(DOWNLOAD) "Todavia Decimos 'Nosotros [Los] Mexicanos': Construction of Identity Labels Among Nuevo Mexicanos (Report)" by Southwest Journal of Linguistics # Book PDF Kindle ePub Free

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Title: Todavia Decimos 'Nosotros [Los] Mexicanos': Construction of Identity Labels Among Nuevo Mexicanos (Report)
Author : Southwest Journal of Linguistics
Release Date : January 01, 2005
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines,Books,Professional & Technical,Education,
Pages : * pages
Size : 217 KB

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ABSTRACT. The use of identity labels among the Spanish-speaking population of New Mexico has been singled out as particularly problematical. The position of a number of historians and cultural critics has been that the use of the term Spanish American by nuevo mexicanos indicates a desire to deny the process of metis, or mestizaje, which the term MEXICAN implies. This article discusses the historical development of identity construction among nuevo mexicanos and presents data from personal interviews gathered in the New Mexico Southern Colorado Linguistics Atlas Project (NMCOSS). The analyses focus on three topics: 1) the various labels used by nuevo mexicanos and southern coloradenses to designate their ethnic identity; 2) how different meanings are assigned to labels in different languages, and 3) attitudes of informants toward various identity labels.* INTRODUCTION. MEXICAN, MEXICAN AMERICAN, with or without a hyphen, MEXICANO, SPANISH AMERICAN, LATIN AMERICAN, HISPANIC, LATINO, MANITO, (1) POCHO, (2) CHICANO. These are but a few of the labels that have been used to designate the population of Mexican heritage residing in the United States. The use of identity labels among the Spanish-speaking population of New Mexico has been singled out as particularly problematical. The position of a number of historians and cultural critics has been that the use of the term Spanish American by nuevo mexicanos (3) indicates a desire to deny the process of metis, or mestizaje, which the term Mexican implies (see e.g.N. Gonzalez 1967, Acuna 1972). They find this posture offensive and indicative of a sense of superiority on the part of nuevo mexicanos vis-a-vis other Chicanos or Mexican Americans. Other historians tend to explain the attitude of nuevo mexicanos as an example of 'face saving behavior' which surfaced during the period of mass migrations from Mexico to the United States during the Mexican Revolution (Nieto-Phillips 2004). These accounts sustain that the negative and inflammatory nativist reactions to the new immigrants forced nuevo mexicanos to defend their status as U.S. born citizens. While there is some truth to this explanation, the phenomenon under discussion is much more complex.