Here is an excerpt from an article about a recent study conducted by University of Alberta researchers Elena Nicoladis and Cassandra Foursha-Stevenson. The purpose of the study was to find out whether bilingual French/English children assigned gender to objects differently than monolingual children. (They did, but not quite how you might imagine. Strange!)

The researchers showed objects or images to the children participating in the study and asked them whether the objects seemed to be masculine or feminine in nature. While the unilingual children seemed to identify most objects as masculine, many younger bilingual children were willing to consider that, globally speaking, some objects could be feminine in nature even though, Nicoladis says, “their categorizations didn’t correspond very well to whether the objects were masculine or feminine in French.”

– Source/Read More

My hypothesis before conducting the research would have been that bilingual children would identify more objects as being feminine, but that it would correspond to the object’s pronoun in their second language, so I’m surprised that it didn’t quite turn out that way.

I know that my husband Carlos definitely uses feminine pronouns in funny ways in English. While chasing a housefly he might say, “She’s too fast!” because “fly” (“mosca”) is a feminine word in Spanish.

I hope they repeat the research with English/Spanish bilinguals to see if there’s a difference.

El otro día, mientras estaba leyendo el libro “Buenas Noches Luna”, mi hijo de diez años hizo una cosa maravillosa – ¡Él pronunció las erres perfectamente en español!

Claro que celebré y felicité a mi hijo. El único problema es que ahora él quiere lucirse con su nueva habilidad, y está pronunciando todititas sus erres como Walter Mercado.

[ENGLISH TRANSLATION]

The other day while reading the Spanish version of “Goodnight Moon” – my 10 year old son did a marvelous thing – He rolled his R’s!

Of course I celebrated and congratulated my son. The only problem is that now he wants to show off his new skill and is pronouncing every single “R” like Walter Mercado.

El año pasado compartí una foto de una camisa chistosa que encontré en una tienda que se llama “Five Below.” Five Below es una tienda que lleva un montón de cosas para jovenes y todo cuesta cinco dólares o menos, (de ahí, el nombre “Five Below.”)

Bueno, la semana pasada tuve que visitar esa tienda porque mi hijo mayor necesitaba un regalito para una amiga que estaba cumpliendo años y lo invitó a su fiesta.

Mientras estabamos buscando un regalito para la amiga, econtré otra camisa.

Como puedes ver, representado en esta camisa tenemos un cono de sorbete, (parece que es sabor de vainilla) – y un taco. Los dos están agarrados de las manos y el cono, (que es hembra con pestañas largas y un listón) – está diciendo, “It’s complicated.” (En español: “Es complicado.”)

Suponemos que ella está hablando sobre su relación con el taco. La camisa es super interesante. No sé si estoy analizandolo demasiado pero creo que la camisa está simbolizando una pareja intercultural – especificamente, una gringa blanca con un latino. O sea, soy un cono sabor a vainilla y Carlos es un taco.

No sé si es divertida la camisa o un poco ofensiva. ¿Qué crees tú?

[ENGLISH TRANSLATION]

Last year I shared a photo of a funny shirt found at a store called “Five Below.” Five Below is a store that has tons of things for young people and everything costs five dollars or less, (hence the name, “Five Below.”)

Well, last week I had to visit this store because my older son needed a birthday gift for a friend’s party he was attending. While looking for the gift for his friend, I found this shirt.

As you can see, depicted on this shirt we have an ice cream cone, (it looks like vanilla-flavored), and a taco. Both are holding hands and the cone, (which is a girl with long eyelashes and a bow) – is saying, “It’s complicated.”

We assume she’s talking about her relationship with the taco. The shirt is really interesting. I don’t know if I’m over-analyzing it but the shirt seems to symbolize an intercultural couple – specifically a white gringa and a Latino. In other words, I’m a vanilla-flavored ice cream cone and Carlos is a taco.

I don’t know if the shirt is funny or offensive. What do you think?

Ni modo, my friends at mun2 sent over this hilarious video which demonstrates the necessity of keeping your head in the game, whether you’re playing fútbol or football.

(Warning: towards the end of the video it gets a little “vulgar” as my mother would say, otherwise carry on.)

Antonio & Salma are well-loved for their accents. Mayor Bloomberg? Not so much.

