Towards a typological classification of Judeo-Spanish
Analyzing syntax and prosody of Bulgarian judezmo
Judeoespanyol (Judeo-Spanish) is one of the names given to those varieties of
Spanish spoken by descendants of the Jews that were expelled from Spain in
1492. There is neither a common designation nor is it spoken in one specific
area, nor is there any agreement on how to classify it. By some linguists Judeo-
Spanish has been considered a dialect of (Balkan) Spanish, by some a contact
language different from Spanish, and by others again, it has been discussed
whether it represented medieval Spanish, preserved unchanged for the last
five centuries. In this chapter, we argue that the Judeo-Spanish spoken in the
Bulgarian capital of Sofia is indeed a contact language, showing on the phonetic
side a puzzling similarity with Modern Bulgarian and on the syntactic side a
similarity with Modern European Spanish, although at the same time exhibiting
some archaisms of Old Spanish. It thus supports the idea that both divergence
and stability frequently occur together in situations of linguistic contact.
References (92)
Abercrombie, D. 1967. Elements of General Phonetics. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Agustinova, T. 1997. Word-order and Clitics in Bulgarian. Ph.D. Saarbrücken: Universität des Saarlandes.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Alexiadou, A. & Anagnostopoulou, E. 1998. Parametrizing AGR: Word-Order. V-movement. EPP-checking. Natural Language and Linguistic Theory 16: 491−539. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Ariza, M. 2012. Fonología y fonética históricas del español. Madrid: Arco libros.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Auer, P. 2001. Silben- und akzentzählende Sprachen. In Language Typology and Language Universals. An International Handbook, M. Haspelmath, E. König, W. Oesterreicher & W. Raible (eds), 1391−1399. Berlin: de Gruyter.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Auer, P. & Hinskens, F. 1996. The convergence and divergence of dialects in Europe. New and not so new developments in an old area. In Konvergenz und Divergenz von Dialekten in Europa, P. Auer, F. Hinskens & K. Mattheier (eds), 2–30. Tübingen: Niemeyer.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Auer, P. & Uhmann, S. 1988. Silben- und akzentzählende Sprachen. Literaturüber-blick und Diskussion. Zeitschrift für Sprachwissenschaft 7: 214−259. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Backus, A. 2004. Convergence as a mechanism in language change. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition 7: 179–181. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Barry, W., Andreeva, B., Russo, M., Dimitrova, S. & Kostadinova, T. 2003. Do rhythm measures tell us anything about language type? In Proceedings of the 15th ICPhS 2003, M. Solé, D. Recasens & J. Romero (eds), 2693–2696. Barcelona.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Barry, W., Andreeva, B. & Koreman, J. 2009. Do rhythm measures reflect perceived rhythm? Phonetica 66: 78–94. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Benet, A., Gabriel, C., Kireva, E. & Pešková, A. 2012. Prosodic transfer from Italian to Spanish: Rhythmic Properties of L2 Speech and Argentinean Porteño. In Proceedings of Speech Prosody 2012, Q. Ma, H. Ding & D. Hirst (eds), 438−441. Shanghai.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Benincà, P. 1995. Complement clitics in medieval romance: The Tobler-Mussafia law. In Clause Structure and Language Change, A. Battye & I. Roberts (eds), 325−344. Oxford: Oxford University Press.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Boersma, P. & Weenink, D. 2011. Praat. Doing phonetics by computer (Version 5.3). [computer program]. Retrieved18th October 2011. [URL].
