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Helmand province campaign

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Helmand province campaign
Part of the War in Afghanistan (2001–14)
American and British soldiers patrolling through a town in Helmand Province, 2007
Date June 4, 2006 - 2014
Location Helmand province, Afghanistan

ISAF-Logo.svg ISAF

Afghanistan Islamic Republic of Afghanistan

Afghanistan Taliban

Quetta Shura
Commanders and leaders

ISAF-Logo.svg ISAF

Afghanistan Islamic Republic of Afghanistan

Afghanistan Taliban

ISAF-Logo.svg ISAF

27,000 (July 2010)[1]

Afghanistan Islamic Republic of Afghanistan

8,000 (ANA)[2]

Afghanistan Taliban

8,000-9,000 (Taliban claim)
3,000 (independent estimate)[3]
Casualties and losses
ISAF-Logo.svg ISAF
800 killed[4]

Afghanistan Islamic Republic of Afghanistan
Afghanistan Taliban
7,000 killed (NATO claim)[5]

The Helmand province campaign was a series of military operations conducted by the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) forces against Taliban insurgents in the Helmand Province of Afghanistan. Their objective was to control a province that was known to be a Taliban stronghold, and a center of opium production.[6]

The deployment of international, mostly British, forces was part of the stage three expansion of the ISAF mandate, to cover the southern regions of Afghanistan. Until then Helmand province had seen only a limited coalition presence.

In the spring of 2008, a battalion of U.S. Marines arrived to reinforce the British presence. In the spring of 2009, 11,000 additional Marines poured into the province, the first wave of President Obama's 21,000 troop surge into Afghanistan.[7]

On June 19, 2009, the British Army (with ISAF and ANA forces) launched Operation Panther's Claw and on July 2, 2009, US Marines launched Operation Khanjar, both major offensives into the province in hopes of securing the region before the Afghanistan presidential elections and turning the tide of the insurgency there.

In 2006, a revitalised Taliban conducted a number of large-scale military offensives against coalition troops in Helmand, Kandahar and other provinces on the border with Pakistan.

In Helmand, the Afghan government only had a tenuous hold outside the provincial capital of Lashkar Gah. The NATO presence in the province was sparse, limited to 130 American soldiers undertaking punctual anti-terrorist missions, as part of Operation Enduring Freedom. Through the month of April, a new British unit, the Helmand Task Force, was deployed in order to counter the Taliban. The core of the fighting force was drawn from the 16th Air Assault Brigade, and in particular from the 3rd battalion, of the Parachute Regiment. Based at Camp Bastion, then under construction, the task force numbered 3,300 men, though only a third of these were combat troops.[8]

During the first four months of its presence in Afghanistan, the Helmand Task Force was expected to take part in Operation Enduring Freedom, and help track down Taliban and Al Qaeda extremists. It was thus placed under the command of U.S. Major General Benjamin Freakley, commander of the Combined Joint Task Force 76. But being part of ISAF, it was also answerable to the ISAF Regional Command South, then led by a Canadian, Brigadier General David Fraser.[9] This tangled chain of command was accompanied by a certain difficulty in defining the priority between two different and sometimes contradictory missions: either to win the support of the local population, or to fight and eliminate the Taliban.[10]

Outposts under siege

The initial mission of the Helmand Task Force was to carry out reconstruction and hearts and minds projects in the relatively safe area known as "the triangle", centered around Lashkar Gah and Gereshk. However, the intensification of Taliban attacks led to a dramatic change in this strategy. In early spring 2006, Baghran District fell temporarily under insurgent control, and on May 18, a Taliban raid in Musa Qala killed some twenty Afghan policemen.[11]

The possibility of a Taliban offensive sweeping over the entire province was taken seriously by the provincial governor, Mohammad Daoud, a personal ally and appointee of President Hamid Karzai. Daoud insisted that ISAF troops be deployed in the districts that were under immediate threat of Taliban attack: Sangin, Now Zad, Musa Qala and the strategic hydroelectric installations at Kajaki. This was the beginning of the controversial "platoon house" strategy, that saw NATO troops, mostly British, tied down in remote outstations across northern Helmand. All posts attracted sustained and intensive Taliban attacks, and remained under siege for long periods. The Task Force's limited assets became dangerously stretched, leading to difficult situations in several cases.

The town of Sangin (population 30,000), is an important trading center of southern Afghanistan, and is believed to be the biggest opium market in the region.[12] Thus it naturally became an important objective both for the Taliban and the coalition. Before June 2006, it was believed to be largely under insurgent control.[10]

On June 18, 2006, Jama Gul, a former district chief, was ambushed and killed in Sangin, along with four bodyguards. When a group of his relatives went to retrieve the bodies, 25 of them were killed.[13] It was this incident, sometimes described as "face-off between two drug lords", that led to the deployment of ISAF troops in Sangin.[14] On June 21, a company of British paratroopers moved into the town, ostensibly to rescue the son of the current district chief, who had been wounded in the fight. However, after a personal intervention by Hamid Karzai, they were ordered to remain in Sangin, in order to assert the faltering authority of the central government.[15]

Canadian M777 howitzer firing at Taliban positions in Sangin.

At first, the situation inside the town remained calm, but this changed after June 27, after a failed special forces raid in the Sangin area, during which two British soldiers were killed. On June 30, the insurgents launched their first frontal attacks on the district centre, garrisoned by British troops. The attackers were driven off, after having lost at least twelve killed.[16] Despite this, the Taliban did not relent, and renewed their attacks every night, using small arms, RPGs, and 107 mm rockets. The British answered with machine guns, mortars and Javelin missiles, and by calling in artillery and airstrikes. Resupply was sometimes interrupted for as long as five days, as Taliban fire would have put the helicopters at risk.

On July 15, as part of Operation Mountain Thrust coalition forces conducted an offensive into Sangin district, supported by armour, in the shape of light tanks of the Household Cavalry Regiment and Canadian LAV IIIs. In the face of overwhelming force, most of the Taliban retreated, and a supply convoy was escorted into the town. The garrison were able to strengthen their defenses after the arrival of an engineer unit.

After September 14, the fighting died down in Sangin. On September 21, the paratroopers occupying the government compound were replaced by a unit from 42 Commando, Royal Marines. In March 2007, the Marines were in turn replaced by a company from the 2nd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Fusiliers. By this time, the Taliban had resumed their operations in the sector, and the fusiliers were attacked 79 times during their first twenty days in Sangin.[17]

On April 5, 2007, coalition forces launched Operation Silver, as part of the wider Operation Achilles, with some 1,000 troops. After giving advance warning of their offensive, they advanced into Sangin, which had been mostly abandoned by the insurgents. The new governor of Helmand Assadullah Wafa, was able to install a new district governor, and ISAF claimed to have pacified the town.[18] The Taliban claim to still control neighbouring areas.[19] Since the end of the siege, the district compound has still come under attack, but the British have built two new forward operating bases a few miles away that draw most of the Taliban attacks away from the town itself.

Musa Qala

An Afghan flag was raised at the highest point in Musa Qalah, Afghanistan on Dec. 11, 2007 after Afghan National Security Forces, along with Coalition forces, retook the town from insurgent forces following several days of combat.