The other day I talked about my accent and whether I should embrace it or continue to attempt to erase it. For the sake of brevity, (which I don’t think I quite succeeded at anyway), I edited the post before publishing and took out some other points I wanted to make.

One of the rabbits I didn’t chase down the path the other day, but will today, is the fact that the gringo/a accent in Spanish is often perceived as one of two things:

1. Ugly, (i.e. “That gringo’s accent is horrible. He’s butchering our language!“)

-or-

2. Amusing, funny, hilarious

Latinos born and raised in the United States who have difficulty speaking Spanish are often made fun of or criticized even more heavily than Caucasian gringos who try to learn the language. Jennifer Lopez, Cristina Aguilera, Erik Estrada and many other celebrities have taken plenty of flack in the past.

Yet native Spanish speakers with heavy accents in English are often considered “sexy.”

Examples?

Salma Hayek

Antonio Banderas

Sofia Vergara

And so the question occurred to me – why the double standard? It seems rather unfair, (and yet, even I admit that I would rather hear a native Spanish speaker speak English with an accent than a native English speaker speak Spanish with an accent.)

I decided to ask an acquaintance I made this past year, François Grosjean, a Professor of psycholinguistics and author of several books including, Bilingual: Life and Reality. I don’t know him in person but I discovered him via the fascinating articles he writes on Psychology Today and once E-mailed him questions I had regarding the phenomenon some bilinguals experience which feels somewhat like having a split personality. He happened to be working on an article on that very topic and asked permission to quote me. (The article: Change of Language, Change of Personality? is here. I’m quoted as “Bilingual 1.”)

And so, when I had this new question on my mind, I didn’t hesitate to contact Dr. Grosjean again. I asked:

…Why is it that when White/Anglo/”Gringos” speak Spanish with an accent, it is usually considered “ugly” sounding or “funny” – Yet it seems when native Spanish speakers speak English with an accent, it can be considered “sexy”…

Are these learned cultural preferences or are there scientific linguistic differences that simply make one scenario more pleasing to the ears than the other?

Dr. Grosjean gave me permission to share excerpts of his E-mail. He answered, in part:

“As for the other question: “are there scientific linguistic differences that simply make one scenario more pleasing to the ears than the other?” – I don’t have an answer. You’d expect that researchers would have examined this but I personally don’t know of a study. Everything you say is correct but how much is due to the way the dominant language sounds and how much to cultural preferences is simply not known.”

So there you have it – it’s still a mystery!

While I had Dr. Grosjean’s ear though, I also asked him what he thought of my dilemma regarding my accent. Should I erase it or embrace it? His opinion?

“I think the best thing is to accept it as it is. Your loved ones like you the way you are, with an accent, and that is what really matters. As for the others, hopefully, with time, they’ll put more emphasis on how well you speak Spanish and not on the accent that you have. In any case, the more you do speak Spanish, the more your accent will improve; so it’s a win win situation all the way, I think.”

Thanks to Dr. Grosjean for allowing me to quote him and for being so kind in answering my various linguistic questions. Check out his most recent Psychology Today post – it should hit home to many of you, (as it did for me!)

Falling in Love With a Culture and a Language.

(Image sources: Live at J&R and Eva Rinaldi.)

Tener el pelo largo significa que tengo que buscar formas creativas para atarme el pelo, especialmente en invierno cuándo mi pelo está mojado después de bañarme y me da frío sentirlo tocando mi piel. Usualmente hago un moño desordenado pero a veces trato algo diferente, incluyendo trenzas.

La única cosa es que Carlos se pone un poco raro conmigo cuando me ve con dos trenzas. Su rostro se ve como cuando nos conocimos, sus mejillas cambian a color rojo y sus ojos brillan. “Te ves tan bonita”, me dice, tirando las trenzas. Pensé que me veo un poco ridícula con trenzas. Yo ni siquiera salgo a la calle así, pero si Carlos le gusta, me decido a aceptar sus piropos.

El otro día, cuando tenía el pelo en dos trenzas, Carlos actuó de la misma manera, y luego me llamó su “cinco de yuca”.

“¿Cinco de yuca?” dije, “¿Qué es eso?

Carlos me enseño un video, “La Cinco de Yuca” por Los Caballeros del Sabor.

Ahora sé por qué se pone tan tontito sobre las trenzas!

