ABSTRACT
This chapter presents research on language regard in the context of immigration and transnationalism. It addresses two questions: Do immigrants maintain the regard for regional varieties of their homeland speech communities? Does the intensity of their ties to the homeland influence their regard? Crowdsourcing was used to collect data about the correctness of regional varieties of Spanish from six Latin American groups residing in the United States, including Colombians, Cubans, Dominicans, Mexicans, Puerto Ricans, and Venezuelans. A comparison with in-country studies indicated stability in the regard for prestigious varieties. On the other hand, differences between immigrants and their homelands were found in the varieties considered least prestigious, which for some groups included the varieties of other large Latin American groups in the United States. Further evidence of stability in immigrants’ language regard was found in a comparison of high and low transnationalism, when remittances, travel, and communication were used as indicators of engagement, and degree of transnational practice was derived from the median score within each national group. High and low transnationals shared regard for prestigious varieties. It is concluded that the language regard of immigrants is similar to the homeland speech community and not influenced by transnationalism.
