Language and Linguistics Can Often

¶ … language and linguistics can often be rather perplexing. The age-old question of what came first, the chicken or the egg? The English language is filled with words and phrases that derived their meanings in less than crystal clear circumstances. Influence has spread over the centuries at all levels, from Kings and scholars to peasants and working people. Through economic, political, and cultural exchanges, Spanish has influenced much of the English language, and this pattern will likely continue as long as the two languages are intertwined by goals and interests common to both England and Spain.

The Spanish language uses similar but markedly unique syntax, structure, semantics, and forward word transfer (Gorman, Brenda K. And Kester, Ellen Stubbe, 1996). It is not often apparent where the influences have occurred since most people looking for outside language influence cannot see these differences out in the open, as a language is written or spoken. Many times, languages will exert influence on one another in ways that are less apparent than in direct word usage or vocabulary. Sometimes words are borrowed from one langue and inserted into sentences spoken in another. Many people who are first learning a language exhibit this form of language confusion (Gorman, Brenda K. And Kester, Ellen Stubbe, 1996).

Shifts in the English language that occurred due to Spanish influence are often very hard to discern and trace back to their roots. This evolution has occurred very slowly for the most part, with a few very rapid, very extreme exceptions. Language tends to change very slowly, as each generation develops and adopts new, more modern linguistic structures and vocabularies. The history of Spanish influence on the English language goes back hundreds of years, and is exhibited as a long, slow, steady change. Many factors have worked together over the years to change the English language.

Early English Theater

Influences on the English language and its derivations are apparent when one studies the roots of English theater (The Restoration of Drama, 2009). During its height, English theater represented a melting pot of ideas between many European countries and states. The origins of many of the most famous plays are found in these countries, and during the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries, English theater exploded in its influence and scope (The Restoration of Drama, 2009). Most of the general population could not read in those times, and the most universal way for communication to take place was with live action. Whether it was hinting at subversive elements in political relationships or communicating the basic human need for love and affection, drama was a way for the common man and woman to escape their reality and journey into fantasy. It should come as no surprise then that much linguistic give and take happened through these plays. More specifically, theater at this time would have been an excellent place for foreign linguistic influences to spread both to the wealthy and the poor.

English universities were held in high esteem during this time period. Ideas from far and wide were collected here and the most wealthy and influential people in Europe began to trade influences and intellectual property. Many of the Spanish visiting scholars would be asked to teach or read at these universities, which were the breeding grounds of hundreds of English playwrights, authors, and wordsmiths. At this level, there also occurred a transfer of knowledge. One great example, as shown in "The Restoration of Drama" article (2009), is the Spanish scholar Juan Luis Vives' visitation to England's Corpus Christic College at Oxford. King Henry VIII himself asked Vives to be a reader there, having been impressed with some of Vives' earlier works. At the highest level of society there were Spanish influences going on that helped to shape the outcome of English theater and the English language.

The connections and influences are no better exemplified than in early English theater. Many scholars like to compare the development of the English language and the French language, which had a relatively large influence on English, but it is far easier to see the Spanish connections in early English drama works. Many of the sources of famous English plays are directly linked to Spanish playwrights and native Spanish speakers. "The Restoration of Drama" (2009) points out that no less than thirty of the 16th and 17th century's most iconic plays and dramas have Spanish roots or were adapted from earlier Spanish dramas.

A good example of this is the fact the many playwrights in Shakespeare's time who were looking for romantic dramatic inspiration abroad. His contemporaries turned their eyes toward Italy, in an attempt to boycott all Spanish material and inspiration due to the political and military feuds that had occurred in this time period between Spain and England (The Restoration of Drama, 2009). These playwrights were looking far and wide, and the fact that they considered Spain to be an excellent source of material, even given the political climate suggests that both before and after England and Spain were sworn enemies, there likely existed an open exchange of ideas both in the theatrical realm as well as many other realms.

Give and Take

Languages borrow words from each other all the time. It has been happening between the English and Spanish languages for centuries, and the fact that the U.S., one of the largest native English-speaking countries is in very close proximity to Mexico. Understanding that borrowed words did not only happen in the past two hundred years, we must look at the earlier connections between these two languages in order to better understand the symbiosis that has occurred over the years.

The influence of language that occurred during the 18th and 19th centuries through cowboy work and other trade between the U.S. And Mexico is apparent in many shared words. (Erichsen, 2009). Words like macho, rodeo, and sombrero, all carry a certain Spanish sound, have been adopted by English speakers not just in the U.S. But worldwide (Erichsen, 2009). There are literally thousands of words that have been adopted or adapted for use in the English vocabulary. The cowboy culture, which many feel is unique to America, came from the Spanish caballero tradition. The Spanish had been some of the first in the Old World to domesticate horses and use them as an agricultural and commercial tool. Horses were also used by the Spanish to help conquer the native tribes of the new world in both North and South America. Cowboy hats, which many don't think of having Spanish roots, come from the Spanish. Their roots can be traced back to the sombrero, which was originally worn by Spanish-speaking workers and caballeros of old. Millward (1996) argues that the very structure of language needs to be examined in order to show the deep connections that exist between English and other languages such as Spanish.