[ENGLISH TRANSLATION]

Having long hair means I have to find creative ways to tie it back, especially in winter when it’s wet from the shower and it makes me cold to feel it touch my skin. I usually do a messy bun but sometimes I try something different, including braids.

The only thing is that Carlos gets a little weird with me when I wear my hair in two braids. His face looks like when we first met, his cheeks turn red and his eyes sparkle. “You look so pretty,” he says, pulling my braids. I always thought I look a bit ridiculous with braids – I don’t even go out in public like that, but if Carlos likes it, I decided, I will accept his flirtations.

The other day, when I had my hair in two braids, Carlos acted the same as he’s been acting, but then he called me his “cinco de yuca.”

“Cinco de yuca?” I said, “What is that?

Carlos showed me a video, “La Cinco de Yuca” by Los Caballeros del Sabor.

Now I know why he gets so silly about the braids!

Image source: Eddie Does Japan

More arguments at Casa López start with this seemingly innocent question than I would like to admit. Here is a transcript of what happened this past weekend when Carlos uttered those 7 little words.

Carlos: Do you want to rent a movie?
Tracy: Yeah, sure.

{We both sit down in front of the computer to see what’s new in RedBox.}

Tracy: How about Saving Private Perez?
Carlos: That looks stupid.
Tracy: It’s supposed to be stupid, that’s why it’s funny.
Carlos: No, pick something else.
Tracy: How about this?
Carlos: What’s that?
Tracy: Snow Flower and the Secret Fan.
Carlos: What’s it about?
Tracy: Let’s watch the trailer.
Carlos: No! Just read the description, just tell me.
Tracy: Why would I just read the description when there’s a trailer right here and you can see with your own eyes? {clicks play}
Carlos: {sighs}

{trailer ends}

Carlos: I still don’t get it. What’s it about?
Tracy: It’s about women in China who have a special friendship. The cinematography is so beautiful, don’t you think?
Carlos: Um, yeah, but it looks depressing. Can we get something with a little more action?
Tracy: Fine… How about this?
Carlos: Which one?
Tracy: A Better Life.
Carlos: What’s it about?
Tracy: A father and son who immigrate to the United States and the difficulties they face. There’s probably a little action in it, I’d imagine.
Carlos: I lived that, I don’t need to watch it.
Tracy: Carlos, come on. This looks like a good father, son story. Look. {clicks play}

Tracy: {starts crying}
Carlos: You’re crying! I’m not renting this! You’re crying already! This is just the trailer! This movie is depressing!
Tracy: Why are you yelling at me?!
Carlos: Because you’re crying and you don’t want to rent anything good!
Tracy: Fine, you pick but I don’t want to watch anything with aliens or explosions or war, or the end of the world, or exploding aliens ending the world, or—
Carlos: How about Fast Five?
Tracy: Or car racing! You’ve seen that three times already!
Carlos: Well I like that one!
Tracy: Come on! Pick something we haven’t seen!
Carlos: Xmen.
Tracy: Ew, no.
Carlos: Captain America?
Tracy: Dude, we saw that when we were in El Salvador.
Carlos: But we saw it in Spanish.
Tracy: It’s the same movie! … What’s with you and super heroes anyway? No super hero movies either.
Carlos: You’re being so picky!
Tracy: You’re the one whose being picky! There are a bunch of movies I’d love to watch and you won’t watch them. It’s not like I’m asking to watch Jane Eyre or some other girly movie. The worst part is I told Redbox they should have more documentaries and foreign films and now you never want to watch them with me so they’ll probably stop stocking them.
Carlos: {laughing} They put them in there just for you?
Tracy: I told them to! I tweeted them!
Carlos: {sighs}
Tracy: So what are we renting? Are we renting anything? … We’re going to end up renting something like Dolphin Tale.
Carlos: I’d watch that.
Tracy: Seriously, Carlos?… The dolphin needs a tail so Morgan Freeman and a little boy help the dolphin get a tail, the end. I’m not watching that.
Carlos: So, are we not renting anything?
Tracy: I guess not… maybe they’ll have something we can agree on next week.

When I made the “Shit Salvadorans Say” videos, I never once worried while filming that my accent would be so gringo as to be a distraction – but apparently some thought it was.

Initial response to the videos was overwhelmingly positive and I was happy to have made people laugh – but then came the first negative comment about my accent, which, more than hurting my feelings, kind of left me dumbfounded.

