 pages, 1132 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Heritage Portuguese and Heritage Polish in Contact with German: More Evidence on the Production of Objects

by Esther Rinke, Cristina Flores and Aldona Sopata

Languages 2019, 4(3), 53; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages4030053 - 10 Jul 2019

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 4430

Abstract

This paper compares the production of different types of direct objects by Portuguese–German and Polish–German bilingual school-aged children in their heritage languages (HLs), Polish and European Portuguese (EP). Given that the two target languages display identical options of object realization, our main research [...] Read more.

This paper compares the production of different types of direct objects by Portuguese–German and Polish–German bilingual school-aged children in their heritage languages (HLs), Polish and European Portuguese (EP). Given that the two target languages display identical options of object realization, our main research question is whether the two HLs develop in a similar way in bilingual children. More precisely, we aim at investigating whether bilingual children acquiring Polish and EP are sensitive to accessibility and animacy when realizing a direct object in their HL. The results of a production experiment show that this is indeed the case and that the two groups of bilinguals do not differ from each other, although they may overgeneralize null objects or full noun phrases to some extent. We conclude that the bilingual acquisition of object realization is guided by the relevant properties in the target languages and is not influenced by the contact language, German. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bilingualism in the Hispanic and Lusophone world (BHL): Current Issues in Spanish and Portuguese Bilingual Settings)

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16 pages, 425 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Becoming Monolingual: The Impact of Language Ideologies on the Loss of Multilingualism on São Tomé Island

by Marie-Eve Bouchard

Languages 2019, 4(3), 50; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages4030050 - 30 Jun 2019

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 5681

Abstract

This article discusses the loss of the creole languages on São Tomé Island and the societal move from multilingualism to monolingualism in Portuguese. It argues that recognizing the ideologies attached to these languages is key in understanding the language shift, but also the [...] Read more.

This article discusses the loss of the creole languages on São Tomé Island and the societal move from multilingualism to monolingualism in Portuguese. It argues that recognizing the ideologies attached to these languages is key in understanding the language shift, but also the processes leading toward monolingualism. This qualitative study is based on three main theories: Language as social practice, language ideology, and monoglot standardization. Data comes from ethnographic fieldwork and sociolinguistic interviews with 56 speakers from the capital of São Tomé and Príncipe. I argue that the existence of multilingualism on São Tomé Island is not valued at a societal level because of the pejorative ideologies that have been held about the creole languages since colonial times. Also, the use of the creole languages stood as a problem for the creation of a unified Santomean nation, as the different racial groups on the islands had their own creole. Results show how ideologies about the Portuguese language and its association with national unity, modernity, and European-ness favored its expansion on São Tomé Island and a move toward monolingualism. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bilingualism in the Hispanic and Lusophone world (BHL): Current Issues in Spanish and Portuguese Bilingual Settings)

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