After May 18, 2006, coalition troops were deployed in Musa Qala, to defend the district centre. Serving also as a prison and police station, the district centre was situated in the middle of the town, a situation that greatly hampered the defenders. The garrison consisted of some 80 Afghan policemen, who were more of a militia than a police force, and were very unpopular among the local population.[20]

The American unit present in Musa Qala was replaced on June 14 by a composite group of British troops, mostly pathfinders. The first heavy Taliban attack was launched on July 16, and though it was repelled with heavy loss, the insurgents maintained a constant pressure on the district centre. On July 26, the Danish 1 Light Reconnaissance Squadron, known as "the griffins", arrived at Musa Qala to relieve the British troops. However, these could not be extracted until August 8, when a full battle group operation, codenamed Operation Snakebite, was required to reach the town centre. The griffins were equipped with 16 Eagle armoured vehicles, one lost during the fight to get in the town, most armed with a .50 calibre machine-gun. Their commander built a series of ramps enabling the vehicles to fire over the compound walls. With the support of a mortar team from the Royal Irish Regiment and abundant air support, the Musa Qala garrison was able to drive back all attacks, but the presence of large numbers of Taliban prevented them from venturing out of the base. On the 24 August, the Danish unit were extracted and assigned to the Canadian-led Op Medusa, the Danes were replaced by a mixed British detachment of paratroopers and Royal Irish rangers, whose weapons array was considerably less powerful, having only two .50 cal and eight GPMG machine-guns. Knowing the garrison was weaker, the Taliban launched two attacks with a group of 150 men on August 26/27. Both were driven off, after which the insurgents concentrated on indirect attacks with mortars and 107 mm rockets.

By the end of September, the fighting in Musa Qala had come to a stalemate. The Taliban had suffered heavy losses and had been incapable of driving the ISAF forces out of the town. The coalition had also suffered losses: three British soldiers had been killed in Musa Qala,[21] and their control of the town didn't extend outside the compound walls.[22] Also, the British commanders feared that a resupply helicopter might be shot down, giving a propaganda victory to the insurgents. Both sides welcomed an initiative by the town elders, to negotiate a truce and avoid further bloodshed. The British agreed to withdraw from the city, and in return the tribesmen would deny sanctuary to the Taliban.

The agreement lasted 143 days, ending after the brother of a local Taliban leader, Mullah Abdul Ghaffour, was killed by an airstrike from an American B-1 bomber.[23] The Taliban claimed this had occurred in an area covered by the truce. In retaliation a group of 200-300 insurgents stormed the town on February 1, 2007, executing the elder who had brokered the truce,[24] and jailing several others. On February 4, Mullah Abdul Ghaffour himself was killed in an airstrike.[25] On the same day, General David J. Richards, who had supported the truce, was replaced at the head of ISAF by General Dan K. McNeill, who favoured a more aggressive approach.[26]

In Musa Qala, the Taliban imposed their fundamentalist interpretation of Muslim law, closing down schools, restricting women's movements, levying heavy taxes, and hanging those inhabitants they suspected of being spies. The Afghan government and the coalition refrained from retaking the town, to avoid causing civilian casualties.[27]

Kajaki dam

View from a Chinook helicopter over Kajaki district.

The Kajaki dam is a particularly important installation, providing water for irrigation in the Helmand Valley, and electricity for the whole province. Through early 2006, it came under increasing attacks by the Taliban, for whom even a brief occupation would serve as a propaganda victory. The dam was defended by a mixed force of Afghan policemen and security guards led by an American contractor. Nightly Taliban mortar attacks demoralised the defenders, who had no heavy weapons, and were unable to retaliate. In late June, a team of British paratroopers was deployed near Kajaki, and managed to ambush a Taliban mortar team, killing ten and wounding two.[28] Thereafter, a permanent British military presence was established at the dam, where coalition troops occupied a series of fortified posts built by the Soviets during their presence in Afghanistan. The Taliban grew more cautious, but continued their harassment attacks throughout July and the first half of August.[28]

In February 2007, British marines from 42 commando conducted Operation Volcano, clearing a safe zone around the dam and driving the Taliban out of mortar range. The main Taliban fortified position in the village of Barikju was cleared without casualties.[29]

Since then, the situation around the dam has stabilised. Kajaki is one of the rare occasions during the Afghanistan war where both sides use fixed positions, and an actual front line has developed.

NATO counter-offensive

In April 2007, the number of British troops in southern Afghanistan was increased from 3,300 to 5,800 men.[30] Heavier equipment was also deployed, namely Warrior IFVs, Mastiff protected vehicles and GMLRS multiple rocket launchers. The new task force commander, Brigadier John Lorimer, also requested that Challenger 2 tanks and AS-90 self-propelled guns be deployed, but these were refused.[31]

On March 6, Coalition forces began a series of large-scale operations, to systematically clear the entire province of enemy forces.

ANA and U.S. forces battling the Taliban in Sangin on April 18, 2007.

Operation Achilles

Operation Achilles was the first task force-level operation to be conducted by NATO forces in the battle for Helmand. More than 4,500 British led ISAF troops were involved, along with 1,000 Afghan personnel. NATO officials reported that, contrary to what happened in previous operations, Taliban fighters were avoiding direct confrontation in favor of guerilla tactics. The main objectives were the strategic points of Northern Helmand, including all major towns, and the Kajaki dam.

A number of sub-operations targeted specific sectors:

  • Operation Kryptonite (February 12): Some 300 British and Dutch ISAF and ANA troops cleared the area from where the Taliban had mortared the dam in the past months. On February 14, a senior Taliban leader, Mullah Manan, was killed in an airstrike between Kajaki and Musa Qala.
  • Operation Silver (April 5): A 1,000-strong group composed of a heliborne force of U.S. paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division, along with an armoured column of 250 Royal Marines cleared the town of Sangin, that had been mostly abandoned by the Taliban.
  • Operation Silicon (April 30): This operation was undertaken jointly by 1st Battalion The Royal Anglian Regiment (The Vikings) and ANA troops, moving against the Taliban in Gereshk and the lower Sangin valley.[32]

On May 12, Mullah Dadullah, second in command of the Taliban, was killed in Gereshk district, in a raid carried out by British SBS commandos and Afghan troops.[33] A significant feature of the operation was the end of the siege of Sangin where British troops had been cut off for more than nine months. This time, coalition forces built a number of patrol bases, manned by British troops and Afghan security forces, establishing a permanent presence in areas from where the Taliban had been expelled.[34] Achilles ended on May 30, with the result that NATO forces managed to establish a foothold in enemy territory in Helmand.

Operation Lastay Kulang

On the same day that Achilles ended operation Lastay Kulang, meaning "Pickaxe-Handle" in Pashto, started. This operation was not as successful as the previous one. At around 4:00 local time on Wednesday, May 30, 2007, ISAF and ANSF personnel advanced towards the village of Kajaki Sofle, ten kilometres south-west of the town of Kajaki, to remove a Taliban force whose presence threatened the security and stability of the Lower Sangin Valley. During the night, elements of the American 82nd Airborne Division mounted an aerial assault on a Taliban compound. One of the Chinook helicopters taking part in the raid was apparently hit by an RPG round and crashed, killing five Americans, a Briton and a Canadian on board. Lastay Kulang ended on June 14, with the strategic outcome unclear. NATO stated that their forces cleared Sangin and Gereshk of Taliban and thus secured the Kajaki District. In contrast, the Taliban claimed that they still control much of Kajaki, and some of the Sangin districts. These claims were confirmed by the local residents, who complain that the Taliban returned as soon as NATO and ANA troops had left.

