Spanish Phonetics, Phonology, and Dialectology

3 units

This course, conducted in Spanish, explores the linguistic varieties of the 21 Spanish-speaking countries from both a historical and a synchronic perspective. The course begins with a traditional look at Spanish phonetics and phonology, with all students memorizing and utilizing the International Phonetic Alphabet. Course readings and discussions extend beyond the descriptive and include a search for the sources of language variation within the Spanish speaking world. Particular attention is devoted to language contact and bilingualism. Students will read in areas such as history, sociolinguistics, dialectology, and sociology, as well as traditional linguistic studies, in designing their projects concerning phonetics, phonology and dialect diversification.