The student develops an understanding of the structure of the Spanish language and is able to use an appropriate level of formality according to the situation, whether in writing or in speech.
● The student completes between two and six courses (depending on his or her choice of emphasis, as either language and linguistics knowledge or literary and cultural knowledge) related to the Spanish language and linguistics. These courses deal with: the sound system of Spanish, the history of Spanish, advanced grammar, Spanish-English translation, a general introduction to Spanish linguistics, Spanish for professional application (medical, legal, etc. spheres), composition and conversation.
● The student completes between two and six courses (depending on his or her choice of emphasis, as either language and linguistics knowledge or literary and cultural knowledge) related to the Spanish language and linguistics. These courses deal with: the sound system of Spanish, the history of Spanish, advanced grammar, Spanish-English translation, a general introduction to Spanish linguistics, Spanish for professional application (medical, legal, etc. spheres), composition and conversation.
In SPAN 302 we learned in great detail about the sound system of the Spanish language. We concentrated on the various parts inside of the mouth that are crucial in allowing humans to communicate in a given language. Germanic languages, like English, tend to use a lot of glottal sounds or sounds that are produced from the very bottom of the mouth. Where as in Spanish, most sounds are produced closer to the mouths aperture. This is why some Spanish speakers have a rather daunting time reproducing the final letter "K" in break. It was an extremely interesting class to say the least.
In SPAN 302 we learned about the history of the Spanish language. Interesting highlights include the fact that Spanish actually hails from Rome and not the Iberian Peninsula. Through out the years the Spanish language has been enriched by other groups of people like the Arabs and Basques of Northern Spain. Even now a days Spanish uses several Arab-origin words. This is because the Arabs invaded and lived in most of Spain for seven hundred years. To put that into perspective, they lived in Spain for over more years than the time the United States of America has existed as a nation. I also learned that the Spanish language is really called Castilian. This is because there are four main languages spoken in Spain. They are Castilian, Galician, Basque and Catalan, so it's ignorant to refer to one of those languages solely as Spanish.
In Spanish 305 we focused on the business area of the Spanish language. We discovered that Spanish is quite important in not only in Latin America but in the United States as well as Spain. This is because there is a huge Spanish-speaking population in the United States, not to mention most of the Spanish-speaking nations south of the border.
In SPAN 305 we delved on to Spanish grammar. Being a Spanish linguistics major, this turned out ti be one of my favorite classes. We strengthened our conjugating and tenses skills significantly.
In SPAN 315 we learned that translating directly, word for word, is not always the correct way of translating a language into a different language.
In SPAN 302 we learned about the history of the Spanish language. Interesting highlights include the fact that Spanish actually hails from Rome and not the Iberian Peninsula. Through out the years the Spanish language has been enriched by other groups of people like the Arabs and Basques of Northern Spain. Even now a days Spanish uses several Arab-origin words. This is because the Arabs invaded and lived in most of Spain for seven hundred years. To put that into perspective, they lived in Spain for over more years than the time the United States of America has existed as a nation. I also learned that the Spanish language is really called Castilian. This is because there are four main languages spoken in Spain. They are Castilian, Galician, Basque and Catalan, so it's ignorant to refer to one of those languages solely as Spanish.
In Spanish 305 we focused on the business area of the Spanish language. We discovered that Spanish is quite important in not only in Latin America but in the United States as well as Spain. This is because there is a huge Spanish-speaking population in the United States, not to mention most of the Spanish-speaking nations south of the border.
In SPAN 305 we delved on to Spanish grammar. Being a Spanish linguistics major, this turned out ti be one of my favorite classes. We strengthened our conjugating and tenses skills significantly.
In SPAN 315 we learned that translating directly, word for word, is not always the correct way of translating a language into a different language.