Estudio dialectológico perceptual de las Antillas hispánicas

Abstract

In this paper I analyzed the Spanish - speaking Caribbean´s dialectal perceptions (Cubans, Puerto Ricans and Dominicans), in order to know the mental delimitation of the linguistic area to which their varieties are circumscribed, the elements through which they distinguish it and the way in which they perceived themselves linguistically in the Spanish-speaking context in general. The analysis has been based on the postulates of Perceptual Dialectology. From the methodological point of view, a questionnaire was applied in the capitals of the three countries in which four questions addressed the linguistic perceptions. The sample was formed from a fixed quota sampling, for a total of 198 informants surveyed in the three countries, of which the variables sex, age and level of education were controlled. Some of the most important concluding ideas of the study are that the Antillean perceive their varieties of Spanish as inserted in a common dialectal space, although with variable limits. In a triangle of relationships, Puerto Ricans and Cubans perceive their respective varieties of Spanish as much closer and more like each other than to the Spanish in the Dominican Republic. Dominicans, on the other hand, show a weaker awareness of the link between the three varieties. As for the differentiating perceptions, is evident a perceptual distance from other variants (such as the Spanish, Colombian, Mexican and Argentine), based on arguments that show the prestige granted to these modalities of language.