The CUNY Sociolinguistics Lunch is a series of talks on sociolinguistics and anthropological linguistics given by students, faculty, and visiting scholars usually from local institutions.

The talks are held 2-4 p.m. at the Graduate Center on three Fridays per semester. The format includes ample time for discussion, and so it is an excellent venue for presenting on-going research or research in preparation for publication. All are welcome.

Students and faculty of the Linguistics Program are welcome to present their work at the Sociolinguistics Lunch. For more information or to suggest a speaker contact Cecelia Cutler, Michael Newman or Miki Makihara.

Sociolinguists Lunch with Lotfi Sayahi

Lotfi Sayahi is Associate Professor of Linguistics andHispanic and Italian Studies at University at Albany, SUNY

“A Centuries-Long Contact: The Case of Arabic and Spanish in Iberia and North Africa”

This presentation surveys the historical and sociolinguistic contexts that have provided the background for the long contact between Spanish and Arabic in the Iberian Peninsula and North Africa. The study begins with a description of the early contact between Arabic and Romance. It looks into the development of Hispanic Arabic, the genesis of Mozarabic and Aljamía as transitional contact varieties, and the implications for an Arabic element in the evolution of Spanish. Analysis will include the presence of Arabic loanwords in Spanish and the behavior of the agglutinated article al-. Then, the presentation turns to the analysis of more recent situations of Spanish/Arabic bilingualism, with a special focus on Ceuta, Melilla, and northern Morocco, by examining the features that distinguish these contact varieties from non-contact varieties of Spanish. The influence of Spanish on vernacular Arabic in North Africa is also examined, with attention paid to more recent Spanish loanwords in Moroccan Arabic.

The talk will be followed by a reception in the Linguistics Department. All are welcome.