Spanish subject expression in Roswell, Georgia: dialect formation in an emerging bilingual community

This study examines the use of Spanish subject pronouns in Roswell, Georgia. Specifically, I investigate the influence of linguistic and social variables on pronoun use in this variety of Spanish, which has not received the same degree of attention as well-studied varieties (e.g. New York). Sociolinguistic interviews were conducted in Roswell (Wilson 2013) and transcribed to allow for analysis of pronouns and factors that may influence subject expression (e.g. person/number) as well as social variables (e.g. length of residency). Results indicate an overall pronoun rate of 21%, similar to that of Mainland newcomers in New York (Otheguy et al. 2007). However, results from the multivariate analysis suggest that pronoun usage in Roswell diverges from these communities, with differential effects observed for factors such as Person/number and Coreferentiality Index. This analysis of subject expression in the Roswell data reveals an intermediate stage of language shift in this particular community.