SPAN 4/661
History of the Spanish Language
Spring2016
Professor: Dr. Isabelli
email: [email protected]
Office Hours EJCH 241A: Wednesdays 10-12
or by appointment
History of the Spanish languages from its beginnings to the present. This course provides an
introduction to the history of the Spanish language from its Latin origins to its present
configuration, taking into account foreign influences that have contributed to its formation. You will
answer questions like: where does Spanish come from? Why? What genetic and cultural relations
does it have with its sister romance languages? Why does it have the interdental fricative voiceless
phoneme /θ/? Why doesn't Latin American Spanish contain this phoneme? Why there are two
imperfect subjunctive tenses? Why does Spanish have phonological characteristics that are peculiar
and different compared to its neighboring romances languages? To complement this diachronic
linguistic study of the language, ancient and medieval literary texts will be used to complement the
*Recommended Preparation: Span 312 and/or Span 451: Intro. to Spanish Linguistics
material.
Course Objectives
The main objective of this course is to study the origin of the different varieties of the Spanish
language found on the Iberian Peninsula and the various nations of Spanish America (Latin
American, Caribbean) including the United States. The course will trace the evolution of the
different varieties and dialects of Spanish found worldwide from Vulgar Latin to early Romance and
then to the different varieties of modern Spanish. This interdisciplinary course serves as a
complement to the Spanish culture, literature, and linguistics courses the student has taken and gives
them an opportunity to examine and articulate the various connections that exist between the many
Spanish speaking nations – including the United States - and to evaluate the ways in which these
factors might affect the future of the Spanish language. This course satisfies core objective 11.
Core Objective 11: Global Contexts. Students will examine, apply, and evaluate modes of
academic inquiry, creative expression, or results of research to linguistic problems in historical and
contemporary global contexts (Spanish of all nations). Students will articulate connections among
local, national, and global contexts and evaluate the ways the historical and contemporary global
influences affect their current situations.
Students will study and analyze the affect of the diverse historical, cultural, literary, political, and
religious forces on the evolution of the Spanish language by means of lectures, readings, multimedia
presentations, and student analytical and presentational activities. Students will examine the forces
of ancient and medieval European historical nationalism, multilingualism, ethnic conflict, war, and
colonization on the birth and development of Spanish over the centuries, not only of Spanish of the
Iberian Peninsula, but also of the nations of Latin America, the Caribbean, and North America.
Students will articulate connections among these national (Spanish peninsula) and international (the
Americas) contexts and evaluate the ways that historical and contemporary global influences are
repeated and how they affect their current situations. Students will study and analyze a variety of
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Spanish 4/661 - History | Spring 2016 | Department of Foreign Languages & Literatures | University of Nevada, Reno
problems related to the historical, economic, and political circumstances of Spanish speaking
nations, their prevailing ideologies, and the determining factors that have contributed to their
cultural and linguistic interactions with indigenous cultures in Spanish American nations.
Student Learning Objectives
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
1. identify and explain the evolution of Spanish from its origins to the present.
2. articulate and evaluate the influence of Latin and Basque on the birth and development of Old
to Early Spanish.
3. analyze the various processes of word formation and their effects of semantic change.
4. demonstrate (by written responses and class discussion) their understanding of the
transformations that the Latin phonological system suffered through to pass to modern Spanish.
5. identify, discuss, analyze and demonstrate (by written response and class discussion) the
relationship between the historical, social, and political events that shaped the Spanish language
found on the Iberian Peninsula and the nations of Spanish America. (CO 11)
6. demonstrate the ability to analyze the impact of global historical forces on the formation of the
Spanish language. (C0 11)
How SLO will be Assessed
The SLOs related to the Core objective 11 will be assessed via a research paper and on essay
questions on the final exam through written analyses explaining how the Spanish language evolved
from Roman vulgar Latin to modern Spanish as we see it today based on historical, social, and
political events that came into contact with and affected the peninsular civilization. In addition,
written analyses on how the politics and history during Early Spanish affected global change in the
Americas. Finally, how modern politics and global forces will shape the future of the Spanish
language. Student leadership and participation in regular, structured discussion groups will help them
integrate their knowledge as the semester progresses and will enable them to draw upon other
learning experiences relating to Spanish seen in their environment. The research paper and final
exam are designed to gauge the extent of student success in meeting this Core Objective.
