Hispanic Languages, Literatures & CulturesSpanish is the third most spoken language in the world and the second in the United States. It is the native tongue of approximately 388 million people in 21 countries, and it is widely spoken in many more countries where it is not an official language. It is also one of the official languages in the United Nations and the European Union. The 39 million Hispanics currently living in the United States make up 12.5 percent of the total population, and by the year 2050, the number is expected to grow to over 100 million, approximately one quarter of the total U.S. population. Spanish is also the most widely taught foreign language in this country.
As the importance of the Spanish language continues to grow worldwide, the Department of Hispanic Languages, Literatures, and Cultures challenges students to go beyond the basic language skills to fulfill a college requirement. Our mission is to engage students in understanding the richness and diversity of Hispanic cultures and their continuing impact on the U.S. and the world. We recognize language variations within the Spanish-speaking world as an expression of distinguishing cultural, historical, and political experiences. Our courses examine these experiences as they have manifested themselves in a complex tradition of literary production, from pre-Hispanic poetry and the origins of the modern novel to the magic realism of the Boom and the contemporary literary movements. Our curriculum is broad and diverse, with courses in a variety of topics, including: Spanish and Latin American media and press, narratives of the Spanish Civil War, crime and punishment in Latin American cinema, Spanish-speaking cultures and language varieties, and the Latino presence in the U.S. We offer courses cross-listed with departments and programs such as History, Women's Studies, Sociology, Education, and World Literature. |
