S1 E14: Spanish Language – Dr. Carlos Soler Montes

Much Language Such Talk

Dr. Carlos Soler Montes is a Lecturer at the School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures at the University of Edinburgh, where he teaches Hispanic Linguistics and advanced Spanish Language courses. He started working at The University of Edinburgh in 2015 as a Teaching Fellow and e-Learning Coordinator and now is the Learning and Teaching Director of the Department of European Languages and Cultures as well as Programme Director for Spanish and Portuguese at Bilingualism Matters.

One of Carlos' passions is studying the Spanish language in Spain and Latin America. He is interested in language variation from a pan-Hispanic and pluricentric perspective and how this variation is dealt with by native speakers, as well as learners of Spanish. This is reflected in his research of Hispanic Linguistics, where he has examined the ways Spanish grammar varies across different Hispanic regions, its particularities, cultural connections and social contacts with other languages.

Currently, Carlos is co-leading a research project entitled “Linguistic variation in postcolonial contexts: historical, social and contact linguistic perspectives” funded by UNA Europa. The project brings together researchers working on postcolonial language studies and sociolinguistics within their university network, in order to produce new insights into linguistic variation and change in postcolonial contexts, promoting new and long-lasting collaboration initiatives that lead to a better understanding of European languages outside Europe. Additionally, Carlos is part of the “Spanish in Europe: Linguistic Demography of Spanish in Europe” research project, representing Scotland, which aims to better understand how groups of Spanish speakers are shaped by migration and the spread of Spanish as a foreign language, as well as how different social and linguistic environments affect language competency and use.

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Recorded on 8/4/2021

Music: Arc of the Sun by The 126ersssssss