1. Why is Spanish
Important?
¿Por qué es importante el
español?

2. Early Origins
• Standard Spanish is
also called Castilian
• Derived from Latin
spoken in the
Iberian Peninsula
• Alfonso el Sabio
standardized
Spanish in the 13th
century

3. Spanish Move to West
• Spain sent out
Cristobal Colón in
1492
• Colonization of the
Western
Hemisphere began
• Control of the land
brought the
language

4. Caribbean and South
America
• Columbus first landed in the
Caribbean (Bahamas)
• Easily took control, moved
further South
• Colonized Western and
Southern South America

5. Central America
• Empire expanded
North up to
Mexico
• Spanish still was
the prominent
language
• Although
countries gained
independence,
language stayed

6. Influence in the U.S.
• Mexican territory
used to extend
further
• Treaty of Hildalgo
(1848) U.S. gained
land
• Language, culture
and food
remained

7. TX, CA, NM, AZ
• States most influenced by Hispanic
culture
• Spanish speakers represent 1/3 of
population
• San Diego, Los Angeles,
Albuquerque, Rio Grande, San
Antonio

8. Present Day!
• 417 million Spanish
speakers
worldwide
• 2nd most spoken
language in the
U.S.
• More students than
any other
language

9. Vocabulary Influences
• Many English words
have Spanish roots
• Animal names,
„Cowboy‟ terms,
cognates, foods
• Puma, rodeo, lasso,
cafeteria, taco,
tornado

10. Food
• Becoming more and more
popular in U.S.
• Food terms, restaurants,
fast food
• Influenced by many
cultures and countries

11. Art
• Many famous
Hispanic artists
• Works displayed
worldwide
• Picasso, Dalí,
Kahlo, Miró,
Rivera, Botero

12. Literature
• Famous for
Poetry and
Magical Realism
• Nobel Prize
winner Pablo
Neruda (Chile)
• Don Quijote de
la Mancha

13. • Movies, actors,
actresses and
directors Film
• Academy award
winners
• English speaking
Spanish-
produced movies

14. Music
• Many mainstream Hispanic
musicians and genres
• Enrique Iglesias, Shakira,
Pitbull, Christina Aguilera
• Salsa, Reggaetón, Flamenco,
Pop

15. Summary
• Spanish is relevant today!
• Knowledge of Spanish is
valuable in U.S.
• Influences are all around,
everywhere

16. Credits
• Cyr0z, “Penelope Cruz”, November 30, 2008 via Flickr, Creative
Commons Attribution
• Hispanic America. Wikipedia, 28 Sept. 2010. Web. 4 Oct. 2010.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hispanic_America>.
• History of Spanish. Wikipedia, 28 Sept. 2010. Web. 4 Oct. 2010.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Spanish>.
• Kidmancolor, “Libro_Quijote”, May 11, 2010 via Flickr, Creative
Commons Attribution
• Latin American Music. Wikipedia, 2 Oct. 2010. Web. 4 Oct. 2010.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latin_American_music>.
• Libby Rosof, “Image 10”, December 14, 2007 via Flickr, Creative
Commons Attribution
• Microsoft Office Clipart
• Wagner, David. centralamer.jpg. . Pics4Learning. 4 Oct 2010
http://pics.tech4learning.com
• Wagner, David. spain.jpg. . Pics4Learning. 4 Oct 2010
http://pics.tech4learning.com