The Spanish Language in the US

The University of Guadalajara is putting on the 3^rd annual Spanish language book fair of Los Angeles (LéaLA) at the L.A. Convention Center from the 17^th to the 19^th of May. Organizers of the fair, the largest of its kind in the US, aim to strengthen the Spanish language in the country, particularly among the children of its Latino community. They expect record turn out this year, planning to attract over one hundred thousand book enthusiasts and more than 300 publishers including the Penguin group and Random House. 

Besides an impressive list of over 200 book booths, 90 authors are also scheduled to offer book signings, presentations and readings. Although most of the authors are Mexican, writers and readers of all backgrounds are encouraged to participate in the free event. Chilean rock star Beto Cuevas, of the group La Ley, will be on hand to discuss his new book entitled The Art of Being Beto Cuevas, and American best-selling author Nicholas Sparks will talk about literary translation. Other participating authors include Paco Ignacio, Beatriz Riva and Daniel Krauze.

Marisol Schulz, the director of the fair, is also director of the hugely successful International Book Fair of Guadalajara in Mexico. One of her goals has been to attract greater international attention to L.A.’s book fair, and especially from Latin American countries beyond Mexico.  She has already confirmed that members of both Argentina and Colombia’s camaras del libro (trade associations for those in the book industry) will be in attendance this year.

The fair will also pay special homage to the Mexican literary legend Carlos Fuentes and to the widely celebrated Mexican American singer Jenni Rivera, both of whom died last year. Carlos Fuentes’ widow Silvia Lemus will also participate in the tribute to her late husband.

Over 100 Activities to explore Ibero-American Traditions

Over 100 activities are also scheduled for the popular childrens’ area, where kids and parents will get to explore Ibero-American traditions and the rich artwork of the Mexican Muralists. Activities include entertaining and educational stage performances about folk legends from a variety of Latin American regions. A number of childrens’ workshops designed to promote bilingualism have also been scheduled, where kids will hear tales of the plumed serpent Quetzalcoatl and play traditional Mexican games. The group Zaikocirco will also offer entertaining circus performances and puppet shows. Over 40% of last year’s visitors brought their kids, a promising statistic for the future of the Spanish language in the US.

Visitors will also get the chance to see lectures and participate in forums and panel discussions, where a wide range of topics to be discussed include the challenges of distributing and selling Spanish language books in the US, and the history of the city of Tijuana. That city itself is booked as the event’s guest of honor this year.  

Although the main purpose of the book festival has been to promote Spanish-language literature and celebrate Latino heritage, event organizers soon discovered their growing venue was also offering a profitable space for booksellers, filling a clear void in the book industry. 80% of visitors made purchases at last year’s fair. 

Spain, the home of Spanish language or in original form Castilian (Castellano), can be the perfect location to start your language education. There are several options, as the country has 17 autonomous communities and each has its own characteristic features. For this reason most of the time the question “Where is the best Spanish spoken?” arises in minds. Spanish spoken in Spain differs in dialect and local language of some provinces so the answers vary as well. The history, culture and to be the source of the language are the biggest reasons in the process of selecting a Spanish course.

One of the most preferred destination in Spain is Castile and Leon (Castilla y León) region, might be the result of the common belief that the purest Spanish is spoken there. The purity is mostly about the accent since there has been no interaction with other dialects and it is clearer than the other regions. Accordingly public authorities and private tourism agencies have started collaboration to spread language tourism in Castile and Leon. The region has been selected one of the most popular destination by Spaniards and it is an important location for international students. Language tourism is not considered to be an ordinary travel type yet people who are dedicated to learn other languages have started to travel to other countries in order to realize this mission. Many universities in all over the world organize exchange programs for the students to learn Spanish in Castile and León.

There are 9 provinces to discover the beauty of Spanish culture and each one has a distinct importance. Valladolid once hosted the author of Don Quijote, Miguel Cervantes, the epic story of El Cid which is depicted in the oldest preserved poem "Cantar de Mio Cid" was born in Burgos, Salamanca has the 3^rd oldest university in Europe and is the center of DELE exams, Segovia, being one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites, is an amazing place to see the Roman and medieval architecture and Leon is an important stop on the way to Camino de Santiago, in Palencia you can see the fourth tallest Christ statue in the world and many more other details are awaiting to be seen.

Castile and Leon is a must go place to understand history, culture, gastronomy and most importantly Spanish language. Why don't you select your next travel destination among these cities and start to live Spanish!

The Royal Spanish Academy or RAE (Real Academia Española), an institution that has been dedicated throughout three solid centuries to maintaining the correct usage of the Spanish language, is making a timid and somewhat belated entrance into the age of text messages, facebook and twitter communication. The RAE is the official authority on the Spanish language; its members literally wrote (and are writing) the book on correct Spanish usage. In the last decade, royal members have watched on in helpless frustration as countless cell phone users and facebook fans around the Spanish speaking world have busied themselves with butchering long standing spelling and grammar standards.

It seems that interest in economizing on time and on button-pushing finger effort has inspired widespread language carelessness. Many internet users also feel that writing on non-traditional supports justifies non-traditional writing habits, in other words invented rules that consider only users’ convenience, and may compromise comprehension or even courtesy and professionalism in certain contexts. The RAE, traditionally reluctant to make royal modifications to proper Castilian, has taken only dainty stabs at addressing the overwhelming spread and influence of communication technologies on the language. It has made a modest smattering of additions to the recent royal dictionary, taking something of an if you can’t beat them, join them attitude with entries such as tableta (referring to an electronic tablet), and tuitear (to correspond on twitter).