Bopp, F. 1816. Über das Conjugationssystem der Sanskritsprache in Vergleichung mit jenem der griechischen. lateinischen. persischen etc. Frankfurt am Main: Andreäische Buchhandlung.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Braunmüller, K. 2003. Language, typology and society: Possible correlations. In Minor Languages: Approaches, Definitions, Controversies, J. Sherzer & T. Stolz (eds), 89–101. Bochum: Brockmeyer.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Bunis, D.M. 1993. El idioma de los sefardíes: un panorama histórico. In Morešet Sefarad: El legado de Sefarad, 414−437. Jerusalem: Editorial Universitaria Magnes.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Bunis, D.M. 2011. Native designations of Judezmo as a ‘Jewish Language’. In Studies in Language, Literature and History Presented to Joseph Chetrit, Y. Tobi, H. Beinart & D. Kurzon (eds), 41−81. Jerusalem: Carmel.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Bürki, Y., Schmid, B. & Schwegler, A. 2006. Introducción a la Sección temática “Una lengua en la diáspora: el judeoespañol de oriente”. Revista de Lingüística Iberoamericana 8: 7–11.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Cardinaletti, A. 2004. Towards a cartography of subject positions. In The Structure of CP and IP. The Cartography of Syntactic Structures, L. Rizzi (ed.), 115−165. Oxford: Oxford University Press.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Cardinaletti, A. & Roberts, I. 2002. Clause structure and X-Second. In Functional Structure in DP and IP: The Cartography of Syntactic Structures, G. Cinque (ed.), 123−166. Oxford: Oxford University Press.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Cortés, S., Lleó, C. & Benet, A. 2011. Analyzing the status of Catalan Schwa in Barcelona. In Proceedings of the 17th ICPhS 2011, W. Lee & E. Zee (eds), 520−523. Hong Kong.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Crosswhite, M. 2000. Sonority-driven reduction. In Proceedings of the Twenty-Sixth Annual Meeting of the Berkeley Linguistics Society: General Session and Parasession on Aspect, L. Conathan, J. Good, D. Kavitskaya, A. Wulf & A. Yu (eds), 77−88. Berkeley.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Danchev, A. 1989. On the contrastive phonology of the stressed vowels in English and Bulgarian. Papers and Studies in Contrastive Linguistics 25: 156−175.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Dasher, R. & Bolinger, D. 1982. On pre-accentual lengthening. Journal of the International Phonetic Association 12: 58–69. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Datcheva, G. 2004. Das Bulgarische im strukturellen Vergleich zum Deutschen. Hamburg: Universität Hamburg.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Dauer, R. 1983. Stress-timing and syllable-timing reanalyzed. Journal of Phonetics 11: 51−62.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Dellwo, V. & Wagner, P. 2003. Relations between language rhythm and speech rate. In
Proceedings of 15th ICPhS
, 461–474. Barcelona.
Dimitrova, S. 1998. Bulgarian speech rhythm. Stress-timed or syllable-timed? Journal of the International Phonetic Association 27: 27−33. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Fischer, S. 2002. The catalan clitic system: A diachronic perspective on its syntax and phonology. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Fischer, S. 2014. Revisting stylistic fronting in old Spanish. In Left Sentence Peripheries in Spanish: Diachronic, Variationist and Comparative Perspectives, A. Dufter & A.O. de Toledo y Huerta(eds), 53−76. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
Fontana, J. 1993. Phrase Structure and the Syntax of Clitics in the History of Spanish. Ph.D. dissertation. University of Pennsylvania.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Gabinski, M.A. 1996. Die Vorgeschichte der dakoromanischen Ordinalia im Lichte der Angaben der sephardischen Sprache. In Sephardica: Hommage à Haïm Vidal Sephiha, W. Busse & M.-C. Varol Bornes (eds), 195−201. Frankfurt/Bern: Lang.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Gabriel, C. 2007. Fokus im Spannungsfeld von Phonologie und Syntax. Eine Studie zum Spanischen. Frankfurt: Vervuert.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Gabriel, C. 2010. On focus, prosody, and word order in Argentinean Spanish. A minimalist OT account. Revista Virtual de Estudos da Linguagem (Special issue 4 “Optimality-theoretic Syntax”): 183−222.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Gabriel, C., Meisenburg, T. & Selig, M. 2013. Spanisch: Phonetik und Phonologie. Eine Einführung. Tübingen: Narr.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Gabriel, C. & Kireva, E. 2014. Prosodic transfer in learner and contact varieties: Speech rhythm and intonation of Buenos Aires Spanish and L2 Castilian Spanish produced by Italian natives. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 36: 257−281. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Gerassimova, V.A. & Jaeger, F. 2002. Configurationality and the direct object clitic in Bulgarian. In
Proceedings of the Seventh Student Session of the ESSLLI
, 1–12. Trento, Italy.
