Two Worlds, Two Voices: Exploring Linguistic Encounters through Spanglish

The aim of my dissertation is to analyze the phenomenon of Spanglish, explaining its own development and origins, focusing on how it evolved into the American society and its power of bridging two different cultures, traditions, and, most of all, languages. As I delved into studying during my bachelor’s degree the two languages, I’ve noticed every difference, and how at first sight it seems like these two languages seems to be unrelated. It will soon be found that since decades it has been created a new language that reflects the urge of the Latinos to be able to be introduced into the American society. Spanglish has been the solution to the cultural gap that was for long present between these two communities. This new language shows a dynamic and complex melting of Spanish and English. However, it is not just a linguistic phenomenon, it underlines the reflection of cultural convergence among bilingual communities. Born from the historical encounters between the Latinos immigrants, Spanish native speakers, and the English native speakers in United States, Spanglish has evolved as a versatile mode of communication that destroys the language boundaries created by their own communities. This dissertation explores the origins of Spanglish, describing its development within different societies and geographical contexts and defining its implications. Spanglish was born because of the historical waves of Spanish-speaking immigrants to the United States, from Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba and other Latin American countries. As these communities started to settle into a new country which the native language is English, they began to blend with the culture, the education and media. However, the immigrants were faced with the lack of English proficiency and their distance from having a high level of English. Therefore, they’ve started to blend their native language to the new one, solving the challenge of being in a completely different environment. Today Spanglish has become the main language for many people, it has been used in many and different fields, from casual conversations to literature, social media and marketing. Its presence in media and popular culture has not just normalized but also celebrated bilingualism, showing it as a powerful tool for identity and community building. Moreover, the phenomenon of translanguaging and code-switching underlines the adaptability of bilinguals’ speakers. Not only, Spanglish has challenged the traditional notions of language purity and monolingualism. The speakers of this language have demonstrated the fluid and evolving nature of language, demolishing the idea of language as a boundary and a limit. Spanglish permits to a new community to solve the challenges of assimilation into a new cultural environment. Moreover, it preserves the cultural identity without sacrificing the traditions and origins, and still being able to communicate. And still survives and continues to evolve, demonstrating its positioning and how it will gain more and more importance in the future, perhaps being identified as an official language or recognized as a useful tool for education purposes and assimilation goals.