Biographic Information: English, Female 22yrs
Themes: Biographical information (age, participants likes, preferences, hobbies, etc., where participant is from/lives), Participant’s family, Languages spoken by participant and by participant’s family, Spanish and English confidence/proficiency, Language and language use differences across different regions in the U.S. and the border regions of the U.S.
Download the .DOCX at the link below:
Transcript:
00:00
00:02
Interviewer: Okay, hi Xxxxx.
00:04
Participant: Hi, Maya.
00:06
I: Um, thank you for doing this interview with me, for me.
00:11
P: Of course! I wouldn’t do it for anyone else. (laughs)
00:15
I: Um, thank you. It’s for my linguistics class and basically what we want to know is a little about yourself and your language and your background. Um, etc., etc., and we’re interviewing people in the area. So, let’s start off with your name.
00:37
P: Well, my name is Xxxxxx xx Xxxxx
00:40
I: Your age? [I am]
00:41
P: I am twenty-two years old. I am from Las Cruces, New Mexico. And yeah, I recently graduated from New Mexico State with my Kinesiology Exercise Science degree and I’m now applying to physical therapy school.
01:02
I: Congratulations!
01:03
P: Thank you, thank you.
01:05
I: Um, what are- what’s a little about yourself? Like what do you like to do? What do you like? Um [um]Relationship status if you want to share that.
01:13
P: Whoa, okay. Um, well, I like to read. I’m a very chill, laid back type of gal, so I, I like to just hang out with my friends, and you know, I’m always down for an adventure. Just gotta (1.6) take me along and I’ll be down.
01:34
I: Samesees. They’re the best.
01:36
P: Mhm
01:37
I: Um okay, so tell me you said you, you me me- you mentioned you lived in Las Cruces. Have you always lived here? and have you or have you lived anywhere else?
01:48
P: Um, I have lived in Gallup. That’s where I grew up, but I moved to Las Cruces about (3.4)
Four, five years ago?
01:59
I: Okay.
02:00
P: Just been here ever since.
02:02
I: And um tell me a little about your family. Like, where is your parents from? Do you have siblings, etc.?
02:11
P: From, um I have a little sister, her name is Nancy. She’s (1.7) um, 20 years old. (3.0) Let’s see, um my mom is originally from Mexico City. She moved to the United States when she was about (2.2) twenty-four. She moved to Gallup to be with her family to like better better learn English.
And that’s where she met my dad. My dad is from Gallup. And yeah, they met in Gallup and my mom stayed ever since.
02:49
I: Cute. I love it. Um, okay, so you mentioned your mom’s from Mexico. Does that mean that she’s like- what was your life growing up like language wise? Did she speak Spanish to you? Do you speak Spanish? Are you bilingual? Um, etc., all that good stuff.
03:11
P: So, since my mom is from Mexico, we did grow up bilingual. Um, from as long as I could remember, I’ve always spoke Spanish. My mom says when I was like growing up from when I first started to speak to like you really remember. She said that I always spoke more Spanish than I did English, which I always thought was pretty funny. But my first language is English, but since my mom is from Mexico, we always spoke Spanish as well.
03:44
I: And do you think now would that still be true? You speak more Spanish in English?
03:50
P: No, I’ve first since I moved to college. I don’t really have anybody to speak Spanish with I mean, I’ll speak Spanish over the phone with my mom occasionally or my grandparents, but it’s- I’ve definitely lost a lot of it since I don’t have anyone here to speak Spanish with.
04:07
I: Yeah, for sure. Um, so you have- you had trouble like- or you have trouble like keeping up with it, but did you have trouble learning it or if you remember?
04:18
P: I don’t think I had trouble learning it per se. I think it was just very much. I’ve had trouble, think I have trouble relearning it now. Just kind of like all of the nitty gritty little things about the language. I mean, I understand. I can understand everything you say to in Spanish, but it’s what I want to sa- ,like get across what I want to say is where I, I really struggle.
04:43
I: Um, yeah, like relearning or like remembering kind of you mean?