Operation Hammer

In late July another operation was started called Operation Hammer. It began in the early hours of July 24, 2007 in the area between Heyderabad and Mirmandab, north-east of Gereshk. The operation continued the momentum towards expelling Taliban forces from areas of the Upper Gereshk Valley in Helmand province. During the initial stages of the operation, ISAF and Afghan National Security Forces advanced to secure a strategic bridge crossing over the Nahr-e-Seraj canal, clearing and searching compounds, before military engineers from 26 Engineer Regiment established a joint forward operating base. Sporadic fighting followed after that. And by early November operations ended with coalition troops establishing a firm frontline south of the Helmand river and were preparing for an attack towards Musa Qalah, which had been under Taliban control for eight months.

Operation Sledgehammer Hit

Operation Palk Wahel (Sledgehammer Hit in Pashto) involved 2,500 troops, of which 2,000 are British, drawn mostly from the 1st battalion, the Royal Gurkha Rifles and from 2nd Battalion the Mercian Regiment. During this operation, Warrior IFVs, manned by the Scots Guards, made their first significant operational deployment in Afghanistan. Most of the remaining 500 men came from the Afghan National Army, while small contingents from Danish, Czech and American forces also participated.[35]

The objective of the operation was to dislodge the Taliban insurgents from their strongholds in the upper Gereshk valley.

The operation began on September 19, when the Scots Guards engineers threw a bridge over the Helmand river. During the early stages, coalition troops encountered heavy resistance and had to clear several compounds in close-quarter combat. An estimated 100 Taliban and at least six civilians were killed.[36] Three British soldiers were also killed: two in an accident and one by an IED.[21]

Battle of Musa Qala

On November 1, 2007, 40 Commando Royal Marines pushed north in Viking armoured vehicles, driving across the Helmand river north of Sangin, creating a bridgehead for the Scots Guards convoy. There has been on and off contact with the Taliban who have attacked British forces with rockets, mortars and rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs). Having established positions around Musa Qalah, British troops have been carrying out reconnaissance patrols. The main focus of current operations is to disrupt and confuse the Taliban and destabilize their supply routes.[37]

The town had become a major Taliban drug trafficking station and had been considered to be of symbolic importance to both sides, to the Taliban in the sense that they can take and hold ground in Afghanistan in defiance of the Afghan government and NATO.

On December 6, 2007, British, Afghan and U.S. forces started their assault on the town. Initially the British and Afghan forces attacked in the afternoon, from three directions. Several hundred US troops were later dropped from helicopters and fought on foot through the night. The Taliban defences included hundreds of mines and it was reported that the moral among the Taliban forces was high. Up to 2,000 Taliban fighters were confirmed to be in the town. One British soldier, 12 Taliban fighters and two civilian children were killed on the first day of the operation.[38]

By December 8, 2007, NATO troops captured two villages south of the town and advanced to within two kilometers from the outskirts. The Taliban were withdrawing to their defences in the town and more Taliban reinforcements were pouring into the district. The biggest problem for the coalition were mines. Both of the two fatalities sustained by the coalition at that point were the result of land mines.

On December 10, the Taliban withdrew their forces northwards into the mountains and Afghan troops entered the town, meeting little resistance. Two Taliban leaders were reportedly captured during the battle.[39]

On December 12, the town finally fell to advancing coalition forces.

Stalemate in the south

By the end of December 2007, the situation on the ground reached a stalemate. A de facto border was established east of Garmsir along the banks of the Helmand River that divided British-held from Taliban-held territory. The British were outnumbered by the larger Taliban force which was receiving reinforcements from Pakistan. However the British had jets and heavy artillery on their side. Both forces were fighting in the coming months for mere yards of territory.[40]

U.S. Marine reinforcements to Garmsir and North Helmand

Marines with Bravo 1/6, 24th MEU fighting in Garmsir, Afghanistan.

In early April 2008, a battalion of U.S. Marines were sent to Helmand to aid NATO forces in the fight.

1st Battalion, 6th Marines, the battalion landing team for the 24th MEU started their combat operations with an attack on the Taliban-held town of Garmsir on April 28. The operation was carried out in conjunction with British troops of the 16 Air Assault Brigade.[41] Taliban forces however had withdrawn from the town and taken up position further south.[42]

After seizing Garmsir, the Marines pushed further south into an area where the insurgents had built bunkers and tunnels capable of withstanding coalition airstrikes.[43] They ran into stiff resistance and the operation, expected to take a few days, lasted more than a month to complete. This alerted the ISAF commander that the town was important to the insurgents, so he ordered the Marines to remain in the area, rather than clear the town and leave. He was also concerned that the Taliban would emerge after the Marines left, falsely claiming that they had run ISAF forces off. With the original mission changed, the Marines transitioned from combat operations to civil operations. The 24th MEU commander Colonel Peter Petronzio focused on protecting the local Afghans as they began to return to their homes after having been displaced by the Taliban.[44] The Marines also continued their combat operations in the area, killing more than 400 insurgents between April and July 2008, according to governor Gulab Mangal.[45]

On September 8, the 24th MEU returned control of Garmsir to British forces, after having operated in the area for approximately 130 days.[44]

As the MEU deployed to Garmsir, 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines deployed elements to Sangin, Gereshk, Musa Qaleh and Now Zad, as well as districts in Farah Province. The Battalion worked closely with the Afghan National Police and the Combined Security Transition Command - Afghanistan in implementing police training and reform programs. Despite being deployed independent of the 24th MEU or any other Marine Air-Ground Task Force, the Battalion was engaged in heavy fighting throughout the tour. As a sign of the United States' increased troop commitment to Afghanistan, 2/7 was relieved by 3rd Battalion, 8th Marines and the Special Purpose MAGTF - Afghanistan in December, 2008.[46]

Operation Eagle's Eye

In May and June 2008, Operation Oqab Sturga (Eagle's Eye) was launched.[47] The successful operation involved British troops from The Parachute Regiment and the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders (5 Scots) and Afghan National Army and Danish troops, backed up by British artillery and Apache helicopters.

The operations aims were to disrupt Taliban activities in the Upper Gereshk Valley, between the towns of Gereshk and Sangin, and strengthen the Afghan government’s control of the Musa Qaleh Wadi. Resistance from the Taliban was limited to indirect fire and improvised explosive devices, the Taliban avoiding direct confrontations with coalition forces.

It was reported that a British helicopter killed a key Taliban leader called 'Sadiqullah' and up to ten members of his cell on 26 June 2008. They were said to be responsible for roadside bomb and suicide attacks against NATO and Afghan forces. The attack took place 10 kilometres north west of Kajaki in Helmand.[48]

Taliban spring offensive

At the beginning of June the Taliban launched a new offensive despite Coalition claims that they were unable to do that. Most of the heavy fighting was concentrated in the province of Kandahar, where the Taliban set free 1,100 prisoners from the main prison in Kandahar City, on the border with Pakistan, in the province of Farah to the west and in Helmand. Between June 8 and June 24, a total of 14 foreign soldiers were killed in a surge of attacks in Helmand.

