Author(s)

Li Liu

Corresponding Author

Li Liu

Abstract

This study conducted among Latinos in South Texas in 2020. The definitions of attitudes, language maintenance and shift have been adopted as the theoretical framework of the research. It investigates Latinos’ attitudes towards Spanish and its influence on their language maintenance and shift to English. Quantitative data from 30 questionnaires about attitudes towards Spanish in South Texas and qualitative data from survey questions of 10 respondents were collected. The surveys have been conducted among Latinos of different age, gender and education backgrounds. The results show that Latino’s positive attitudes towards their own language help to maintain their language. They believe that Spanish is a very important language and have confidence in the development of the language. However, they have conservative attitude towards the use of Spanish, which shows the language shifting in the community.

Keywords

Latino, Attitudes, Language maintenance and shift, South texas