Introducción a la lingüística española (review)

The new third edition (2009) of this book, first published in 1992, with a second edition in 2005, features changes to the content and the format, which have significantly enhanced the quality of its two predecessors through major revisions to the content and the presentational format. The current volume contains features that make it an extremely attractive and viable pedagogical tool for college instructors who wish to provide their students with an accurate, comprehensible, well written, conceptually integrated, and carefully crafted introduction to Spanish linguistics.

Among the noteworthy additions are the following: (1) systematic usage of the International Phonetic Alphabet; (2) new and improved graphics (maps and figures); (3) the addition of the Vistazo general(an initial overview of the chapter content); (4) an improved list of chapter objectives designed to provide focus and direction for the reader's preliminary study preparation; (5) a new section at the end Volviendo al epígrafe(intended to allow students to interpret its meaning upon completion of each chapter); and (6) an expanded Glosario de términos técnicos.

The twelve chapters in the textbook address the following topics: (1) La lengua española en el mundo; (2) Lenguaje, lengua y lingüística; (3) Fonética: Los sonidos del habla; (4) Fonología: Los fonemas del español; (5) Morfología: Forma y función de las palabras; (6) Sintaxis I: La estructura de las oraciones: (7) Sintaxis II: Algunas estructuras específicas; (8) Variación temporal; (9) Variación regional; (10) Variación social; (11) Variación contextual; and (12) El español en los Estados Unidos. Azevedo thus covers the essential materials that an introductory Spanish linguistics textbook should contain.

The regular and consistent format of each chapter allows the student to acquire basic linguistic concepts easily. Each chapter contains the following basic features: (1) an initial epígrafethat addresses the central theme of the chapter; (2) a Vistazo general(with an overview of its contents); (3) Objetivos(what the student should know after reading the chapter); (4) the chapter content; (5) Términos clave; (6) Mitos sobre el lenguaje(presentation of a commonly held myth for active discussion); (7) Sumarioof the key points; (8) Prácticaover the content of the chapter; (9) Temas para profundizar(mini-research questions based on the chapter); (10) Principales fuentes consultadas; (11) Sugerencias para lectura; and (12) Notas.

Each chapter, except the second, is replete with copious figures (80), each one of which provides a graphic, chart, or exemplification of a key aspect of the item under discussion. Chapters 1 and 9 also contain five useful maps. Moreover, valuable linguistic activities are interspersed throughout each chapter, designed to reinforce the content of the immediately preceding subsection through practical applied exercises.

Azevedo employs a systematic set of symbols and codes that allow student and teacher alike to make maximal use of this book. Specifically, the use of parenthetical cross references that call attention to materials previously discussed or to be discussed in greater detail in a subsequent chapter (e.g., [← 9.1] and [→ 9.7]). Moreover, he uses the symbol ° to indicate that a definition appears in the glossary. Likewise, marginal annotations direct the student to specific exercises in the Workbook with the identifier " Cuaderno" and the specific exercise in a circle, which indicates the chapter and exercise number.

A final comprehensive and up-to-date bibliography, a glossary of technical terms, and a user-friendly thematic index complement this...