Unity, Diversity, Anonymity: An ethno-linguistic portrait of the Spanish speaking population of Edmonton, AlbertaUnidad, diversidad, anonimidad: un retrato etnolingüístico de la población hispanohablante de Edmonton, Alberta, Canadá

• Author / Creator

  Benschop, Diana

• This thesis describes the role of Spanish as a common language in the construction of social networks among the diverse Spanish-speaking population of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Analysis of the data confirms the low public visibility of the community observed initially, despite the even larger numbers of Spanish speakers living in the city than initially estimated. The community’s relatively low level of coherence and its minimal presence in the public sphere can be explained by two main factors: an exceptional degree of diversity among members (described in terms of national, religious, political, socio-economic and ethnic variations), and a set of ambivalent attitudes regarding the relative value of Hispanic culture. This community’s public anonymity is also discussed as related to the larger realities of Canada’s official policy of multiculturalism and popular discourses of Hispanidad in Anglo-Canadian mainstream culture.

• Subjects / Keywords

  • Spanish
  • Ethnography
  • Canadian Hispanics
  • Speech Community

• Graduation date

  Fall 2009

• Type of Item

  Thesis

• Degree

  Master of Arts

• DOI

  https://doi.org/10.7939/R3SQ7W

• License

  This thesis is made available by the University of Alberta Libraries with permission of the copyright owner solely for non-commercial purposes. This thesis, or any portion thereof, may not otherwise be copied or reproduced without the written consent of the copyright owner, except to the extent permitted by Canadian copyright law.