Kajaki Dam convoy

Late August saw one of the largest operations by NATO forces in Helmand province, with the aim bringing electricity to the region. A convoy of 100 vehicles took five days to move massive sections of an electric turbine for the Kajaki Dam, covering 180 km (112 miles). The operation involved 2,000 British troops, 1,000 other NATO troops from Australia, Canada, Denmark and the US and 1,000 Afghan soldiers. The Canadians covered the first leg and the British took over at a meeting point in the desert, using 50 BVS10 Viking armoured vehicles to escort the convoy. Hundreds of special forces troops went in first, sweeping the area and although difficult to verify, British commanders estimated more than 200 insurgents were killed - without any losses or injuries to NATO soldiers. British, Dutch, French and US aircraft, helicopters and unmanned drones provided aerial reconnaissance and fire support.[49]

Taliban attack on Lashkar Gah

In August 2008, the Taliban began operating closer to the provincial capital of Lashkar Gah, attacking government positions in Marja (town) and Nad Ali Districts, just 10 kilometers from the city. The local authorities were at first reluctant to call for help from ISAF forces, for fear their intervention might cause civilian casualties.[50] In September, after both districts had fallen to the Taliban, British Army officials said these setbacks were caused by the defection of pro-government militias linked to local drug-trafficking mafias, that the Taliban had promised to protect from poppy-eradication programs.[51]

On October 12, 2008, a force of around 200 Taliban launched a direct attack on Lashkar Gah, their most ambitious operation since 2006. The attack on the town came from three sides, and involved hundreds of militants using rockets and mortars. The Taliban forces were intercepted in the outskirts of the city by Afghan troops supported by Army Air Corps Apache gunships.[52][53] The attack was repulsed, and the Taliban suffered 50 killed according to NATO, or 62 killed according to local authorities, including their leader, Mullah Qudratullah, while coalition forces suffered no casualties.[54][55] On October 15, 2008, another Taliban force staged an attack. 18 Taliban were killed and the attack was once again repulsed. However, this time six Afghan policemen were killed at a checkpoint just north of the city.[56][57] On October 16, 2008, militants pressed with their attacks bombarding the city with rockets. One of them hit a market killing one civilian and wounding five others. At the same time, a NATO air strike in the neighboring district left 18 civilians from five families dead.[58]

Operation Red Dagger

British commandos during Operation Sond Chara.

Between December 7 and December 25, 2008, British forces conducted Operation Red Dagger around the town of Nad-e-Ali in an attempt to capture four key Taliban strongholds. More than 1,500 troops were involved. The operation saw fierce trench battles reminiscent of the First World War and in knee-deep mud. British soldiers were involved every day in intense fire-fights that lasted from a few minutes to four hours at a range as close as 30 metres. British Marines at one point fought hand-to-hand in a "360-degree battle". Also involved in the fighting were Danish, Estonian and Afghan troops. The operation culminated in a battle on Christmas Day. The operation was declared a success, 100 Taliban fighters were killed, including a senior commander, at a cost of five British Royal Marines being killed.[59][60]

Operation Blue Sword

On March 19, Coalition troops carried out Operation Aabi Toorah ("Blue Sword") into Marjah District, which was considered a Taliban "safe haven" where the insurgents trained and stored weapons and supplies.[61] Coalition forces consisted of 500 Royal Marines, 120 Danish soldiers accompanied by ANA troops, for a total force of 700. The operation began with the prepositioning of Danish Leopard tanks and British armoured vehicles, which was followed by an air assault by 500 Marines of 42 Commando into the insurgent-controlled area. During three days, the Coalition forces, supported by Apache and Cobra helicopters, Dutch F-16s and UAVs, cleared Taliban compounds, which involved fighting at close quarters. Two Royal Marines were injured during the operation, while Taliban losses were estimated by local officials at 80-90 killed. Other estimates were 130 killed and 200-300 injured.[62][63]

Coalition 2009 Spring offensive

Operation Panther's Claw

British Viking Vehicles Open Fire on Taliban Positions during Operation Panther's Claw, 28 June 2009.

On June 19, 2009, British, ISAF and ANA forces launched a large offensive named Operation Panther's Claw. Its stated aim was the securing of various canal and river crossings and establishing a lasting ISAF presence in an area described by Lt Col Richardson as "one of the main Taliban strongholds" ahead of the 2009 Afghan presidential election.

3,000 British, 650 ANA, 700 Danish and 130 Estonians were involved in the operation which has been described as "one of the largest air operations in modern times" when, after midnight on June 19, hundreds of British soldiers were transported by 12 Chinooks into Babaji (North of Lashkar Gah) and supported by 13 other aircraft including a US AC-130H Spectre Gunship. They established a firm foothold and more troops moved in to secure the area.

The offensive claimed the lives of 15 British troops within a week including 8 within 24 hours. This contributed to the bloodiest week for British forces in Afghanistan so far.

The operation was declared "a major success" by British officials. They claimed the offensive secured land for around 100,000 people and started to break the "chain of terror" linking Afghanistan and parts of Pakistan to the UK.

However the security conditions for the Afghan presidential elections in the region were almost non-existent. In the Babaji area alone only 150 people came out to vote.[64][65]

Operation Khanjar

On July 2, 2009, U.S. Marines, simultaneously with the British, launched a massive offensive, dubbed Operation Khanjar, in hopes of securing the province for the Afghanistan presidential elections coming up, as well as turning the tide of the insurgency. In the months preceding the operation, 11,000 U.S. Marines had poured into the province as part of President Obama's troop surge.[66]

Using helicopters, Marines landed behind Taliban lines into areas where coalition forces had never been before. Simultaneously, other Marine elements pushed into remote areas by vehicle convoys. The initial stages of the operation were so sudden that Taliban forces were apparently taken by surprise. Their spokesman was quoted saying that he could not believe that the US had deployed so many troops, "I consider it a part of a psychological war," but vowed the Americans would still lose.[67]

Marine units have now begun moving into the southern reaches of the Helmand River Valley, supported by fighter aircraft.

Battle of Dahaneh

During operation Khanjar, U.S. Marines took back the town of Dahaneh from Taliban forces after it was under insurgent control for four years. During the battle one Marine and around 20 insurgents were killed. It took Coalition forces three days to secure the town during which heavy street fighting occurred.

New War Model

Operation Moshtarak

U.S. Marines securing the city of Marjah.

On February 13, 2010, Operation Moshtarak was an International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) pacification offensive in the town of Marjah, Helmand Province, Afghanistan. It involved 15,000 American, Afghan, and British troops and constituted the largest joint operation of the War in Afghanistan up to that point and aimed to remove the Taliban from Marjah and eliminate the last Taliban stronghold in central Helmand Province.

The main target of the offensive was the town of Marjah, which had been controlled for years by the Taliban as well as drug traffickers. Although Moshtarak was described as the largest in Afghanistan since the fall of the Taliban, it was originally supposed to be the prelude to a much larger offensive in Kandahar that would follow Moshtarak by several months. However ISAF chose to heavily publicize the operation before it was launched, comparing its scope and size to the 2004 Second Battle of Fallujah, in the hopes that Taliban fighters in the town would flee. The operation was also designed to showcase improvements in both the Afghan government and Afghan security forces. ISAF claimed that the operation was "Afghan-led" would use five Afghan brigades. General Stanley A. McChrystal, the commander of ISAF, also promised that following the offensive ISAF would install a "government in a box" in Marjah.[68]

Although initially successfully, ISAF and the Afghans failed to set up a working government in the town, leading to a successful resurgence by the Taliban; 90 days into the offensive General McChrystal famously referred to it as a "bleeding ulcer". In October the town was still described as "troubling", but by early December the fighting there was declared "essentially over".

