Table Of ContentLatino Communities
Emerging Voices
Political, Social, Cultural,
and Legal Issues
Edited by
Antoinette Sedillo Lopez
University of New Mexico
A ROUTLEDGE SERIES
LATINO COMMUNITIES: EMERGING VOICES
Antoinette Sedillo Lopez, General Editor
CHICANO PROFESSIONALS Comparing Escuela Tlatelolco, A
Culture, Conflict, and Identity Chicanocentric School and a Public High
Tamis Hoover Renteria School
Elena Aragon de McKissack
RESISTING GENTRIFICATION
AND DISPLACEMENT LATINOS AND LOCAL
Voices of Puerto Rican Women of the REPRESENTATION
Barrio Changing Realities, Emerging Theories
Vicky Muniz Florence Adams
CHICANO EMPOWERMENT AND PUERTO RICAN NEWSPAPER
BILINGUAL EDUCATION COVERAGE OF THE PUERTO
Movimiento Politics in Crystal City, Texas RICAN INDEPENDENCE PARTY
Armando L.Trujillo A Content Analysis of Three Elections
Maria Cristina Santana
CREATING A LATINO IDENTITY
IN THE NATION’S CAPITAL COLEGIO CESAR CHAVEZ, 1973–
The Latino Festival 1983
Olivia Cadaval A Chicano Struggle for Educational Self-
Determination
THE DEVELOPMENT OF A
Carlos S.Maldonado
LATINO GAY IDENTITY
Bernardo C.Garcia LATINOS IN ETHNIC ENCLAVES
Immigrant Workers and the Competition
LATINO FICTION AND THE
for Jobs
MODERNIST IMAGINATION
Stephanie Bohon
Literature of the Borderlands
John S.Christie TELLING OUR STORIES
The Lives of Midwestern Latinas
VOICES OF GUATEMALAN
Theresa Barron McKeagney
WOMEN IN LOS ANGELES
Understanding Their Immigration DOMINICANS IN NEW YORK
Gabrielle Kohpahl CITY
Power From the Margins
SPANISH AND ACADEMIC
Milagros Ricourt
ACHIEVEMENT AMONG
MIDWEST MEXICAN YOUTH LATINO NATIONAL POLITICAL
The Myth of the Barrier COALITIONS
Patricia MacGregor Mendoza Struggles and Challenges
David Rodriguez
CHICANO EDUCATIONAL
ACHIEVEMENT CREATING TROPICAL YANKEES
iii
Social Science Textbooks and U.S.
Ideological Control in Puerto Rico,
1898–1908
Jose-Manuel Navarro
BROWN EYES ON THE WEB
Unique Perspectives of an Alternative U.S.
Latino Online Newspaper
Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez
PREGONES THEATRE
A Theatre for Social Change in the South
Bronx
Eva C.Vásquez
CARIBBEAN SPANISH IN
THE METROPOLIS
Spanish Language among Cubans,
Dominicans, and Puerto Ricans in the
New York City Area
Edwin M.Lamboy
ROUTLEDGE
New York & London
Published in 2004 by
Routledge
270 Madison Avenue
NewYork, NY 10016
www.routledge-ny.com
Published in Great Britain by
Routledge
2 Park Square
Milton Park, Abington
Oxon OX14 4RN
www.routledge.co.uk
Copyright © 2004 by Taylor & Francis Group, a Division of T&F Informa.
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group.
This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2005.
“To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s collection
of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.”
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in
any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter
invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or
retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Lamboy, Edwin M., 1967–
Caribbean Spanish in the Metropolis: Spanish Language among Cubans, Dominicans, and
Puerto Ricans in the New York City Area / Edwin M. Lamboy. p. cm. —(Latino
communities) Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-415-94925-4 (hardback: alk. paper)
1. Spanish language—Dialects—New York (State)—New York. 2. Spanish language—
Dialects—Caribbean. 3. Bilingualism—New York (State)—New York. 4. Spanish
language—Dialects—Phonetics. I. Title. II. Series. PC4829.N44L36 2004 467.(cid:127)97471–
dc22 2004005120
ISBN 0-203-31099-3 Master e-book ISBN
ISBN 0-415-94925-4 (Print Edition)
Contents
List of Tables and Figures vii
Acknowledgments x
Chapter One Introduction 1
Chapter Two Spanish in the United States 7
Chapter Three Methodology 37
Chapter Four Results: A Sociolingustic Profile of First- and Second-
Generation Speakers of Cuban, Dominican, and
Puerto Rican Spanish in the New York City Area 45
Chapter Five Results: Retention of Dialectal Phonetic Features
among First- and Second-Generation Speakers of
Cuban, Dominican, and Puerto Rican Spanish in the
New York City Area 79
Chapter Six Discussion and Conclusions 89
Appendix A Questionnaire (Spanish) 101
Appendix B Questionnaire (English) 109
Notes 117
Bibliography 119
Index 125
List of Tables and Figures
Figures
5.1 Distribution of means for generation and gender, and 87
retention of /-s/
Tables
2.1 Number of Cubans, Dominicans, and Puerto Ricans living in New
York City according to the 1990 census 31
2.2 Number of Cubans, Dominicans, and Puerto Ricans living in
Hudson County, NJ, according to the 1990 census 32
2.3 Number of Cubans, Dominicans, and Puerto Ricans living in West
New York, Hudson County, NJ, according to the 1990 census 33
