NO PARKING EN ESTE DRIVEWAY reads a sign in Miami, and motorists know exactly what it means. In Los Angeles, shopkeepers do not miss a beat if a customer asks, "Donde esta la panty hose?" When a newly arrived Manhattanite asks his neighbor, "Tienes un VCR?" the reply is immediate: "Over there, under la TV."
This linguistic paella, a free-form blend of Spanish and English, is popularly known as Spanglish. It is becoming an increasingly common conversational mode in areas with heavy concentrations of Hispanic immigrants, especially California, the Gulf Coast and New York City. The informal acceptance of this hybrid...
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