Required Textbook
Núñez Méndez, Eva. (2012). Fundamentos teóricos y prácticos de historia de la lengua española. London: Yale
University Press. (ISBN: 978-0-300-17098-6)
Course Components
The lectures are structure around various angles, in order to cover different objectives.
 Class lectures: will present an introduction to important aspects of the evolution of Spanish
from its Vulgar Latin roots.
 Problem Sets: Students will apply theoretical concepts explained from materials and texts
provided by the professor and the textbook to practical problem sets. Graduate students will
complete additional analytical problems in these sets.
 Text Commentaries: Students will complete exercises based on medieval texts from the XII to
XV centuries, reaching up to the time of the conquest of the New World.
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Spanish 4/661 - History | Spring 2016 | Department of Foreign Languages & Literatures | University of Nevada, Reno


Presentation of a medieval text in Old Spanish. Graduate students only. See details in
packet.
Research paper. Write on one of the topics offered. Graduate students will write a longer
paper including more in depth analysis of the topic chosen.
Grading
Problem Sets
Exam 1: Phonetics (Chps. 1, 2, 3)
Exam 2: Morphology & Lexicon (Chps. 4 & 5)
Presentation of Medieval Text (Chp. 6)
Final Exam (Chps. 8 & 9, 6/7)
Research Paper
441
641
30%
20%
20%
30%
15%
15%
10%
15%
15%
15%
15%
Grading Scale
Thefollowingscalewillbeusedtodeterminelettergrades:
A
A‐
B+
B
B‐
C+
C
100‐93 92‐90 89‐87 86‐83 82‐80 79‐77 76‐73
C‐
72‐70
D+
69‐67
D
D‐
F
66‐63 62‐60 59‐0
Policy on Late/Make-up Work
All written assignments and exams must be completed in order to receive a passing grade for the
course. Make-up exams are not granted except for medical or family emergencies, which require
written documentation from a physician on or before the day of the exam. All take-home papers
and assignments must be submitted on the date assigned. Late papers and assignments will not be
accepted.
University Statements for this Course
Statement on Academic Dishonesty: "Cheating, plagiarism or otherwise obtaining grades under
false pretenses constitute academic dishonesty according to the code of this university. Academic
dishonesty will not be tolerated and penalties can include canceling a student's enrollment without a
grade, giving an F for the course or for the assignment. For more details, see the University of
Nevada, Reno General Catalog."
Statement of Disability Services: "Any student with a disability needing academic adjustments or
accommodations is requested to speak with the Disability Resource Center (Thompson Building,
Suite 101) as soon as possible to arrange for appropriate accommodations.
Statement on Audio and Video Recording: "Surreptitious or covert video-taping of class or
unauthorized audio recording of class is prohibited by law and by Board of Regents policy. This
class may be videotaped or audio recorded only with the written permission of the instructor. In
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Spanish 4/661 - History | Spring 2016 | Department of Foreign Languages & Literatures | University of Nevada, Reno
order to accommodate students with disabilities, some students may be given permission to record
class lectures and discussions. Therefore, students should understand that their comments during
class may be recorded."
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Spanish 4/661 - History | Spring 2016 | Department of Foreign Languages & Literatures | University of Nevada, Reno
400/600 Distinction
1. How will graduate students achieve deeper understanding of the material presented to the
combined group? The graduate students will complete an extra project in the course which requires them to
present a medieval Spanish literary text and addressing the theoretical material seen in phonetic and semantic,
in addition to the historical, social, and political events that effected the author’s writing.
2. How will graduate student assignments differ from those of the undergraduates in their nature or
quantity? Graduate students will complete an extra presentation project, their homework assignments will
require them to complete additional analysis, and their exams will include more analytical questions.
