Spanish Languages Influence on the Puerto Rican Identity Essay

Spanish Languages fascinate on the Puerto Rican IdentityThe initial occupation of Puerto Rico by the Spaniards carries an alpha implication for language as part of the Puerto Rican individuation element. The Spanish language was obligate upon the inhabitants of the island, the Tainos, in the sixteenth century, when the Spanish inhabited the island in 1502, after the Spanish conquerors claimed the island in the name of Spain in 1493. Eventually, the Spanish had moved out or taken over the ways of the old and their culture infiltrated that of the Taino to create a new dimension of the first stratum, where the Spanish language was incorporated as the building blocks of the foundation of the Puerto Rican identity (Figueroa, Sept.15). The Spanish maintained control over the island until 1898, when Spain relinquished Puerto Rico to the United States as a result of the Spanish American War. This change begins the construction of the third storey (the second storey involved the econom ic and political growth of the island under Spanish rule). The four hundred years of Spanish history and influence on the island caused conflict for notions of identity and has great impact on Puerto Rican identity. Although the Spanish had come to the island and taken over, decimating the stainless Taino population, Puerto Ricans now take pride in the fact that the Spanish contributes to their identity (a result of acculturation), and that they are a (mainly) Spanish speaking nation. Although it wasnt initially think to be, the acquisition of Puerto Rico resulted in the island becoming an unincorporated territory (http//Welcome.ToPuertoRico.org/history.htm). The freeing of various acts, such as the English Only Act (1902), the Foraker lawfulness (1900- establishing un... .... From Negrn-Muntaner and Grosfoguel (Eds.), Puerto Rican Jam Essays on Culture and Politics. Minneapolis University of Minnesota Press, 257-285. Rivera, Angel, Q. Music, Social Classes, and the National irresolution in Puerto Rico. In Glasser.Scarano, Francisco. cabbage and Slavery in Puerto Rico, 1815-1849 An Overview, from Scarano, 1984, Sugar and Slavery in Puerto Rico The Plantation Economy of Ponce, 1800-1850. Madison U of Wisconsin Press. pp.3-34 Tras-Monge, J. (1997). The Shaping of a Colonial Policy. From Tras-Monge, Puerto Rico the Trials of the Oldest Colony of the World. virgin Haven Yale University Press, 36-51.Walker, Rich. (1998). A Multicultural Alternative to Language and Nationalism. Http//frontpage.trincoll.edu/rwalker.Waxer, Lise. (October 29, 1998). Puerto Rican Music in the midst of Rafael Hernandez and Rafael Cortijo.