04:48
P: Exactly, exactly. Like just the little words. Like, um, right now I work in a rehab hospital and [wait] right now I work in a rehab hospital here in [5:00] Las Cruces as a s- um therapy tech and we get a lot of Spanish speaking only patients. S- and a lot of our therapists don’t speak Spanish so they’re always relying on me or somebody else who do speak Spanish to come up with like little words like throw or catch or pull up your pants or just like different little ph-, like everyday phrases that like I know, I know them, but like when I’m put on the spot and they’re like, “Hey, like how do I say this?” It’s like, uh, give me a minute, like can’t remember the exact word, but like [yeah] they kinda like put it into a context like without thinking about it, it’ll come back to me. [yeah] We’re always taking a minute.
05:43
I: Like if you heard it, you’d know it, but you can’t sometimes, or you can’t always think of it yourself.
05:49
P: Exactly, yeah.
05:51
I: Um, that’s cool that you work at a rehab hospital. Um, do you have that a lot- that experience a lot where you are kind of like the main translator or you have to like interpret for other people?
06:05
P: Definitely it’s, I, I would say at least once a week. Is where I’m having to help a therapist translate. It’s kind of funny. There’s this one therapist she’s from New York. She’s around the same age as me, but she was in this like accelerated college program where she was able to graduate really early so her and I get along pretty great and she kind of jokes and she’s like, “I’m gonna have to give Xxxxx half of my paycheck because she’s the one usually doing treatments and translating for me and I’m just kind of like telling her what to do” because she speaks zero Spanish like at all so when she gets assigned those Spanish speaking client- or patients. She’s always very like dependent on somebody who knows the Spanish language.
06:51
I: I think it’s very interesting that you mentioned that because, um, not to get ahead of ourselves, but later on in this interview, there’s a question about how um, Spanish differs like to- near the borders. Um, in comparison to, like more north or eastern United States, but we’ll get back to that.
07:11
P: Okay.
07:11
I: Um, so your mom, she speaks um mostly Spanish, only Spanish?
07:19
P: Umm I would say (1.2) now (2.0) it’s very much fifty/fifty like she (1.3) she really just speaks English to all of us in the household now. I mean, there will be times where she is just speaking to me in Spanish. And like, like I said before, like I understand everything she’s telling me, but it’s like trying to speak back to her in Spanish is where I struggle. So I usually respond to her in English, which I know I shouldn’t if I’m trying to relearn the language, but just so much easier, right?
07:50
I: Mhm
07:50
P: But I would say it’s definitely, she’s definitely like fifty/fifty. She does work in, she owns a restaurant back home so a lot of her employees are Spanish speaking only. So, she definitely like in her work setting is only like Spanish. And then of course like she has like the, the customers who are only English. So yeah, I would definitely say like fifty/fifty. Now, anyways.
08:19
I: Um and do you think that maybe bothers her or like do you know how she might feel about you was speaking mostly English as opposed to like both with her?
08:33
P: I think it’s definitely hard for my mom to like know that I can understand everything but it’s hard for me to communicate. Like my grandparents were recently here from Mexico and like I said, like I understand everything they’re telling me and like I can, I can get what I want to say.
As like simplified as I can across and they kind of just like they know what I’m trying to say from like the context clues but you can like- I can tell that it kind of bugs my mom like oh my kids don’t know my first language very well and it’s kind of upsetting ‘cause like we can’t really communicate very well with our other side of the family, which sucks.
09:16
I: But you try, which is, you know, in my opinion, what matters?
09:20
P: Yeah.
09:21
I: Um, and so you mentioned how she like tried to teach you that Spanish or as much as she could but did you ever have an environment where you learned it like academically, like did you learn it in school? Or was it always English like what language do you would you say you learned most?