“That lady doesn’t even sound like she’s Salvadorian, that’s the funny part,” read the YouTube comment.

I responded that I don’t sound Salvadoran because I’m a gringa. (I refrained from typing “duh” at the end of that response.) I chalked it up to one person obviously having a bad day and taking it out on me, however before I could shake it off and move on, more comments came in.

“Y’all don’t got the accent.”

(At least I “got” good grammar I retorted in my head.)

“I think the gringa was right on the money in what to say, but I can’t get passed the whole gringa accent,” said another.

Nice. A back-handed compliment. And then…

“The accent isn’t there.”

“Sorry y’all sound too gringo.”

Every time I’d get an E-mail notification that a comment had been left, my heart would start to race – will it be a positive comment, (for there were an equal amount of people who loved the videos) – or a negative comment? Will it be more of the same or will they find something even crueler to say that will crush me? I finally decided to disallow comments on those YouTube videos because I started to obsess.

Now, YouTube comments are famously horrendous, and I’ve kept that in mind, but I’d be lying if I said it hadn’t made me self-conscious about my accent. I’ve been studying Spanish for twenty years now and I’m still not fluent. I make grammatical mistakes all the time, but my accent is one thing I thought I had conquered.

Although I knew I didn’t sound “Salvadoran” and that I wouldn’t be mistaken for a native speaker of any Latin American country for that matter, I never worried that I sounded “white” or “gringa” — at least not in recent years.

“You told me I don’t have an accent!” I said to Carlos after receiving yet another Youtube comment, and Carlos insisted very sincerely that I don’t. Perhaps he’s blinded by love, but then I think back on all the people over the years who have so enthusiastically complimented my Spanish – did they just mean it was good compared to other gringos?

“Wow! Your Spanish is so good!” I’ve been told in both Spanish and English – but what is “good” Spanish? Does the fact that I can do more than ask where el baño is make me a success?

Do I speak better than the white “abogados” and used car dealers on local Spanish-language channels whose mispronunciations make me cringe? Better than college girls who go to Cancun on Spring break and get drunk while wearing over-sized sombreros? Better than Dora the Explorer or Erik Estrada? What standard have I surpassed exactly?

As I read Roque Dalton poems aloud to Carlos in bed last night, asking him to rate my accent on a scale of one to ten, he asked me why I continue to sweat it. “Your accent is cute,” he said, taking the book from my hands and pulling me to him. I eyed him suspiciously, for “cute” is very different from “fluent” or “beautiful” or even “good.” A puppy chasing its tail is cute. A baby babbling gibberish is cute.

“Your accent is perfect,” he amended, and I noted his accent in English, the one I love so much, the one he makes no attempt to refine but which causes misunderstandings for him at fast food drive-thrus.

In the end, I realize, I have a decision to make. I can continue to try to erase my accent or I can embrace it. I’m not sure yet which way I’ll go.

What is your experience with having an accent? What is your native language? What is your second language? How do native speakers of your second language react to your accent? Do you embrace your accent or try to erase it?

Un hecho sobre mi es que me encantan los “bloopers.” Cuándo vamos al cine siempre somos los últimos en salir porque insisto en quedarnos hasta que estamos seguros que no van a enseñarnos “bloopers” de la película.

Honestamente, habido días que gasté en YouTube viendo “Bloopers” de Seinfeld.

Por esta razón, que me encantan tanto los “bloopers” – les presento los “bloopers” que hicimos durante la grabación de “Shit Salvadorans Say.”

[ENGLISH TRANSLATION]

A fact about me is that I love “bloopers.” When going to the movies we are always the last to leave because I insist on staying until we’re sure they will not show “bloopers” from the movie.

Honestly, there days I’ve wasted on YouTube watching “Bloopers” from Seinfeld.

For this reason, that I love “bloopers” so much – I present the “bloopers” that occurred during our recording of “Shit Salvadorans Say.”

I think I’m finished playing with this meme, (except for a possible blooper reel) – but Carlos, the boys and I had so much fun that I think we’ll be doing other types of videos in the future. Vamos a ver.

Links:

Shit Salvadorans Say (the original)

For “Shit Cubans Say” and other fun, check out my friend Carrie on the Tiki Tiki!