Language Contact and the Making of an Afro-Hispanic Vernacular: Variation and Change in the Colombian Choco

This study explores creole studies from a linguistic, historical, and socio-cultural perspective, comparing the legal system regulating black slavery in Chocó, Colombia, with other European colonial powers in the Americas, to provide new theoretical insights into language shift, language acquisition, and language change. It focuses on Afro-Hispanic language varieties but can be applied to other contact languages and settings to address current debates on the origin of other black communities in the Americas and the languages they speak.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 248 pages
Publication date: 09 June 2022
Publisher: Cambridge University Press

This comprehensive study delves into the realm of creole studies, employing a multi-faceted approach to enhance our understanding of the subject. By seamlessly integrating linguistic, historical, and socio-cultural perspectives, it offers novel theoretical insights into language shift, language acquisition, and language change. Through a comparative analysis, the study explores the legal systems governing black slavery in Chocó, Colombia, in contrast to those implemented by other European colonial powers in the Americas. It seeks to answer pertinent questions such as what insights can be gleaned from the linguistic characteristics of Chocó Spanish about the nature of Afro-Hispanic vernaculars? What sociohistorical factors shaped the development of Chocó Spanish? How did slavery in Chocó differ from slavery in other European colonies? While the study primarily focuses on Afro-Hispanic language varieties, the findings and methodologies employed by Sessarego are readily applicable and amenable to testing in other contact languages and contexts. Moreover, these insights can be valuable in addressing ongoing debates surrounding the origins and languages of other black communities in the Americas.

ISBN-13: 9781108724777