3. How will increased opportunities for independent study or for interaction with the instructor(s)
be made available for graduate students? The graduate students are required to interact with me
during preparation of their work during my office hours.
4. Discuss any synthesis experiences specifically for graduates? Graduate students need to bring together
their knowledge of how Spanish developed from vulgar Latin to Old/Early Spanish by tracing backwards
the development of phonetics, phonology and semantics by analyzing medieval Spanish literary texts.
5. Identify on the proposed syllabus the opportunities the graduates will have for work at a higher
academic level. The syllabus states that their homework assignments will include more analytical
problems, they need to present one of the literary texts using the linguistic material studied, their research
paper requires more detail, more sources, and have more difficult topics to write their paper on.
6. Discuss how the work of graduate students will be evaluated differently from that of
undergraduates by describing the criteria used in grading an undergraduate assignment
versus those used in grading a graduate level assignment. The evaluation for the presentation is
presented in this packet. The written work of the graduate students in their homework and papers will be
evaluated expecting more analysis and synthesis of the information from the students.
7. How will graduates leave the course feeling that they have obtained greater academic value? The
graduate students who have taken this course have told me that they feel that this course moved them to
synthesize the material since it involved both linguistics and literature, which is the focus of their M.A. degree.
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Spanish 4/661 - History | Spring 2016 | Department of Foreign Languages & Literatures | University of Nevada, Reno
Presentation of Medieval Text Evaluation – Graduate Students Only
Each group of graduate students will lead a group class discussion in Spanish on the linguistic
aspects of a medieval text. You are to facilitate discussion of the text by providing a handout of
what you found in the text. You should think about important themes for discussion and application
of the text to the general issue of the course. You should give a brief introduction on the text
bringing in outside materials where appropriate.
1. Quality of introduction
15 _______
2. Quality of handout (did it include general observation about
phonology, pronouns, syntax and orthography?)
20 _______
3. Critical interpretation of material. Did you find (dis)similarities
to other presentations?)
25 _______
4. Vocabulary and Grammar (representative of 600-level? Free of
editing errors?)
25 _______
5. Effectiveness of manner of presentation (Evidence of preparation?
Did you comment elaborately)
10 _______
6. Additional activity (Did it help highlight the uniqueness of the excerpt?) 5 _______
Total: ________/100
Sign-up
Mester de juglaría (Siglo XII)
Poesía: Cantar de mío Cid
Religioso/Teatro: Representación de los Reyes Magos
Disputa de alma y el cuerpo (adjunto)
Mester de clerecía (Siglo XIII)
Religioso/Poesía: Milagros de Nuestra Señora
Poesía: Libro de Apolonio
Poesía: Poema de Fernán González
Textos históricos y doctrinales (Siglo XIII)
Alfonso X, el Sabio: Crónica general de Espanna (adjunto)
Alfonso X, el Sabio: Las partidas (adjunto)
Alfonso X, el Sabio: La general estoria (adjunto)
Alfonso X, el Sabio: Buenos proverbios
Alfonso X, el Sabio: Flores de filosofía
Textos literarios de carácter moralizante (Siglo XIV)
Narrativa: El Conde Lucanor
Poseía: Libro de buen amor
Narrativa: El Corbacho
Research Paper
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Spanish 4/661 - History | Spring 2016 | Department of Foreign Languages & Literatures | University of Nevada, Reno
The purpose of the research paper is to give you a hands-on introduction to linguistics research.
This is not the kind of paper that you can knock off in a couple of weeks of intense efforts at the
end of the semester; you will need to invest consistent time and effort in it over the course of the
semester.
Format
441
6-9 pages (12/Times/ 1 1/2 /1"márgenes) + bibliography and appendices, MLA/APA
-minimum 3 primary sources (1 must be an article)
641
8-12 pages (12/Times/1 1/2 /1"márgenes) + bibliography and appendices, MLA/APA format
-minimum 5 primary sources (2 must be articles)
-can not write on topic #2
Topics
441/641 TOPIC. We have talked about the history of the Spanish language: How will it be in the
future? What changes would we expect to see? Comment on phonetic, morphological, lexical
and syntactic changes. Do not forget to analyze socio-political events and situations that
influence these changes (the media, for example).
