Book name: The Spanish language of New Mexico and Southern Colorado: A linguistic

atlas.
Authors: Garland D. Bills Neddy A. Vigil.
Year: 2008
Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.com/Spanish-Language-Mexico-Southern-
Colorado/dp/0826345492
1. Why did you choose this book?
a. This book helped me and my sister to understand better how spanish has
been increasing in Colorado and how a new variation of spanish has been
created along with English variations. It is an Atlas that help teachers to have
a bigger view of the spanish in Colorado and how they can adapt to students
who grow in a bilingual or spanish only environment.
2. Present the book: What is the book about? Who are the main characters, what
happens, highlights, etc. You may decide to use some kind of graphic organizer to
guide your summary (e.g. timeline of events),
a. The study is based on data from the New Mexico-Colorado Spanish Survey
(NMCOSS), it was a project directed by the editors, Garland Bills and
Neddy Vigil. This project has recorded and analyzed the interviews of 357
native-born Spanish speakers from different communities across New
Mexico and sixteen counties of Southern Colorado.
b. This linguistic atlas analyzes the data collected in these interviews and
provides highly interesting maps that describe the present linguistic and
sociolinguistic situation of New Mexican Spanish. It is a documentation of
the range of Spanish varieties spoken in New Mexico and Southern
Colorado at the end of the twentieth century. This book is an excellent
source for anyone interested in sociolinguistics as well as the linguistic and
cultural history of New Mexico and Colorado. The book succeeds in
destroying some widespread myths about New Mexican Spanish and
southern Colorado.
3. Reflect on the different concepts we have discussed in class so far (check your
summaries for the various key terms across the readings; see also class PPT slides
that provide big concepts and ideas). Talk about which ideas/concepts connect with
your story and how.
a. Language academics: Language used in places like school or college. It is
the language which is usually given to be learned over any other language.
i. The book discusses the variation and use of different kind of
Spanish, English and which variation is used in formal entities like
schools or work environment.
b. Dictionaries: book with all the information about use of a language
 i. This is technically an atlas so it could be referred as a “dictionary of
New Mexico and Colorado spanish.”
c. Language is a social notion: a language cannot be defined without refencing
the speaking and the context where it is being use.
i. The book uses their own study (context) to give validity of the
arguments it provides.
d. Lingua franca: it is a language used to make communication (bridge)
between groups of people who do not share a first language or dialect. Ex:
English to connect people who speaks French and spanish as L1.
i. It discusses the use of intermediate languages between migrants and
native people.
e. Dialects: Vary in the sounds, words and grammatical forms between people
using the same language.
i. The book emphasizes in stereotypes of dialects and different types
existing in New Mexico and Colorado.
f. Bilingual education: it is a term that refers to the teaching of academic
content in two languages, in a native and second language.
i. It talks about programs of dual education or bilingualism in New
Mexico and Colorado
4. Would you recommend this book to teachers? Why/why not?
a. If you are a teacher and you have spanish speakers by heritage or may be
migrants, this book can help you to understand better some of the variations
they use that for native English speakers do not make sense all the time. It
gives a review, explanation and justification about historical emergence and
you can compare it with the reality in the classroom.