The operation was called "a key test" of the coalition strategy against the Taliban insurgency. Brigadier James Cowan, the commander of British forces in Helmand, believed it would mark "the start of the end of this insurgency". At the very least it would become a test of whether the Afghan forces would be able to make their country peaceful and safe. The announcement of the operation was also a part of this strategy: "shaping the information battlefield strategic communications", and to ensure it would not repeat the destruction of Fallujah in Iraq in 2004. Hours before the offensive began, Afghan and coalition forces dropped leaflets with the message, "Do not allow the Taliban to enter your home". After this operation in Helmand province, the neighbouring province and the city of Kandahar became a target of American operations. In March 2010, U.S. and NATO commanders released details of plans for the biggest offensive of the war against the Taliban insurgency.

When launched, the operation was called a "new war model". Afghan and NATO officials had assembled a large team of Afghan administrators and an Afghan governor that would move into Marjah after the fighting, with more than 1,900 police standing by. "We've got a government in a box, ready to roll in", said American commander Stanley McChrystal. The capture of Marjah was intended to serve as a prototype for a new type of military operation. The Afghan government had pledged to hold any territory seized in the Taliban heartland during the assault. Utilities engineers were on hand to ensure power and water supplies were maintained.

Helmand province incident

During the campaign there were numerous incidents where NATO air strikes resulted in massive casualties for the civilian population. One of the more notable was on June 22, 2007. A NATO air strike killed between 45 and 100 civilians. The Afghan and Pakistan governments condemned the attack blaming both NATO and the Taliban. NATO's reaction to the incident was just that the number of dead was less than 45 and they welcomed an investigation. But they stated that they will not change their tactic of bombing civilian centers because the Taliban use civilians as human shields. By then up to 314 civilians were killed by Coalition troops in contrast to 279 by insurgents.

Friendly fire

On August 23, 2007, three British soldiers from the Royal Anglian Regiment were killed, and two injured, by a U.S. F-15 fighter, due to a mistake relaying coordinates by a British Forward Air Controller.[69]

On September 26, 2007, two Danish soldiers were killed by a British missile in a "friendly fire" incident.[70] The British Ministry of Defence appointed a board of inquiry to investigate the affair.[71]

Political developments

Before the arrival of ISAF troops, Helmand province was ruled by governor Sher Mohammed Akhundzada. Due to his participation in opium-dealing and alleged links with the Taliban, the British demanded that he be replaced.[72] In January 2006, President Karzai agreed to remove him, but the two men maintained cordial relations, and Akhundzada was appointed as a member of the National Assembly of Afghanistan. His replacement, Mohammad Daoud, a British protégé, was obliged to accept Amir Muhammad Akhundzada, the brother of Sher Mohammed, as his deputy, in order to pacify the Akhundzada family and their important tribal following. Amir Muhammad did not collaborate with Daoud, and constantly undermined his rule, eventually driving him from power in December 2006. Daoud's removal was also attributed to the Americans and to the hawks in the Karzai government, due to their rejection of the Musa Qala accord, that was seen as a "strategic disaster".[73] In 2009, Sher Mohammed revealed that after his removal from power, he had encouraged some 3,000 of his fighters to join the Taliban, as he was no longer able to pay them.[74]

Daoud's successor was Assadullah Wafa, an elderly man with poor health, who had had little authority in Helmand. In November 2007, Sher Mohammed was said to be vying to return to power in Helmand, taking advantage of rumours of defections of an important tribe to the government, and it was known that he had raised a 500-strong tribal militia to further his political ambitions.[75] In March 2008 Assadullah Wafa was replaced by Gulab Mangal.

Fresh tensions became apparent, after Afghan officials revealed that a Taliban commander killed in 2007 by British SAS and SBS forces near Sangin had in fact proved to be a Pakistani military officer. The British refused to publicize this evidence of Pakistani support to the insurgents, which further angered the Afghan government.[76]

In September 2008, Hamid Karzai proposed to restore Sher Mohammed Akhundzada as the governor of Helmand province, believing that his tribal militia could help contain the Taliban. However, the British did not agree with this choice, in view of Akhundzada's alleged policy of encouraging Taliban attacks, and the risk that his return could spark new fighting between rival drug gangs. Prime minister Gordon Brown threatened to withdraw British troops if Akhundzada was reinstated. Karzai responded by blaming the increased Taliban activity and opium production on British "interference".[77]

