On the different ways of being a bi-dialectal immigrant. From speech isolation through code-switching to full integration. The case of Argentineans in Malaga (Spain).

Abstract

In this paper we analyse the accommodation (convergence) or divergence of young immigrants born in Buenos Aires, Argentina but living in Malaga, Spain (n = 22). For analysing this community, we took advantage of previous studies on dialects in contact such as Auer et. al. (2000), Hinskens et. al. (2016), Kerswill & Williams (2000), or Trudgill (1986), among others. We have focused our attention on a very salient feature of the variety of Buenos Aires: the realization patterns of the voiced palatal fricative /ʝ/ (n = 1176) by young immigrant speakers. In such an immigration context, different realizations of /ʝ/ are observable, from open [j] to voiceless fricative realizations [ʃ]. An acoustic analysis based on standardised zero crossings rate, relative intensity, and other complementary measurements allows us to set the acoustic parameters underlying palatal /ʝ/ allophones, and to reveal a clear recession in the use of the native closed – and even voiceless – allophones by the Buenos Aires young immigrant speakers.