441 TOPIC ONLY. We have about certain aspects and characteristics of Latin American and
American Spanish. How is it different from Peninsular Spanish? What are the historical, social,
political, and linguistics reasons to explain these differences? Explain the phonetic,
morphological, lexical and syntactic traits that differential the regional variations.
641 TOPIC ONLY. Explain the relationship between the historical, social, and political events that
shaped the Hispanic civilization and the Spanish language on the peninsula and in South
America.
641 TOPIC ONLY. Compare Spanish and another romance language drawing the comparisons
from their connection and development from Vulgar Latin. What traits to these languages have
(or maintain) that has disappeared in the other? What are words that come from Latin one
language but have been replaced by other foreign words in the other language? What historical,
social, political, and linguistics reasons can explain these differences? [This topic is
recommended for students who have command of the second romance language to which they
are comparing Spanish.]
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Spanish 4/661 - History | Spring 2016 | Department of Foreign Languages & Literatures | University of Nevada, Reno
Proposal of research paper due:
The proposal should consist of the following 4 elements:
First paragraph: an introduction and presentation of the problem addressed.
Second paragraph: the research questions or hypotheses that your study will investigate. The question
you chose to address should come directly from those listed on the topic handout (p. 32 of the course
packet).
Rough outline: I will use your outline to evaluate if you are going in the appropriate direction, so you
need to use a format that will make reading easy. We will use the Traditional Alpha-Numeric Format
(example below). The outline should show me that you can answer the questions posed on the topic
handout. Make sure that your outline answers the questions posed in the topic handout.
Working title
I. Research questions. The answers should form main points.
II. First Main point
A. Support for first main point
1. Evidence for point A
2. More evidence for A
B. Second support for first main point
1. Evidence for point B
a. support for this evidence
b. more support for this evidence
2. More evidence for B
III. Second main point
(and so on)
IV. Conclusions
V. Annotated Bibliography (Obras citadas)
• Include relevant citations each with a one-sentence summary (minimum 5).
• The references will from full text sources found on the shelves or online from books or academic
journals (I've listed some starting points below - do NOT cite encyclopedic websites like Wikipedia).
• Use the APA referencing style. You don't need to have the books in your possession, but this is a
good time to start requesting books and articles through interlibrary loan (however many are found
on the library shelves).
• If you need a tutorial, make an appointment with a librarian at the Library, if you are already
familiar with this process go to the Library website. The books/articles take about 1 week to arrive
during busy times in the semester.
• A good place to start is with the list of references I have listed on our course website.
• Article Indexes - Library Database (start with Article1st, ERIC, JSTOR, or Wilson Select Plus).
 Articles have been posted in the WebCampus course.
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Spanish 4/661 - History | Spring 2016 | Department of Foreign Languages & Literatures | University of Nevada, Reno
Articles:
Casado-Fresnillo, C. (1995). Resultados del contacto del español con el Árabe y con las lenguas autóctonas
de Guinea Ecuatorial. In Silva-Corvalan, C. (Ed.) Spanish in Four Continents: Studies in
Language Contact and Bilingualism. pp. 281-292. Georgetown University Press.
Dvorak, T. (1983). Subject-object reversals in the use of gustar among New York Hispanics. In ElíasOlivares, L. (Ed.) Spanish in the U.S. Setting: Beyond the Southwest. pp. 22-36. National
Clearinghouse for Bilingual Education. Virginia.
Elías-Olivares, L. (1995). Discourse strategies of Mexican-American Spanish.
García, M. (1995). En los sábados, en la mañana, en veces: A look at en in the Spanish of San Antonio.
García, M. (1999). Nomás in a Mexican-American dialect.
García, M. (2001). Siempre and todo el tiempo.