See also

  1. ^ "International Security Assistance Force (ISAF): Key Facts and Figures" (PDF). International Security Assistance Force. Retrieved 3 December 2011.
  2. ^ Evans, Michael (September 28, 2009). "Britain calls for mini-surge in Afghanistan to help train army". London: The Times. Retrieved 2009-09-28.
  3. ^ Rahmani, Waliullah (June 12, 2008). "Rotation of Coalition Forces Brings New Hope to Helmand Province". The Jamestown Foundation. Archived from the original on 2008-10-23. Retrieved 2008-12-04.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Fatalities". Operation Enduring Freedom. iCasualties.org. Archived from the original on December 3, 2011. Retrieved December 3, 2011.
  5. ^ Smith, Michael (April 13, 2008). "Army has killed 7,000 Taleban". London: The Times. Archived from the original on 2008-07-27. Retrieved 2008-12-08.
  6. ^ Gall, Carlotta; Abdul Waheed Wafa (December 2, 2006). "Taliban Truce in District of Afghanistan Sets Off Debate". The New York Times. Retrieved 2007-11-23.
  7. ^ Phillips, Michael M. (2009-05-23). "Stalemate in Afghanistan". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2009-07-04.
  8. ^ Bishop, Patrick (2007). 3 Para. HarperPress. p. 50. ISBN 978-0-00-725778-2.
  9. ^ Bishop p.45
  10. ^ a b Walsh, Declan (July 20, 2006). "Taliban resurgence tests British will". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 2007-11-28.
  11. ^ Bishop, p. 52
  12. ^ Chouvy, Pierre-Arnaud (October 14, 2006). "Opiate smuggling routes from Afghanistan to Europe and Asia". Geopium.org. Archived from the original on 2003-12-09. Retrieved 2007-07-30.
  13. ^ Bishop, p. 107
  14. ^ Loyd, Anthony; Tahir Luddin (October 30, 2006). "After the fighting and dying, the Taleban return as British depart". London: The Times. Archived from the original on 2011-05-24. Retrieved 2007-11-23.
  15. ^ Bishop, p. 110
  16. ^ Bishop, p. 120
  17. ^ Walsh, Declan (April 11, 2007). "Relief at last for hard-pressed Fusiliers". London: Guardian Unlimited. Retrieved 2007-07-31.
  18. ^ "UK-led operation helps ISAF take control in northern Helmand". MoD. May 31, 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-06-07. Retrieved 2007-10-20.
  19. ^ "Afghanistan: Operation Achilles Heel?". http://www.iwpr.net/ (IWPR). 18 April 2007. Retrieved 2007-11-27.  External link in |publisher= (help)
  20. ^ Bishop, p. 154
  21. ^ a b "British military fatalities in Afghanistan". BBC. 15 November 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-10-12. Retrieved 2007-11-23.
  22. ^ Bishop, p. 235
  23. ^ Burke, Jason (February 4, 2007). "Taliban town seizure throws Afghan policy into disarray". London: The Observer. Retrieved 2007-11-23.
  24. ^ Bishop, p. 267
  25. ^ "NATO names 'killed' Taliban chief". CNN. February 5, 2007. Retrieved 2007-11-23.
  26. ^ Ahmed Rashid (February 5, 2007). "Taliban takeover of town could mark start of military offensive". Eurasianet. Retrieved 2007-11-22.
  27. ^ "Taliban impose rule, hefty taxes in Musa Qala District". IRIN. 2007-06-28. Retrieved 2007-11-25.
  28. ^ a b Bishop, p. 98
  29. ^ "Marines clear Taliban from key Afghan dam". MoD. 5 February 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-02-08. Retrieved 2007-11-27.
  30. ^ Select Committee on Defence (3 July 2007). "Defence - Thirteenth Report". United Kingdom Parliament. Retrieved 2007-12-02.
  31. ^ Leake, Christopher (18 November 2006). "Army fury as chief in Afghanistan is told he won't get vital armour". London: Evening Standard. Retrieved 2007-12-02.
  32. ^ "British and Afghan troops launch Operation Silicon". MoD. 2 May 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-05-08. Retrieved 2007-12-05.
  33. ^ Smith, Michael (May 27, 2007). "SBS behind Taliban leader's death". London: The Times. Retrieved 2007-12-05.
  34. ^ "On the heels of Achilles". MoD. 3 May 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-05-08. Retrieved 2007-12-05.
  35. ^ "Warrior debuts in Helmand offensive". MoD. 21 September 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-10-09. Retrieved 2007-12-03.
  36. ^ McGivering, Jill (25 September 2007). "On the frontline in Afghanistan". BBC. Retrieved 2007-12-03.
  37. ^ "British troops push north into Musa Qaleh". MoD. 14 November 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-06-14. Retrieved 2007-11-20.
  38. ^ "Toll rises in Taleban town battle". BBC. 8 December 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-10.
  39. ^ "Afghan troops take Taleban town". BBC. 10 December 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-10.
  40. ^ "British Troops, Taliban In a Tug of War Over Afghan Province". Washington Post. 30 March 2008. Retrieved 2008-03-30.
  41. ^ "British troops help US Marines tackle the Taliban in Garmsir - UK MoD 7 May 08". Archived from the original on 2008-05-09.
  42. ^ Associated Press. "Marines storm Afghan town held by Taliban". www.azstarnet.com. Retrieved 2008-10-09.
  43. ^ Coghlan, Tom (2008-04-30). "Marines launch attack on Taliban in Helmand". London: The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2008-10-08.
  44. ^ a b "24th MEU returns a safer, more stable Garmsir to British Army". II MEF. 2008-09-10. Archived from the original on 2008-09-20. Retrieved 2009-07-04.
  45. ^ "More than 400 Afghan insurgents killed by U.S. marines: commander". CBC News. 2008-07-09. Retrieved 2008-10-08.
  46. ^ "2/7 to complete return from Afghanistan". Marine Corps Times. 2008-12-07. Retrieved 2009-07-09.
  47. ^ "British troops and ANA in Apache-backed operation - UK MoD 4 Jun 08". Archived from the original on 2008-10-15.
  48. ^ "Apaches "strike a blow" at Taliban leadership - UK MoD 30 June 2008". Archived from the original on 2008-07-02.
  49. ^ - UK troops in huge turbine mission - BBC - 2 September 2008
  50. ^ "Helmandis Fear Taleban Noose Tightening". IWPR. 2008-09-11. Retrieved 2008-11-02.
  51. ^ Coghlan, Tom (2008-10-13). "Analysis: drug barons could profit from Taleban attack on Lashkar Gah". London: The Times. Retrieved 2008-11-01.
  52. ^ Starkey, Jerome (2008-10-13). "We're still in control, Royal Marines tell Afghans after Taleban onslaught". The Scotsman. Archived from the original on 2011-06-05. Retrieved 2008-10-29.
  53. ^ Farmer, Ben (2008-10-13). "Scores die as Taliban suffer heaviest defeat for months". London: Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2008-10-29.
  54. ^ "War not lost, more troops needed, says US general". Gulf Times. 2008-10-12. Archived from the original on 2012-02-24. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
  55. ^ Herman, Steve (2008-10-12). "Large Taliban Attack Repulsed with Air Strikes". GlobalSecurity.org. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
  56. ^ "70 Militants Said Killed in Afghanistan Strike". Voice of America. 2008-10-15. Archived from the original on 2008-10-19. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
  57. ^ "Scores of Taliban killed in airstrike". Yahoo! News. 2008-10-15. Retrieved 2008-10-27. [dead link]
  58. ^ [1][dead link]
  59. ^ MoD details major Afghanistan fight - News in brief - London Evening Standard
  60. ^ [2][dead link]
  61. ^ Starkey, Jerome (27 March 2009). "Taleban 'safe haven' destroyed in three-day assault led by Marines". The Soctsman. Retrieved 2009-07-02. [dead link]
  62. ^ Harding, Thomas (26 Mar 2009). "Taliban lose 130 in three day battle with Marines". London: The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2009-07-02.
  63. ^ "Marines shatter 'illusion of enemy safe haven'". MoD. 26 Mar 09. Archived from the original on 2009-04-17. Retrieved 2009-07-02.  Check date values in: |date= (help)
  64. ^ Harding, Thomas (2009-08-26). "UK suffered one casualty in Afghanistan for every vote". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 2010-05-04.
  65. ^ Analysis: Afghan summer brings reversals - World news - South and Central Asia - Afghanistan | NBC News
  66. ^ "US Marines Fan out Across Dangerous Afghan South". ABC. 2009-06-08. Archived from the original on 2009-06-10. Retrieved 2009-07-04.
  67. ^ "US opens 'major Afghan offensive'". BBC. 2009-07-02. Retrieved 2009-07-04.
  68. ^ Gal Perl Finkel, Back to the ground?, Israel Hayom, November 8, 2015.
  69. ^ "'Friendly fire' kills UK soldiers". BBC. 24 August 2007. Retrieved 2007-11-29.
  70. ^ Evans, Michael (2007-12-19). "Danish soldiers killed by British friendly fire". London: The Times. Retrieved 2008-11-14.
  71. ^ "MoD probes 'friendly fire' claim". BBC. 26 November 2007. Retrieved 2007-11-29.
  72. ^ Synovitz, Ron (June 15, 2006). "Afghanistan: Plan To Recruit Militia As Police Sparks Concern". RFE/RL. Retrieved 2007-11-30.
  73. ^ Sengupta, Kim (9 October 2007). "Sacked for 'corruption and drug-dealing', but warlord seeks return to power in Helmand". London: The Independent. Archived from the original on 2008-01-12. Retrieved 2007-11-29.
  74. ^ McElroy, Damien (20 Nov 2009). "Afghan governor turned 3,000 men over to Taliban". London: The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2009-12-04.
  75. ^ "Massive Taliban defection developing in Helmand". afgha.com. 30 October 2007. Archived from the original on 24 March 2008. Retrieved 2007-11-30.
  76. ^ Lamb, Christina (2008-10-12). "Taliban leader killed by SAS was Pakistan officer". London: The Times. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
  77. ^ Nelson, Dean (2008-09-07). "Hamid Karzai blames Britain for Taliban resurgence". London: The Times. Retrieved 2008-09-08.

