Geographies of Belonging: Spanish Place-names in Colorado

FAIN: HB-282459-22

Maria Auxiliadora Rey-Lopez
Metropolitan State College of Denver (Denver, CO 80217-3362)

Research leading to the revision of an intensive Spanish grammar review course for heritage speakers.

This project will research and analyze Spanish toponymy in Colorado including the place-names of cities, counties and geographical accidents. Rather than creating a list of names in order to collect information about the origin and meaning of each (as could be expected from a more traditional etymological or taxonomic study), the project will instead focus on how place-names practices and politics have produced spaces imbued with cultural significance and social power. Therefore, the toponymic study of Colorado Spanish places will be approached from a historical, political and personal point of view. I plan to use the collected materials, sources and subsequent research to revise and improve one of the intermediate grammar courses I usually teach by providing a cultural and historical thematic thread to the class SPA 2750-Intensive Spanish Grammar Review, a class initially created for Spanish heritage speakers that is offered year-round.

Associated Products

SPA 2750-Intensive Intermediate Spanish Grammar Review. Geographies of Belonging. (Course or Curricular Material)
Title: SPA 2750-Intensive Intermediate Spanish Grammar Review. Geographies of Belonging.
Author: María A. Rey-López
Abstract: The NEH Awards for Faculty at Hispanic-Serving Institutions allowed me to revise a Spanish course to incorporate research-based activities into the curriculum. The collected materials, sources and subsequent research helped me to revamp and improve one of the Spanish intermediate grammar courses in our program by providing a cultural and historical thematic thread to the class SPA 2750-Intensive Intermediate Spanish Grammar Review, a course initially created for Spanish heritage speakers and offered year-round. In addition to creating a list of names to collect information about the origin and meaning of each place (as could be expected from a more traditional etymological or taxonomic study), the developed activities focus on how place-name practices have produced spaces imbued with cultural significance and social power. Therefore, the new assignments and activities created and related to the toponymic study of Colorado Spanish place names require an interdisciplinary approach including a linguistic, historical, sociopolitical, as well as a personal point of view. The different components of the project integrated into the curriculum seek to address questions such as: To what extent do official histories differ from personal stories? How do speakers pronounce these names according to the interlocutor or context? What political interests are associated with geographical regions, and what glimpses of the historical past can be derived from these names?
Year: 2022
Audience: Undergraduate

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