3.1 Number of subjects according to generation, gender, age group, and
ethnic group 39
4.1 Comparison of first- and second-generation members based on
ethnic group, age, years of residence in the U.S., and years of
residence in the U.S. at 13th birthday 46
4.2 Comparison of first- and second-generation Cuban subjects based on
place of birth, place of birth of the mother, and place of birth of the
father 47
4.3 Comparison of first- and second-generation Dominican subjects
based on place of birth, place of birth of the mother, and place of
birth of the father 48
4.4 Comparison of first- and second-generation Puerto Rican subjects
based on place of birth, place of birth of the mother, and place of
birth of the father 49
4.5 Comparison of first- and second-generation Cubans, Dominicans,
and Puerto Ricans based on family constitution on 13th birthday 51
viii
4.6 Comparison of first- and second-generation Cubans, Dominicans,
and Puerto Ricans based on the language(s) spoken at home on their
13th birthday and the language(s) spoken at home now 52
4.7 Comparison of first- and second-generation Cubans, Dominicans,
and Puerto Ricans based on the language(s) of instruction received 54
4.8 Comparison of first- and second-generation Cubans, Dominicans,
and Puerto Ricans based on their attained education level 55
4.9 Comparison of first- and second-generation Cubans, Dominicans,
and Puerto Ricans based on their exposure to Spanish- and English-
language radio and music 56
4.10 Comparison of first- and second-generation Cubans, Dominicans,
and Puerto Ricans based on their exposure to Spanish- and English-
language TV 57
4.11 Comparison of first- and second-generation Cubans, Dominicans,
and Puerto Ricans based on how often they read Spanish- and
English-language newspapers and magazines 58
4.12 Comparison of first- and second-generation Cubans, Dominicans,
and Puerto Ricans based on their perception of Spanish and English
as vehicles for economic progress 61
4.13 Comparison of first- and second-generation Cubans, Dominicans,
and Puerto Ricans based on the perceived relevance of Spanish for
membership in their community and in the Hispanic/Latino
community 63
4.14 Comparison of first- and second-generation Cubans, Dominicans,
and Puerto Ricans based on their self-evaluation of their reading
skills in Spanish and English 65
4.15 Comparison of first- and second-generation Cubans, Dominicans,
and Puerto Ricans based on their self-evaluation of their writing
skills in Spanish and English 66
4.16 Comparison of first- and second-generation Cubans, Dominicans,
and Puerto Ricans based on their self-evaluation of their speaking
skills in Spanish and English 67
4.17 Comparison of first- and second-generation Cubans, Dominicans,
and Puerto Ricans based on their self-evaluation of their listening
comprehension skills in Spanish and English 68
4.18 Comparison of first- and second-generation Cubans, Dominicans,
and Puerto Ricans based on their self-comparison of their skills in
Spanish and English with those of the adults who lived with them on
their 13th birthday 70
4.19 Comparison of first- and second-generation Cubans, Dominicans,
and Puerto Ricans based on their self-comparison of their skills in
ix
Spanish and English with those of their siblings, relatives, and close
friends 71
4.20 Comparison of first- and second-generation Cubans, Dominicans,
and Puerto Ricans based on their self-comparison of their skills in
Spanish and English with those of the other members of the same
ethnic community 72
4.21 Comparison of first- and second-generation Cubans, Dominicans,
and Puerto Ricans based on their self-comparison of their skills in
Spanish and English with those of the other members of the
Hispanic/Latino community 74
4.22 Comparison of first- and second-generation Cubans, Dominicans,
and Puerto Ricans based on the language(s) used in five domains 75
5.1 Generational differences in /rr/ devoicing among speakers of
Cuban Spanish 80
5.2 Generational differences in /-r/ neutralization among speakers of
Cuban Spanish 81
5.3 Generational differences in /-s/ neutralization among speakers of
Cuban Spanish 81
5.4 Generational differences in /-r/ neutralization among speakers of
Dominican Spanish 82
5.5 Generational differences in /-s/ neutralization among speakers of
Dominican Spanish 83
5.6 Generational differences in /-l/ neutralization among speakers of
Dominican Spanish 83
5.7 Generational differences in /-r/ neutralization among speakers of
Puerto Rican Spanish 84
5.8 Generational differences in /-s/ neutralization among speakers of
Puerto Rican Spanish 85
5.9 Generational differences in /rr/ velarization or uvularization among
speakers of Puerto Rican Spanish 85