09:42
P: I definitely learned English the most. They really don’t- back home where I grew up and like went to high school, they really don’t have any like bilingual cour- like they have like the basic Spanish and German classes that you can take but it’s definitely not as like [10:00] influenced as like bilingual or making- make you actually use that other language. So, in high school I took Spanish for, you were required to just take it for I believe, one year. You just needed like one- it was like an elective class or something. But I ended up taking it for 3. And the third year was like not mandatory whatsoever. It wasn’t even required. It was just like if you wanted to do it, I believe it was, it was just Spanish three but at the end of it like you can take a test and you can become like state certified or I don’t remember the exact term but I did pass the test and I was considered- I am considered um, bilingual by the state which is pretty cool.
10:49
I: So you’re pretty proficient then if you, you know, pass through all that?
10:53
P: Oh yeah, definitely. I’m, prof- like I said, like I understand everything and I know, I know how to say- I can, I can speak to you in Spanish it’s just like the correct sentence structures and things like that is where I struggle.
11:08
I: Would you say um, you could read, write, and- or how would you say you’re reading, writing, and pronunciation is in Spanish?
11:20
P: I’m pretty decent at reading in Spanish. Um, like I use the context clues of you know, the words in the sentence and I can put it together if like I don’t know what a, a word means I can kind of like infer what what the sentence is trying to say from the other words in the sentence. So I know reading is, reading is a little harder, but I, I can write Spanish pretty well.
11:48
I: And ponunciation wise would you say you have an accent or not so much?
11:53
P: Hmmm, I would, not so much, not so much anymore. I know when I like was speaking it with my mom almost every day like I could definitely like have the accent in there but now I, now I really don’t.
12:07
I: Mhmm. Well, it co- it’s with practice then you’ve been practicing.
12:13
P: Exactly.
12:15
I: Um, and so mostly we’ve been talking about how you speak Spanish with your mom and with your mom’s side of the family. Are there any instances outside of that where you might see Spanish? Like outside or work? Maybe around peers or in school?
12:32
P: Um, I would say like around my peers. It would definitely be like, I feel like I think you and my sister are the only other people, in like my friend group or like in my close friend’s circle that knows Spanish and speak Spanish so I think that’s like the only outside scenario besides like work and home.
12:56
I: Really? You don’t want to include Louise, Sig in that list?
13:00
P: (laughs) Well, I don’t really speak Spanish with him unless like he goes off on some tangent and just, you know.
13:09
I: (laughs) Yeah. I know what you mean I didn’t even know he spoke Spanish.
13:12
P: I didn’t either.
13:13
I: Um but yeah, definitely I know what you mean how mostly it’s like usually stays within the people you know who speak Spanish or will understand you.
13:23
P: Yeah, like I remember- I always have this distinct memory of us growing up. So you, me, my sister, and your brother and we would go to you know Bible school or the summer Bible camps and we were like always the oldest kids there. There’s only like six or seven of us like within like our age group. So, all of us it was always just like us four and then we left everyone else, but we would always just speak Spanish to each other ‘cause nobody else understood us.
13:53
I: That’s funny. I don’t remember that. But honestly, I don’t remember much about the- those summer camps except one time we got Taco Bell for lunch. Do you remember that day?
14:04
P: No, I don’t. But like I said, I don’t really remember anything about the summer camps either except when it was, it was always like us for who would go. Like every summer that you guys would come to this- to Gallup and we were always just like speaking Spanish to each other because nobody else understood it.
14:23
I: Yeah. Um, I agree. That’s- I was talking about that with your sister how sometimes, you defer to one language when like other people around you, like, or at least you assume they can’t understand you.
14:38
P: Mhm
14:40
I: Um, ‘cause sometimes you just need a little bit of privacy.
14:44
P: Oh, definitely.
14:45
I: Oh, which leads me to a nice segue. Um, in what ways has being bilingual had an impact or has been beneficial to your life? In any kind of setting or environment.
[15:00]
P: Um, I think it definitely helps like professionally like I mentioned earlier like at the hospital with all the Spanish speaking or Spanish only speaking patients that we do have. It kind of gives them like that sense of comfort like, oh, someone understands me. Even though like I, I tell them right away like I understand everything you like you need to say but it’s just gonna take me a minute to kind of like get what I want to say out correctly and they and the- even they’re super understanding and and you can just tell like it comforts them like knowing that there’s somebody there who does understand what they’re, what they’re trying to say so I think that’s like a pretty beneficial thing and of course like when I need to communicate with like my family and such and (2.2) things like that.