The Urgent Spanish Foundation (Fundación del Español Urgente [Fundéu BBVA]), a group that recognizes the urgent need to protect the Spanish language, has produced a new guide on writing in these new technological contexts, confirming many users’ opinions that the new media does indeed require a new set of writing rules. The book, entitled  Escribir en internet. Guía para los nuevos medios y las redes sociales (Writing on the Internet. A Guide to New Media and Social Networks” was presented at the Royal Spanish Academy’s headquarters in Madrid.  

It seems unlikely that many will pick up this manual to consult proper twitter grammar for casual personal communication. It is difficult to imagine the legions of teenage texters out there making an independent effort to analyze the spelling rules outlined in the manual before texting text friends. These forms of communication however are becoming more prevalent on a professional and academic level. The use of facebook and twitter in business to advertise and maintain clients informed on company offers and news has become standard. The guide may serve as an important rule book, for example, for professionals in charge of managing those types of accounts. An endless number of possible situations arise in which this guide could be handy. What if, for example, a client requests a text message? Would you know how to adopt an appropriate tone and writing style called for by the situation? The book also gives important advice on email writing in Spanish. If you have to write an email to a teacher, a supervisor, a client, a potential employer, the list goes on, you may want to consult this new, one of its kind guide. The book should also prove valuable to writing educators responsible for instructing new generations of technology users on standardized writing rules in updated contexts.

Young folks should at least know proper texting grammar before engaging in discourse altogether unintelligible to everyone except each other. This guide fills a need that has been largely ignored up to now, to address the correct use of written Spanish in digital support systems.

To learn Spanish by reading comics and improve yourself in such a short time is not a dream and %100 fun guaranteed. Some students are good at recalling what they hear, some what they write, and some of them what they read. The last group is usually better at learning a language with visual aid, and comics might be the perfect material for them to study Spanish.

Although reading comics was seen as a vain pastime activity mostly by parents, now has gained a great importance in every sense.  Hollywood seems to have discovered this golden mine would serve more than it seems. Aside from the classics like Batman or Spiderman other superheroes from Marvel comics are smashing the box-office lists. The worldwide success of The Avengers is a good example of how these fictional characters drag the attention not only of kids but also the adults. On the other side, there are quite good discussions on the value of comic books in academic platforms. The experts have also pointed out the benefits of comics in language learning.

Watching the movies based on comics is full of fun, what about reading them? A lot more fun! I started reading comic strips of Garfield and Dilbert in Spanish,as they are my favorite. The humor style is witty and I love the way how the protagonists react to other people. If you are keen on these kind of short comic strips, you can get used to their Spanish adaptations easily and moreover you will get an insight of Spanish sense of humor. For the fan of thriller stories, try “The Walking Dead” so that you can find blood and action in Spanish that will always keep you on the edge.

If you are looking for something from Spanish culture you can check Mortadelo y Filemón, who were formerly private detectives, now work as special agents chasing after a different adventure in each episode. Another interesting character is  Superlópez. This superhero coming from the planet Chitón (yes Krypton) is the Spanish parody of Superman. Mafalda, who is a concerned Argentine girl, always has questions and a word to say for world peace and social issues. Chilean comic strip Condorito is one of the famous one in Latin America and is a funny representation of the culture.

The next step could be a bit bigger and start reading long series which is all up to your taste. Bear in mind that reading comics will improve your comprehension in Spanish and not to mention increase your vocabulary as well.

Congratulations to everyone graduating! Whether you’re getting your degree or leaving high school, now is the time to throw caps in the air, burn your notes and rejoice that you never have to study maths/molecular biology/origami again! But for those of you who are leaving your language learning behind, or are reminiscing of your long-ago student life, you can revive your Spanish!

For many people, learning languages at school isn’t overly fun. The lists and lists of verbs to learn, speaking in front of the class when you’re worried people will laugh at you, the seemingly pointless discussion topics – I understand your pain. Truly I do. Because when I got to Spain, I could talk all day about the pros and cons of nuclear power, or what I had for dinner last week, but I really struggled opening my bank account. Personally, I didn’t find my school had properly equipped me for using the language in real life. But now you’re free of school, you can learn or refresh your Spanish the fun way!

Because languages aren’t just another subject confined to the classroom; they’re useful, relevant and a way to connect with the world. So now that school is becoming a distant memory or your uni days are a source of nostalgia, you don’t have to regret dropping a language; it’s like riding a bike, albeit a very wobbly one, but you never forget completely!

There are so many ways to refresh you’re language. Why not try online resources! Read the news from ‘El Pais’ instead of CNN, put the Spanish language option on the DVD you’re about to watch, or try re-reading your favourite book in Spanish (Harry Potter y la piedra filosofal anyone?!). It’s the little things like this can keep your Spanish knowledge ticking over, instead of casting it out of your memory like quadratic equations.

You could take a course! Due to the high demand of Spanish now, especially in the business world, there’ll be nightclasses near you, and it’s worth seeing if your employer/university provides or supports them. Or try and incorporate Spanish into your holiday; if you can, pop to Puerto Rico, visit Venezuela or chill out in Costa Rica. Just a weekend minibreak in Madrid can jog your memory and revive your Spanish.

Something that I’ve really enjoyed since being in Spain is doing intercambios, the Spanish for ‘exchanges’. In a world of ever increasing global mobility, many people move to the US or to the UK, who have native Spanish but need help with English. What better way to meet new people, help them integrate in their new society, and revive your Spanish, than to spend half an hour in English, and then half an hour in Spanish chatting. Check out local notice boards/the internet to find intercambios.

While it’s easy to get complacent with your languages, they’re definitely life skills, and a cool party trick at the very least! You spend years and years slaving away at school, so why give up on the fruits of your labour! Language skills do deteriorate without practise.

So, class of 2012, congratulations on making it through, good luck in the real world, and may your Spanish studies continue!