García, O. & M. Cuevas. (1995). Spanish ability and use among second-generation nuyoricans.
Gutiérrez, M. (1995). On the future of the future tense in the Spanish of the Southwest.
Gutiérrez, M. (2003). Simplification and innovation in US Spanish.
Hammond, R. (1999). On the non-occurrence of the phone (r̃) in the Spanish sound system.
Hidalgo, M. (1987). On the question of 'standard' versus 'dialect': Implications for teaching Hispanic
college students.
Morales, A. (1995). The loss of the Spanish impersonal Particle se among bilingual: A Descriptive Profile.
Nuñez-Cedeño, R. (1983). Pérdida de inversión de sujeto en interrogativos adverbiales del español
caribeño.
Ocampo, F. (1990). El subjuntivo en tres generaciones de hablantes bilingües.
Ringer Uber, D. (1999). Forms of address in the commercial Spanish of five Latin American cities.
Silva-Corvalán, C. (1983). Code-shifting patterns in Chicano Spanish.
Smead, R. & J. Clegg. (1990). Aztequismos en el español chicano.
Journals
- Language Variation and Change
- Studies on the History of the Spanish Language: from the Middle Ages to Modern Times
Books
• Canfield, D. Lincoln. Spanish Pronunciation in the Americas. University Chicago Press, 1981. (Copy found
in WebCampus, Chapter 8)
• Lapesa, Rafael. Historia de la lengua española. Madrid: Escelicer, 1959. (on reserve)
• Penny, Ralph. A History of the Spanish Language. Cambridge University Press, 1992. (on reserve)
• Silva-Corvalan, C. Spanish in Four Continents: Studies in Language Contact and Bilingualism. Georgetown
University Press, 1995.
• Spaulding, Robert. How Spanish Grew. Berkeley: University California Press, 1943. (on reserve)
• Thomason, S. G. & Kaufman, T. Language Contact, Creolization, and Genetic Linguistics. University of
California Press, 1991. (on reserve)
• Whitley, M. Stanley. Spanish/English Contrasts. Georgetown University Press, 2002. (on reserve)
• Zamora Vicente, A. Dialectología Española. Madrid: Gredos, 1967. (on reserve)
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Spanish 4/661 - History | Spring 2016 | Department of Foreign Languages & Literatures | University of Nevada, Reno
History of the Spanish Language
CAP
WEEK 1 -
IN CLASS
TO TURN IN
1/22
1
Introduction to the Course;
Historical Context; 1-1
 External history
o Indigenous civilization on Peninsula
o Invading civilizations on Peninsula (Greek,
Roman, North African, Northern Europe)
WEEK 2 - 1/27 & 1/29
Historical Context; 1.2-1.3
 External history
 Vulgar Latin (language, politics, culture, civilizations)
o texts, inscriptions, and graffitti
 Romance Hispanic (language, politics, culture,
civilizations)
o Glosses (Glosas Emilianeses)
Historical Context; 1.4
 Early Spanish / Castellano (language, politics, culture,
civilizations)
o Glosses (Silenses)
o El Cantar de mio Cid
o Bercero (first author to write in this language)
 Pidal (first to baptize the word “Español” and
document it)
WEEK 3 - 2/3 & 2/5
Influence of Basque on development of Spanish
 Preroman languages in Hispania
2
 Influence of Basque
o Politics, culture, civilization, language
Influence of Basque on development of Spanish
 Sustrate languages and their influences on evolution
 Influence of Basque
o politics, culture, civilization, language
WEEK 4 - 2/10 & 2/12
Influence of Basque on development of Spanish; 3.1
 Influence of Basque
o politics, culture, civilization, language
3
Phonetic and Phonological Changes; 3.2-3.3