External links

  • "Operation Achilles making progress". Press release. ISAF. 8 March 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-05.
  • Coghlan, Tom (06/10/2006). "Gurkha spirit triumphs in siege of Nawzad". London: The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2007-11-23.  Check date values in: |date= (help)[dead link]
  • "Helmand security". (map). The Senlis Council. June 2006. Archived from the original on January 22, 2016. Retrieved 2007-11-29.
  • "Helmand at war". The Senlis Council. June 2006. Archived from the original on January 22, 2016. Retrieved 2007-11-29.
  • "AFGHANISTAN Dam Busters". News article. Newsweek. 18 April 2008. Retrieved 2008-04-21.
  • Evans, Michael (21 April 2008). "Paras tread warily in Helmand province as they learn the skills of 'going lethal'". News article. London: The Times. Retrieved 2008-04-21.
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Spanish language in the United States

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Spanish language distribution in the United States by county

Spanish is the second most spoken language in the United States of America. Forty-five million Hispanophones speak Spanish as a first or second language,[1] and there are six million Spanish language students in the United States.[2] This makes the United States the third-largest Hispanophone country in the world after Mexico and Colombia. Spanish has both the largest number of native language Romance speakers and Indo-European language speakers in the world.[3] About half of all American Spanish-speakers also assessed themselves as speaking English "very well" in the 2000 U.S. Census.[4]

There are more Spanish-speakers in the United States than speakers of French, German, Italian, Hawaiian, varieties of Chinese and Native American languages combined. According to the 2012 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, Spanish is the primary language spoken at home by 38.3 million people aged five or older, more than twice that of 1990.[5][6]

The Spanish language has been present in what is now the United States since the 16th and 17th centuries, with the arrival of Spanish colonization in North America. Colonisers settled in areas that would later become the states of Florida, Texas, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and California. The Spanish explorers explored areas of 42 future U.S. states leaving behind a varying range of Hispanic legacy in the North American continent. Western regions of the Louisiana Territory were also under Spanish rule between 1763 and 1800, after the French and Indian War, further extending the Spanish influence throughout the modern-day United States of America.

After the incorporation of these areas into the United States in the first half of the 19th century, the Spanish language was later reinforced in the country by the acquisition of Puerto Rico in 1898. Later waves of emigration from Mexico, Cuba, El Salvador and elsewhere in Hispanic America to the United States beginning in the second half of the 19th century to the present-day have strengthened the role of the Spanish language in the country. Today, Hispanics are one of the fastest growing ethnic groups in the United States, thus increasing the use and importance of American Spanish in the United States.

Juan Ponce de León (Santervás de Campos, Valladolid, Spain). He was one of the first Europeans to arrive to the current United States because he led the first European expedition to Florida, which he named. Spanish was the first European language spoken in the territory that is now the United States.

Early Spanish settlements

Spanish was the language spoken by the first permanent European settlers in North America. Spanish arrived in the territory of the modern United States with Ponce de León in 1513. In 1565, the Spaniards founded St. Augustine, Florida, and as of the early 1800s, it became the oldest continuously occupied European settlement in what is now the United States. In 1898, San Juan, the capital of Puerto Rico became the oldest city in all of the U.S. territory, Juan Ponce De León founded San Juan in 1508.

Historically, the Spanish-speaking population increased because of territorial annexation of lands claimed earlier by the Spanish Empire and by wars with Mexico and by land purchases, while modern factors continue increasing the size of this population.

In 1819 Florida was sold by Spain to the United States by Adams–Onís Treaty; many Spanish settlers, whose ancestors came from Cuba, Andalusia, and the Canary Islands, became U.S. citizens and continued to speak Spanish.

Louisiana Purchase (1803–1804)

In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, land claimed by Spain encompassed a large part of the contemporary U.S. territory, including the French colony of Louisiana that was under Spanish occupation from 1769 to 1800, and then part of the United States since 1803. When Louisiana was sold to the United States, its Spanish and Cajun French inhabitants became U.S. citizens, and continued to speak French. In 1813, George Ticknor started a program of Spanish Studies at Harvard University.[7]

Annexation of Texas and the Mexican–American War

Spanish language heritage in Florida dates back to 1565, with the founding of Saint Augustine, Florida. Spanish was the first European language spoken in Florida.

In 1821,[8] after Mexico's War of Independence from Spain, Texas was part of the United Mexican States as the state of Coahuila y Tejas. A large influx of Americans soon followed, originally with the approval of Mexico's president. In 1836, the now largely "American" Texans, fought a war of independence from the central government of Mexico and established the Republic of Texas. In 1846, the Republic dissolved when Texas entered the United States of America as a state. Per the 1850 U.S. census, fewer than 16,000 Texans were of Mexican descent, and nearly all were Spanish-speaking people (both Mexicans and non-Spanish European settlers who include German Texan) who were outnumbered (six-to-one) by English-speaking settlers (both Americans and other immigrant Europeans).[citation needed]

After the Mexican War of Independence from Spain, California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, western Colorado and southwestern Wyoming also became part of the Mexican territory of Alta California. Most of New Mexico, western Texas, southern Colorado, southwestern Kansas, and the Oklahoma panhandle were part of the territory of Santa Fe de Nuevo México. The geographical isolation and unique political history of this territory led to New Mexican Spanish differing notably from both Spanish spoken in other parts of the United States of America and Spanish spoken in the present-day United Mexican States.

Mexico lost almost half of the northern territory gained from Spain in 1821 to the United States in the Mexican–American War (1846–1848). This included parts of contemporary Texas, and Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, and Wyoming, California, Nevada, and Utah. Although the lost territory was sparsely populated, the thousands of Spanish-speaking Mexicans subsequently became U.S. citizens. The war-ending Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848) does not explicitly address language. However, the English-speaking American settlers who entered the Southwest established their language, culture, and law as dominant, to the extent it fully displaced Spanish in the public sphere. In 1855, California declared that English would be the only medium of instruction in its schools; the newly admitted state of New Mexico followed suit in 1891 to mandate that all of its schools teach in English only.[7]

The first California constitutional convention in 1849 had eight Californio participants; the resulting state constitution was produced in English and Spanish, and it contained a clause requiring all published laws and regulations to be published in both languages.[9] One of the very first acts of the first California Legislature of 1850 was to authorize the appointment of a State Translator, who would be responsible for translating all state laws, decrees, documents, or orders into Spanish.[10][11] But the state's second constitutional convention in 1872 had no Spanish-speaking participants; the convention's English-speaking participants felt that the state's remaining minority of Spanish-speakers should simply learn English; and the convention ultimately voted 46-39 to revise the earlier clause so that all official proceedings would henceforth be published only in English.[9]

Spanish–American War (1898)

In 1898, consequent to the Spanish–American War, the United States took control of Cuba and Puerto Rico, the Philippines and Guam as American territories. In 1902, Cuba became independent from the United States, while Puerto Rico remained a U.S. territory. The American government required government services to be bilingual in Spanish and English, and attempted to introduce English-medium education to Puerto Rico, but the latter effort was unsuccessful.[12] Mexicans first moved to the United States as refugees in the turmoil of the Mexican Revolution from 1910–1917, but many more emigrated later for economic reasons. The large majority of Mexicans are in the former Mexican-controlled areas in the Southwest.

In 1917, the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese was founded, and the academic study of Spanish literature was helped by negative attitudes towards German due to World War I. From 1942 to 1962, the Bracero program would provide for mass Mexican migration to the United States.[7] Once Puerto Rico was granted autonomy in 1948, even mainlander officials who came to Puerto Rico were forced to learn Spanish. Only 20% of Puerto Rico's residents understand English, and although the island's government had a policy of official bilingualism, it was repealed in favor of a Spanish-only policy in 1991. This policy was reversed in 1993 when a pro-statehood party ousted a pro-independence party from the commonwealth government.[12]

Modern mass migration

The relatively recent but large influx of Spanish-speakers to the United States has increased the overall total of Spanish-speakers in the country. They form majorities and large minorities in many political districts, especially in California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas, the American states bordering Mexico, and also in South Florida.