Grabe, E. & Low, E.L. 2002. Durational variability in speech and the rhythm class hypothesis. In Papers in Laboratory Phonology 7, C. Gussenhoven & N. Warner (eds), 515−546. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Hetzer, A. 2001. Sephardisch: Judeo-español. Djudezmo. Einführung in die Umgangssprache der südosteuropäischen Juden. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Hassán, I.M. 1995. El español sefardí (judeoespañol, ladino). In La lengua española hoy, M. Seco & G. Salvador (eds), 117−140. Madrid: Fundación Juan March.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Holmberg, A. 2000. Scandinavian stylistic fronting. Linguistic Inquiry 31: 445−483. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Holmberg, A. 2005. Is there a little pro? Evidence from Finnish. Linguistic Inquiry 36(4): 533−564. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Hualde, J.I. & Şaul, M. 2011. Istanbul Judeo-Spanish. Journal of the International Phonetic Association 41: 89−110. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
IPA (International Phonetic Association). 1999. Handbook of the International Phonetic Association: A Guide to the Use of the International Phonetic Alphabet. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Kanchev, I.V. (Кънчев, И. В.) 1975. Fonética y fonología del judeoespañol de Bulgaria. Ph.D. dissertation. Sofia: University of Sofia.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Kayne, R.S. 1989. Null subjects and clitic climbing. In The Null Subject Parameter, O. Jaeggli & K.J. Safir (eds), 239–261. Dordrecht: Kluwer. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Kinoshita, N. & Sheppard, C. 2011. Validating acoustic measures of speech rhythm for second language acquisition. In
Proceedings of 17th ICPhS
, W.-S. Lee & E. Zee (eds), 1086–1089. Hong Kong.
Mairano, P. & Romano, A. 2010. Un confronto tra diverse metriche ritmiche usando Correlatore. In La dimensione temporale del parlato. Proceedings of the V National AISV Congress (Associazione Italiana di Scienze della Voce), S. Schmid, M. Schwarzenbach & D. Studer (eds), 79−100. Torriana (Italy): EDK Editore.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Mancheva, D. 1999. El “diccionario judeo-español – búlgaro” de Alberto Pipano como testimonio lexicográfico. In Jewish Studies at the Turn of the Twentieth Century, J. Targarona Borrás & Á. Sáenz Badillo (eds), 530−537. Boston: Brill.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Martínez Celdrán, E. 2007. Análisis espectrográfico de los sonidos del habla. Barcelona: Ariel.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Matras, Y. 2009. Language Contact. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Meyer-Lübke, W. 1897. Zur Stellung der tonlosen Objektspronomina. Zeitschrift für Romanische Philologie 21: 313−334. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Minervini, L. 2006. El desarrollo histórico del judeoespañol. Revista de Lingüística Iberoamericana 8: 13–34.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Mussafia, A. 1888. Enclisi o proclisi del pronome personale atono quale oggetto. Romania 27: 145−146. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
NGRAE. 2001. = Real Academia Española / Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española: Nueva gramática de la lengua española: Fonética y fonología. Madrid: Espasa Libros.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Paunovski, V. 2005. La science en Bulgarie sur la langue ladino. Jews and Slavs 15: 155−170.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Pearce, E. 1990. Parameters in Old French Syntax: Infinitival Complements. Dordrecht: Kluwer. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Penny, R. 2002. A History of the Spanish Language, 2nd edn. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Pike, K.L. 1945. The Intonation of American English. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Quintana Rodríguez, A. 2006. Geografía lingüística del judeoespañol: Estudio sincrónico y diacrónico. Frankfurt/Bern: Lang.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Quintana Rodríguez, A. 2008. Historia del judeoespañol. Hispanorama 122: 15−19.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Ramus, F., Nespor, M. & Mehler, J. 1999. Correlates of linguistic rhythm in the speech signal. Cognition 73: 265−292. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Rivero, M.L. 1991. Clitic and NP climbing in old Spanish. In Current Studies in Spanish Linguistics, H. Campos & F. Martínez Gil (eds), 241−282. Washington D.C.: Georgetown University Press.