15:47
I: I totally agree. I think professionally it’s a big help and just um, I always say this, but it opens like doors to relationships and experiences.
15:59
P: Definitely.
16:00
I: Um, it’s how you say it’s I like how you mentioned that it’s like comforting for the patients to know that someone there understands them because of course it’s hard to like need to say something and not like the receiver is not understanding and you’re not getting across like what you want in the way that you want. Um, so with that being said, what do you think is the role and the value of Spanish and English in this area?
16:32
P: Can you repeat the question? Sorry.
16:36
I: Yes, of course. Um, I said, what do you think the role and value of English use and Spanish like is in this area? Like what do you think-, how do you think Spanish is like valued around here?
16:50
P: Um, I feel like it’s, it’s valued pretty, pretty, pretty highly or- maybe not highly, but I think it’s pretty equal with English. We are so close to, you know, um El Paso and the border and we do get a lot of, we get a lot of people who, you know, come from Mexico or they since we are so close, they- even though they are in the United States, they never learned English and, and it’s especially s- like this area it’s either if someone only speaking English or only speaking Spanish but they know a little bit of the other language but it’s ju-, it’s just because of the area we’re in, you know. If you go to Colorado or those other states not near the border, you, you, I think it’s it becomes less and less like common Spanish speaking. I know growing up in New Mexico there’s always just like this running joke where like you go somewhere and they, and they, um, they’re like, “oh, Mexico, like, how did you, how did you get here? What?-“ They kind of like make the joke that New Mexico isn’t part of the United States, so it’s kind of funny. Like, how, how that’s valued.
18:10
I: I know, I don’t know how many times I’ve had to explain that New Mexico is actually a state and it’s not Part of Mexico. Um, because I mean, we’re just a newer version of it. But a lot of people ‘cause we’re so close and there are so many like Hispanics, they probably just assume that it is Mexico. But, I like how you drew the comparison with like northern states because that’s a perfect little segue into what I told you we’d circle back to which is um how do you think- like how would you compare the Spanish or the use of Spanish and bilingualism between here which was very near the border or like Florida, which is like the coast and stuff, to maybe more northern or eastern states? Like you were mentioning your coworker from New York or even like somewhere else like let’s say Washington, Wyoming where they border like a different country?
19:09
P: So wait, so you’re saying like how language here is different from there?
19:16
I: How would you say it’s different? Yeah.
19:18
P: Oh, so yeah, so like I said, my coworkers from New York. Which is not close to Mexico whatsoever and she um, she’s like, she said she’s, she in her high school they learned Italian and French and German and of course they they have a Spanish class but it’s not as popular in those areas as it is here. Like, like I, kind- I also mentioned earlier in my high school they only had German or, or Spanish and everyone preferred to take Spanish because it was more beneficial than than to learn German. While like over there on the east on the east coast there’s a lot of like [20:00] more of that type of European, German, and Italian and and things like that. So I think that’s where it, that’s where it really, really differs is like since they’re so far from like a- from a Spanish speaking border, they really don’t see the need to know like the language whatsoever.
20:24
I: I agree. Um, especially like you said, like oftentimes you’re the only one who can speak Spanish and we’re in an area where it’s so needed because um such like a majority of the population is Hispanic and probably speaks or understands Spanish. Um, so I think it’s very like important to at least have like some sort of understanding of it to be able to communicate with those who like have trouble in English. Um, and with that being said, in general. Do you-, like not comparing two specific states, but do you see any like social differences between, like this area and other areas in the United States?
21:16
P: I, would s-, I would say so, yeah. You-, I mean the, the house that we’re in right now is very,
very New Mexico styled house. When, you go and like if you go to other states they’re not gonna have this style of a house or like the- to- like the architecture’s so much different or like recently, my sister-, my family and I, we went to um, Old Town Albuquerque and it’s very like New Mexico style. Like little casitas with chili ristas hanging outside. Just like very, very New Mexican styled Spanish-styled, architecture, but then if you go to Indiana or New York or you know those other different, other different um states they’re not gonna have that or if they do it’s it’s customized to be like, a replica of something that we have down here.
