This course shows how the Amerindian languages, English, and Spanish have interacted since they came into often violent contact since the time of the first Spanish explorations to the present day. We stress the contrasting themes of linguistic enhancement and linguistic impoverishment. After a brief historical introduction, we present the overall features of the Amerindian languages, Spanish, and English in the Southwest, emphasizing their mutual influence, especially with regard to loan words.
Source material includes popular literature and folklore, and modern linguistic studies.
The comments are not representative of the entire range of students' opinions. This course has allowed me to begin to understand the difficulties that different groups of people encounter when they come in contact with another culture and language. Also, I have learned more about the colonial period in America and about the effects just this period had on the local population of native Indians. I really like learning about cultures, and American culture is one of them. This class, especially focusing on Native Americans, is really interesting.