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Rizzi, L. 1982. Issues in Italian Syntax. Dordrecht: Foris. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Romero, E. 1992. La creación literaria en lengua sefardí. Madrid: Mapfre.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Romero, R. 2013. Palatal east meets velar west: Dialect contact and phonological accommodation in Judeo-Spanish. Studies in Hispanic and Lusophone Linguistics 6: 279–300. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Schelling, A. 2005. Judenspanisch in Bulgarien: Eine bedrohte Minderheitensprache. Master Thesis, Köln: Universität zu Köln.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Schmid, B. 2008. La lengua sefardí en su plenitud. In Sefardíes: Literatura y lengua de una nación dispersa, E. Romero (ed.), 51−79. Cuenca: Ediciones de la Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Schwarzwald, O.R. 1993. Morphological aspects in the development of Judeo-Spanish. Folia Linguistica XXVII/1–2: 27−44.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Sheehan, M. 2004. An interface analysis of verb subject inversion in Romance. Durham Working Papers in Linguistics 10.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Song, J.J. 2011. Word order typology. In The Oxford Handbook of Linguistic Typology, J.J. Song (ed.), 253−279. Oxford: Oxford University Press.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Suñer, M. 1982. Syntax and Semantics of Presentational Sentence-Types. Washington. D.C.: Georgetown University Press.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Schleicher, A. 1848. Sprachvergleichende Untersuchungen./Zur vergleichenden Sprachgeschichte. (2 Bde.). Bonn: H. B. König.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Studemund-Halévy, M. & Fischer, S. 2013. What happens when a language ceases to be used by its speakers? Documentation of Bulgarian Judezmo. In Sefarad an der Donau: Lengua y literatura de los Sefardíes en tierras de los Habsburgos, M. Studemund-Halévy, C. Liebl & I. Vučina Simović (eds), 407–424. Barcelona: Tirocinio.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Sweet, H. 1900. Adverbs. A New English Grammar. Oxford: Clarendo Press.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Ternes, E. & Vladimirova-Buhtz, T. 1999. Bulgarian. In Handbook of the International Phonetic Association: A Guide to the Use of the International Phonetic Alphabet, 55–57. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Thomason, S. & Kaufman, T. 1988. Language Contact, Creolization and Genetic Linguistics. Berkeley: University of California Press.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Tobler, A. 1875/1912.Besprechung von J. Le Coultre. De l’ordre des mots dans Chrétien de Troyes. Vermischte Beiträge zur französischen Grammatik 5, reprinted Leipzig [1875] 1912: 395−414.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Trudgill, P. 2010. Contact and sociolinguistic typology. In The Handbook of Language Contact, R. Hickey (ed.), 299–319. Malden: Wiley-Blackwell. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Varol Bornes, M.-C. 2009. Morphosyntactical calques in Judeo-Spanish: Mechanisms and limits. In Languages and Literatures of Sephardic and Oriental Jews, M.D. Bunis (ed.), 260−273. Jerusalem: Bialik Institute.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Varol Bornes, M.-C. 2011. Les verbes empruntés au turc en judéo-espagnol (Bulgarie). In Lexicología y lexicografía judeoespañolas, W. Busse & M. Studemund-Halévy (eds), 87−106. Frankfurt/Bern: Lang.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Wackernagel, J. 1896. Altindische Grammatik I: Lautlehre. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Wanner, D. 1987. The Development of Romance Clitic Pronouns: From Latin to Old Romance. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
White, L. & Mattys, S.L. 2007. Calibrating rhythm: First language and second language studies. Journal of Phonetics 35: 501–522. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Wood, S. & Pettersson, T. 1988. Vowel reduction in Bulgarian: The phonetic data and model experiments. Folia Linguistica 22: 239–262. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Zagona, K. 2002. The Syntax of Spanish. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Zubizaretta, M. 1998. Prosody. Focus and Word-order. Cambridge/Mass.: MIT Press.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Cited by (1)
Cited by one other publication
Gabriel, Christoph & Jonas Grünke
This list is based on CrossRef data as of 24 july 2024. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers.
Any errors therein should be reported to them.