22:16
I: Yeah, for sure. Um, does that- do you see that like? Like I know you’ve been to Mexico with your family. Do you see a lot of similarities in like architecture? Or like social stuff between like Las Cruces and Mexico City?
22:36
P: Um, yes and no. Mexico City is very like busy and crazy and you know they have like the very- it’s very city like but if you go like on the outskirts of Mexico City or like through the little neighborhoods, there’s definitely those little characteristics that we do have here, other- of course they’re not the same but there’s the little, the little things that they have I’ve also like seen around here that they’re also incorporated, which is pretty cool.
23:07
I: Like, um house décor and stuff like that. I, I feel like that’s pretty like similar or can be sometime.
23:16
P: Oh yeah, definitely.
23:20
I: Um. (clears throat) And, sorry, I lost my train of thought. Also, I’m having dinner, by the way.
23:29
P: Oh, what are you eating?
23:31
I: I’m having pasta.
23:35
P: Um, mmm that’s so good.
23:40
I: Yeah, thanks. You made it. (laughs)
23:42
I: Um, your parents you said own a restaurant. Is there like a big difference or any differences that you would find like culturally like Hispanic based between like food stuff or like you know, again with like all the social differences like anything major?
24:02
P: Um, I would say so like they, so they own a, a restaurant called La Baraka and it’s very much (2.2) I would, I would characteristic- characterize it as New Mexican style food just because the food we have here is very, very different from what we have and what you can get in Mexico.
Even though like we are New Mexico and like eat a lot of Mexican food, it’s very, it’s very much, um, (2.2) it’s very much different. It’s very much like our own style. Compared to what you would get in Mexico. So, I would say like it is it’s cultural cult- it’s culturally like on the same spectrum level, but it’s, it’s different.
24:48
I: Yeah, for sure. Kinda like, I feel like that, we can relate it back to language because even though it’s is Spanish, there’s always like things that are said differently here than there are, [25:00] like in Mexico or in Honduras for example, or you know in any other area probably Gallup too.
25:08
P: No, yeah, I’m sure you say things differently in Honduras than what would be said in like Mexico or I know my sister is doing study abroad and she’s going to Barcelona and everyone has already been telling her like oh do you speak, you know their type of Spanish because I mean, their spa- type of Spanish is very much different from what she knows and what we’ve grown up with here. [Yeah.] So, I know she’s, she’s having to learn kind of the little differences between them and what she does know. So, I think that’s, that’s kind of cool. It’s like it’s still Spanish, but it’s like a different, a different Spanish.
25:51
I: Do you have any examples of words that you-, that you can think of that might be different between here and like Mexico or northern New Mexico or anywhere?
26:03
P: Um, not in span- not in Spanish anyways. I mean, like, growing up in Gallup, there was, there was always like- I can’t think of like a specific egs- example. But, um. (5.0) Sorry, I lost my train of thought. Um,
26:28
I: an example
26:29
P: Yeah, so, like an example would be like the word gringa is, is used more in Mexico than the U.S.A.
26:38
I: Yeah. I think I’ve noticed that a lot too. Um, does your mom use it?
26:46
P: Um, I don’t-, I feel like she doesn’t. Well, I don’t know. My mom is kind of crazy. She uses all these types of words, so.
26:59
I: Maybe she’s been living in the U.S too long.
27:01
P: She probably has, honestly. [Yeah, I’ve noticed like- ] she too much.
27:07
I: in more southern like southern Hispanic countries. It’s a very like popular term to refer to someone who’s like white or like from North America. But I feel like in, in Las Cruces um or like this area I’ve never heard- or like not never but I’ve very rarely heard that term.
27:30
P: I do have a funny story related to that word. So, like I said, I work at the rehab hospital here in Las Curses, and I’m very white con-, like very compe-, like white skin complected, even though I’m half, I’m half, um Hispanic and my mom is very dark, like I’m, I’m very much a little gringa right?
