Crisanta, Margarita: Mi Nombre, My Identity

• In Event: Moscone Center West Roundtable Session 12
  In Roundtable Session: Teacher and Student Identity for Bilingual Development

Abstract

Within the Indo-European cultures specifically, and among many other cultures, there is an ancient tradition which holds that to name something is to invoke its power (Fortson IV, 2004). In some measure this tradition retains some validity today, and as a result a person’s name by many is considered and inviolable attribute of the person and an expression of his or her uniqueness. We build our work on this tradition by presenting two lessons designed for bilinguals to foreground students’ names. Drawing on data from these two lessons we highlight (1) the use of language favored by bilingual students; (2) students’ tendency for Americanizing their names; and (3) students’ discovery that they are part of the much bigger cultural context.

Authors

• Gladys Krause, William and Mary

• Paulina Carrión, William and Mary