 norms
 Evolution from Vulgar Latin
PROBLEM SET 1
PROBLEM SET 2
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Spanish 4/661 - History | Spring 2016 | Department of Foreign Languages & Literatures | University of Nevada, Reno
WEEK 5 - 2/17-2/19
Phonetic and Phonological Changes; 3.4-3.5
 Development in the various Spanish nations
o regions of Spain,
o Caribbean
o Spanish America
o costal vs. mountainous regions
EXAM 1 (CHAPTERS 1-3)
WEEK 6 - 2/24- 2/26
4
Morpho-syntactic changes; 4.1- 4.3
 norms
Morpho-syntactic changes; 4.4-4.5
 Development in the various Spanish nations
o regions of Spain,
o Caribbean
o Spanish America
o costal vs. mountainous regions
WEEK 7- 3/3-3/5
5
5
Grapheme changes, 5.1-5.3
 Linguistic norm
 The Alfonsí norm
 Alfonso X The wise
Grapheme changes, 5.4-5.5
 Orthographic norms
 Development of the sibilants in the various Spanish
nations
o regions of Spain,
o Caribbean
o Spanish America
o costal vs. mountainous regions
WEEK 8 - 3/10-3/12
3/10
6
Medieval texts; 6.1-6.4
 Peninsular
o Jarchas
 Sephardic
 Spanish American
3/12
Medieval texts; 66.5.1
WEEK 9 - 3/17-3/19
SPRING BREAK
WEEK 10 - 3/24-3/26
6.5.2, DISPUTA..., 6.6.1,6.6.2 TEXT Presentations
6.6.4, CRÓNICA..., LAS PARTIDAS, LA GENERAL..., 6.7.2
WEEK 11 - 3/31-4/2
6.7.3, 6.8.1, 6.8.2, 6.8.3 TEXT Presentations
Exercises (Problem Set 5 + Text)
PROBLEM SET 3
PROBLEM SET 4
441 PROBLEM SET 5
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Spanish 4/661 - History | Spring 2016 | Department of Foreign Languages & Literatures | University of Nevada, Reno
WEEK 12 - 4/7-4/9
Exam 2 (Chapters 4, 5, 6)
Visit to Library - How to carry out Research; MLA; etc.
7
Old Spanish texts, 7.1-7.3
 Apogeo I
o The Reconquista
o Christopher Columbus and the New World
o Christians and the indigenous in Latin America
and the Caribbean
 Textbook exercises
PROPOSAL DUE
WEEK 13 - 4/14-4/16
Old Spanish texts, 7.4-7.8
 Apogeo I
o Historia de las Indias (about indigenous)
 Conquerors in Latin America
 Languages in contact
 Language change
 Apogeo I
 Textbook exercises
8
Spanish in the Americas; 8.1-8.2
 Amerindian languages and Spanish of the colonizers
 Contact / Influence / Borrowing
 Political, social, cultural influences and power
o Nahuatl
o Arahuaco/taíno
o Chibcha
o Quechua
WEEK 14 -4/21-4/23
Spanish in the Americas; 8.3
 Amerindian languages and Spanish of the colonizers
 Contact / Influence / Borrowing
 Political, social, cultural influences and power
o Aimara
o Tupi
o Guaraní
o Mapuche
Spanish in the Americas; 8.4-8.5
 NIVELACIÓN DIALECTAL
 Spanish of the Americas vs. Peninsular Spanish
 adstrato vs. Sustrato
 Regionalisms, Neologisms
 Effects of languages in contact
FIRST DRAFT DUE
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Spanish 4/661 - History | Spring 2016 | Department of Foreign Languages & Literatures | University of Nevada, Reno
WEEK 15- 4/28-4/30
9
Questions of Interest; 9.1-9.3
 Judeo Spanish – in all global pockets (Israel, Latin
America, Latin America)
 Survival
Questions of Interest; 9.4-9.5;
 Varying forms of Voseo in Latin America
 Political, social, and cultural influences on use of
voseo
Textbook exercises
WEEK 16 -5/5
CATCHUP AND REVIEW
MONDAY 5/12 - 10:15-12:15PM - EXAM 3 (7, 8, 9) - FINAL EXAM
FINAL PAPER DUE
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Spanish 4/661 - History | Spring 2016 | Department of Foreign Languages & Literatures | University of Nevada, Reno