27:53
I: Yep.
27:53
P: Do not look like, not look like I have an ounce of, of Hispanic in me.
28:00
I: It’s all that Italian in you.
28:02
P: It’s yeah. It’s all that Italian blood I have. So we had this patient a couple months ago and she- I don’t remember if it was, I don’t remember exactly what she had, but she, she was very much like very independent self-sufficient like she didn’t have any cognitive issues so and she was she was there very like in her mind she was there and um she needed help with something, but while I was helping another patient, I think it was like during lunch or dinner or something, I told her- she spoke English and Spanish and I had known that just kind of from seeing her around the, the therapy gym and things that you know she was both Spanish speaking and English speaking so I responded to her in English I was like, “oh yeah just one second ma’am.” like “I’ll, I’ll be right over to help you as soon as I’m finished helping this, this other gentleman” or whoever I was helping. And she goes “okay”. So, it took me a little bit longer than expected to get over to her and I just hear her talking to I don’t know if it was a family member or friend or whoever was with her. She starts talking to them in Spanish and she’s like, “oh, this little gringa…” Like kind of like bad- not bad mouthing me but she kind of was just like upset that I was taking longer than usual but she said it all in Spanish.
29:26
I: Thinking you wouldn’t understand.
29:28
P: Thinking I wouldn’t understand. So I, I, I mean, I did understand everything she said and it just made me giggle because, ‘cause she (lauhgs) realized like that I understood everything she just said about me and she was bad mouthing me. [Exactly] So, I, just as sh-, just as she was saying that I had just finished up with this other patient and I knew she needed like, (2.8) I think she needed like napkins or she needed something super, super simple. So I brought it to her and I responded to her in Spanish and the look on her [30:00] face, just really like, completely was just like, “Oh my gosh, what did I just do?” Like. “I just badmouthed this poor girl and like she understood everything I said.” Like she was just super super embarrassed. But it was like the funniest thing because ‘cause that has happened to me a lot where people will start saying something in Spanish and not knowing like I’m go- gonna understand but then I do understand and like I either respond to them back in Spanish or in English to what they had said and they’re like oh my gosh like, “You know Spanish?” and blah blah blah so I think I think that’s pretty funny.
30:37
I: That’s exactly I can relate right to that because I’ve had experiences where it’s like they either don’t think I speak English so they’ll speak in English or they don’t think I speak Spanish and they speak in that- in Spanish. Just depending where I’m at. Um, And I feel like it happens way too often. People are always assuming that someone’s not gonna understand them and they say whatever they want and then you know, like you said, she was embarrassed. Um, so I think. We always got to be aware of what we’re saying because you never know.
31:05
P: Oh, definitely.
31:08
I: And, um, to come full circle, right? Um, that’s another one of the benefits of being bilingual is that you. You know, you get to surprise people all the time. Like she probably would have never thought that you spoke Spanish or understood her and then you were able to like, you know, show up and be like, “Yo sí hablo Español.”
31:35
P: Exactly. Exactly.
31:37
I: Always just catching people on their toes. Got to to be dark and mysterious sometimes.
31:44
P: (lauhgs) Of course.
31:47
I: um, before we end this, I don’t wanna take up any more of your time. But do you have any questions for me?
31:54
P: No, do you have any more questions for me?
31:57
I: I think, I got it all. I mean, you did a good job of elaborating. Um, it’s always hard when you get one-word answers, but you shared a lot and you told me about your background and your mom and I hope I have a lot for work with.
32:13
P: Well, thank you. This was so enjoyable.
32:17
I: Was it?
32:18
P: It was, I had such a great time.
32:21
I: Aww! I had such a great time.
32:25
P: Well, I hope to see you very soon. (laughs)
32:28
I: Well, if you come on over, maybe you, maybe you will.
32:32
P: Okay.
32:34
I: Perfect. Thank you for letting me record you. Let me stop the recording and-
32:42
New Mexico Border Spanish Corpus 