The Impact of Language and Nativity on Ethnic Labeling (original) (raw)

Mexicanos, Chicanos, Mexican Americans or Pochos . . . ¿Qué somos? The impact of language and nativity on ethnic labeling

Mexicans, Chicanos, Mexican Americans, or Pochos...Que Somos? The Impact of Language and Nativity on Ethnic Labeling

Aztlan a Journal of Chicano Studies, 1986

iSabes quC? Ora como que apaiio guergiienza, siempre camellando como un pinchi animal, Cse, ustC que ha leyido tantos "comics." iQut semos slaves, nosotros la ram? luego Cse. .. es come si le filieran a uno 10s higados. All& Cse, pos es uno "greaser," "un mexican," viene uno a d , tse, y quesque uno es "pocho;" me empieza a cuadrar que me llamen "chicane," bato; me cai a toda madre, carnal, siquiera ya es uno, algo, no cualquier greaser o pocho. iQut no? UstC que ha leyido tantos funnys, carnalito, iquC semos Cse?-Bueno. .. pues mtxico-americanos.-Chale, Cse, es pura pinchi madera, la de mexicano domas pa' meterlo al surco, a las minas, nel, pos otra chinga pior. Lo de americanos, pos ya te darh cola, camarada, pa' darnos en la madre en sus pinchis guerras puercas. i 0 quC no, h e ? Peregr'nos de Aztldn 1 Miguel Mtndez-M. The determination of a group label for people of Mexican descent has been a question that has vexed the study of the Mexican descendant population in the United States. Whether in literature, philosophy, or the 0 1987 by Aida Hurtado and Carlos H. Arce VOLUME 17, NO. 1 103 104 AZTLAN 11 106 AZTLAN 108 AZTLAN this country and who are citizens, say that we come 'starving to death'; they don't like us at all. But I know that my husband and I have pure Mexican blood in our veins and not mixed like those persons. .. . 14

“Mexicans, Chicanos, Mexican Americans, or Pochos . . . Qu somos? The Impact of Language and Nativity on Ethnic Labeling.”

Aztlán

Social Identity in New Mexicans of Spanish- Speaking Descent Highlights Limitations of Using Standardized Ethnic Terminology in Research

Human Biology, 2017

In this study, we evaluated the extent to which regional history has shaped the social identity nomenclature in New Mexicans of Spanish-speaking descent (NMSD). We asked 507 NMSD to list the social-identity terms they used to describe themselves and their parents, and we examined the correspondence between these choices and family ties to the region, birthplace, and continental ancestry. NMSD frequently identified using the regional terms “Nuevomexicano/a” (15%) and “Spanish” (12%). These individuals reported family ties to the region that predate New Mexican statehood. They and their parents were frequently born in New Mexico, frequently chose the other of the two terms as a secondary descriptor, and frequently ascribed one of the two terms to their parents. About 10% of NMSD identified as “Mexican American” and “Mexican.” About 25% of these individuals, and more than half of their parents, were born in Mexico. They also frequently chose the other of the two terms as a secondary descriptor and frequently ascribed one of the two terms to their parents. Compared to NMSD who identified as “Mexican” and “Mexican American,” individuals who identified as “Nuevomexicano/a” and “Spanish” had higher European ancestry and lower Native American and African ancestry. Our results also suggest that the term “Hispanic,” frequently chosen as both a primary and secondary social identity term by NMSD, may, as it continues to rise in prominence, mask more deeply rooted and potential socially relevant aspects of social identity in New Mexico. More broadly, these results indicate that regional history influences social identity nomenclatures in ways that are potentially incompatible with US Office of Management and Budget standards. This incompatibility may adversely affect the ability of researchers in the social sciences to assess the causes of social inequality and health disparities in individuals of Spanish-speaking descent in different regions of the United States. We argue that future studies would benefit from more fine-grained, region-specific analyses of social identity.

Stereotypes, language, and race: Spaniards’ perception of Latin American immigrants

Journal of Linguistic Geography

The present study explores how two symbolic boundaries—linguistic variety and race—intersect, influencing how Latin American immigrants are perceived in Spain. To this end, 217 Spaniards participated in an experiment in which they evaluated three men along a series of social properties, but they were presented with different combinations of linguistic variety (Argentinian, Colombian, or Spanish) and race (a White or Mestizo photograph). The results of mixed-effects regression models found that linguistic variety conditioned participants’ evaluations of status, occupational prestige, solidarity, and trustworthiness, and both variety and race conditioned evaluations of religiousness. We contend that linguistic features become associated with a specific group of people through rhematization (Gal, 2005; Irvine & Gal, 2000) and, by extension, ideologies link those people with stereotypical characteristics. We conclude that the “ideological twinning” (Rosa & Flores, 2017) of race and ling...

Language Ideologies In Action: When Different Latino Linguistic Identities Collide.

New Census data demonstrate that Latino communities are increasing in every region of the United States, particularly in the South and the Midwest, with some regions nearly doubling its Latino population (Census 2011). This population growth goes hand in hand with the growth in diversity along with the need to construct and negotiate a unique linguistic identity for the Latino groups (Ghosh-Johnson 2005, Otheguy, Erker & Livert 2005, Otheguy & Lapidus 2005, Rivera-Mills 2000, Zentella 1990). If different Spanish-speaking groups have different status, the negotiation of these identities is crucial. I analyze the negotiation of a distinctive identity in the United States as seen in the language use and metalinguistic comments of Mexican Americans and Puerto Ricans. Community members describe the tensions within and between them. These comments reproduce and perpetuate ideologies promoted by intellectuals who have described developments resulting from the contact between Spanish and English as ‘language corruptions.’ Similarly, differing language use reflects another way to mark boundaries between identities and group affiliation within this Spanish-speaking community.

I'm Not Mexican... Pero soy Mexicano: Linguistic Context of Labeling Among Mexican Americans in Texas

Southwest Journal of Linguistics, 2005

Previous research on racial/ethnic labeling among Latino populations in the U.S. has explored the continuing salience of racial/ethnic identities, and how these identities vary considerably by factors such as language use, national origin, generational status, region, and social context. However, while research has explored the role of language fluency (English or Spanish-speaking ability) in Latinos' racial/ethnic labeling choices, very little research has explored how language itself may transform the meaning of a particular racial/ethnic label. Drawing on interviews with fifty-two Mexican Americans from five Texas communities, I explore the divergent meanings of the labels MEXICAN vs. MEXICANO/A, and TEXAN vs. TEJANO/A. While these words reflect a literal translation from English to Spanish, they elicit very different responses from participants in the study. These findings highlight the need for more in-depth research exploring the role of linguistic context in the meanings attached to particular racial/ethnic labels.

The Impact of Language and Nativity on Ethnic Labeling (original) (raw)

Related papers