PhD project: Italian and Italians in St. Louis: a sociolinguistics analysis
Do you know that 4 millions of emigrants left Italy for the United States during the mass emigration era (1890 – 1920)?
This is an important chapter in Italian and American history and culture.
But... what happened to the language spoken by those immigrants?
I am interested in the area of St. Louis, Missouri, where there still is a lively Italian neighborhood called The Hill.
My project is to interview a group of approximately 50 Americans of Italian descent in St. Louis and in the nearby towns, recruiting them with the help of local Italians associations and clubs.
I want to know:
- What is their knowledge of the Italian language?
- What attitude do they have towards it and towards the dialect?
- Is Italian an ethnicity marker?
- When did the language shift happen?
Why do I need funding?
My project is an individual doctorate project, therefore I am not part of a team and I did not receive any funding from the university of other institutions.
The money I will collect will be used to fund my fieldwork expenses, such as travelling to St. Louis, renting a room, etc.
What do I offer in exchange?
I am a linguist and a translator, so what about language lessons online?
If you are interested in learning and practicing Italian, I can offer conversation lessons via Skype. I did it before and it was a very interesting exchange!
I put some examples in the rewards section, but I am flexible and we can decide together what is best for you.