Cultural and Political Events

As instrumental as English theater was in adopting Spanish linguistic influences, no other instrument has been as powerful as the cultural and political events that have shaped history. Millward (1996) argues that no other events are as critical to the shaping of language as the external events that occur in the cultures of the language speakers themselves. This is evident in the many historic circumstances where war or the conquering of a nation or region have put an end to language and cultural traditions as well as extended those languages and traditions of the conquerors. The Spanish influence on the cultures of Central and South America are evident even today, hundreds of years after the explorers and conquistadors conquered those regions. The cultural influences are equally as apparent, as these same conquerors forced the native peoples into converting to Catholicism, which was the official state religion of Spain at the time. This is just one example, and while it is not directly related to the Spanish language's influence of modern day English words and language, it shows just how wide sweeping cultural influences can be, and how long they can last. Spain's King Philip II's attempt to invade England with the Spanish Armada was certainly seen as a major cultural influence on England not only militarily but also in the ensuing discussion and cultural reverberation that resulted (Millward, 1996). Certainly playwrights were writing about this event and incorporating both Spanish culture as well as Spanish vocabulary into their dramas and comedies.

The Mexican-American War that occurred in the middle of the 19th century also had major etymological consequences. The U.S. did not acquire what is now known as the state of Texas until after this war, and the entire state was still steeped in Mexican and Spanish culture. This culture was a driving force behind much of the language changes that took place in this region, which have become more widely recognized and accepted as time goes on.

The political climate of England in the 16th and 17th century also helped to shape the linguistic path of the English language relative to Spanish influences. Much of the military and weapon technology of that time period has its roots in Spanish traditions. The English were quick to borrow much of this technology to conquer many countries over the centuries. Even the very simple words that were once rooted in the Spanish vocabulary, such as "stockade" and "conquistador" were later adopted into the English military vocabulary. Both nations had "paradoxical interactions of Spain and England during the 16th and 17th centuries" (Brownlee, 2009) and as Trans-Atlantic exploration was ramped up by both nations, interaction between the two in the new world and in Central and South America began to influence the way both languages, especially English were evolving.

The common concerns of these empires, whose interests, history, and cultures are often seen as running relatively parallel during this time also played a major role in the development of the English language from Spanish roots. Any time two nation's interests converge, there undoubtedly will be a sharing linguistic traditions and development. International trade is a sector where the economic interests of different nations intersect to create both slow and rapid cultural and linguistic changes. Author Erichsen (2009) explains that many English words of Spanish origin that originated from the Caribbean region exerted their etymological influence through trade between countries. The vibrant mixture of Spanish, English, and other native cultures that exists in the Caribbean region today is the result of trade that started between these countries five hundred years earlier.

The gastronomical evidence is also worth examining. Like language, culturally unique foods and food technology are often spread through trade and other events economic in nature (Millward, 1996). Wherever different goods like food were being exchanged, language and linguistic influences were also being traded. The very names of certain foods like "avocado" and "banana" come from rich cultural backgrounds (Erichsen, 2009). The roots of these words can be traced back from English through Spanish, and eventually through to origins in other languages as well. Food is a great example of a catalyst for language change and development. Like other forms of cultural influence, gastronomical changes brought with them changes to language and culture.

Systematic Changes

Language, like many other complex forms of human interaction, is subject to both very rapid and very slow change. The latter type of change is nearly always more common, as rapid change usually only occurs at key points in a culture's history, when another invading culture or society changes the norms and the customs of another society in a very brisk way (Millward, 1996). These types of changes, while historically evident, occur much less frequently than the slow, systematic shifts that arise from the development of culture and language over decades or centuries. Like culture, language is an ever-moving form of communication. Development and changes occur very slowly, from generation to generation, as new words and linguistic structures and systems take the place of older, more traditional ones.

In the American southwest, these changes are evident in many of the cultural customs of both Americans and Mexicans. The entire southwest was once an economic engine for the country of Mexico and the westward expansion of the U.S. Even the English word "buckaroo," which is slang for "cowboy," has Spanish roots. This word comes from the Mexican word "vaquero," which means the same thing in Spanish. Cowboys, or as the Spanish call them, "caballeros," played an integral role in the cultural development of that region (Brownlee, 2009). This is an excellent example of how commerce and shared interested slowly helped a language and culture evolve and develop first in an isolated region, and then in a more widespread manner. This manner of isolated change spreading and developing into more widespread influence is mirrored in the way in which Spanish culture and language slowly found its way into English theater nearly five hundred years ago.