At over 5 million, Puerto Ricans are easily the second largest Hispanic group. Of all major Hispanic groups, Puerto Ricans are the least likely to be proficient in Spanish, but millions of Puerto Rican Americans living in the U.S. mainland nonetheless are fluent in Spanish. Puerto Ricans are natural-born U.S. citizens, and many Puerto Ricans have migrated to New York City, Orlando, Philadelphia, and other areas of the Eastern United States, increasing the Spanish-speaking populations and in some areas being the majority of the Hispanophone population, especially in Central Florida. In Hawaii, where Puerto Rican farm laborers and Mexican ranchers have settled since the late 19th century, seven percent of the islands' people are either Hispanic or Hispanophone or both.

The Cuban Revolution of 1959 created a community of Cuban exiles who opposed the Communist revolution, many of whom left for the United States. In 1963, the Ford Foundation established the first bilingual education program in the United States for the children of Cuban exiles in Miami-Dade County, Florida. The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 boosted immigration from Latin American countries, and in 1968, Congress passed the Bilingual Education Act.[7] Most of these one million Cuban Americans settled in southern and central Florida, while other Cubans live in the Northeastern United States; most are fluent in Spanish. In the city of Miami today Spanish is the first language mostly due to Cuban immigration. Likewise, the Nicaraguan Revolution promoted a migration of Contras who were opposed to the socialist government in Nicaragua, to the United States in the late 1980s.[citation needed] Most of these Nicaraguans migrated to Florida, California and Texas.

SER-Niños Charter School, a K–8 bilingual public school in Houston, Texas. Bilingual education is popular in school districts with large numbers of Spanish-speakers.

The exodus of Salvadorans was a result of both economic and political problems. The largest immigration wave occurred as a result of the Salvadoran Civil War in the 1980s, in which 20 to 30 percent of El Salvador's population emigrated. About 50 percent, or up to 500,000 of those who escaped, headed to the United States, which was already home to over 10,000 Salvadorans, making Salvadoran Americans the fourth-largest Hispanic and Latino American group, after the Mexican-American majority, stateside Puerto Ricans, and Cubans.

As civil wars engulfed several Central American countries in the 1980s, hundreds of thousands of Salvadorans fled their country and came to the United States. Between 1980 and 1990, the Salvadoran immigrant population in the United States increased nearly fivefold from 94,000 to 465,000. The number of Salvadoran immigrants in the United States continued to grow in the 1990s and 2000s as a result of family reunification and new arrivals fleeing a series of natural disasters that hit El Salvador, including earthquakes and hurricanes. By 2008, there were about 1.1 million Salvadoran immigrants in the United States.

Until the 20th century, there was no clear record of the number of Venezuelans who emigrated to the United States. Between the 18th and early 19th centuries, there were many European immigrants who went to Venezuela, only to later migrate to the United States along with their children and grandchildren who were born and/or grew up in Venezuela speaking Spanish. From 1910 to 1930, it is estimated that over 4,000 South Americans each year emigrated to the United States; however, there are few specific figures indicating these statistics. Many Venezuelans settled in the United States with hopes of receiving a better education, only to remain there following graduation. They are frequently joined by relatives. However, since the early 1980s, the reasons for Venezuelan emigration have changed to include hopes of earning a higher salary and due to the economic fluctuations in Venezuela which also promoted an important migration of Venezuelan professionals to the US.[13]

The publication of data by the United States Census Bureau in 2003 revealed that Hispanics were the largest minority in the United States and caused a flurry of press speculation in Spain about the position of Spanish in the United States.[citation needed] That year, the Instituto Cervantes, an organization created by the Spanish government in 1991 to promote Spanish language around the globe, established a branch in New York.[14] In the 2000s, dissident Venezuelans migrated to South Florida, especially the suburbs of Doral and Weston.[citation needed] Other main states with Venezuelan American populations are, according to the 1990 census, New York, California, Texas (adding to their existing Hispanic populations), New Jersey, Massachusetts and Maryland.[13]

Refugees from Spain also migrated to the U.S. due to the Spanish Civil War (1936 - 1939) and political instability under the regime of Francisco Franco that lasted until 1975. The majority of Spaniards settled in Florida, Texas, California, New Jersey, New York City, Chicago, and Puerto Rico.

Geographic distribution

Spanish-speakers in the United States
Year Number of native Spanish-speakers Percent of
US population
1980 11 million 5%
1990 17.3 million 7%
2000 28.1 million 10%
2010 37 million 13%
2015 41 million 13%

In total, there were 36,995,602 people aged five or older in the United States who spoke Spanish at home (12.8% of the total U.S. population).[19] Over half of the country's Spanish-speakers reside in California, Texas, and Florida.

Current status

Public elementary school sign in Spanish in Memphis, Tennessee.
The Spanish-language logo of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

Although the United States has no de jure official language, English is the dominant language of business, education, government, religion, media, culture, civil society, and the public sphere. Virtually all state and federal government agencies and large corporations use English as their internal working language, especially at the management level. Some states, such as New Mexico, provide bilingual legislated notices and official documents, in Spanish and English, and other commonly used languages. English is the home language of most Americans, including a growing proportion of Hispanic Americans; between 2000 and 2015, the proportion of Hispanics who spoke Spanish at home decreased from 78 to 73 percent.[20] As noted above, the only major exception is the U.S. Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, where Spanish is the official and most commonly used language.

Throughout the history of the Southwest United States, the controversial issues of language as part of cultural rights and bilingual state government representation has caused socio-cultural friction between Anglophones and Hispanophones. Currently, Spanish is the most widely taught second language in the United States.[21]

California's first constitution recognized Spanish language rights:

All laws, decrees, regulations, and provisions emanating from any of the three supreme powers of this State, which from their nature require publication, shall be published in English and Spanish.

— California Constitution, 1849, Art. 11 Sec. 21.

By 1870, English-speaking Americans were a majority in California; in 1879, the state promulgated a new constitution under which all official proceedings were to be conducted exclusively in English, a clause that remained in effect until 1966. In 1986, California voters added a new constitutional clause, by referendum, stating that:

English is the official language of the State of California.

— California Constitution, Art. 3, Sec. 6

Spanish remains widely spoken throughout the state, and many government forms, documents, and services are bilingual, in English and Spanish. And although all official proceedings are to be conducted in English:

A person unable to understand English who is charged with a crime has a right to an interpreter throughout the proceedings.

— California Constitution, Art. 1. Sec. 14

The state (like its southwestern neighbors) has had close linguistic and cultural ties with Mexico. The state outside the Gadsden Purchase of 1853 was part of the New Mexico Territory until 1863, when the western half was made into the Arizona Territory. The area of the former Gadsden Purchase contained a majority of Spanish-speakers until the 1940s, although the Tucson area had a higher ratio of anglophones (including Mexican Americans who were fluent in English); the continuous arrival of Mexican settlers increases the number of Spanish-speakers.

New Mexico

New Mexico is commonly thought to have Spanish as an official language alongside English because of its wide usage and legal promotion of Spanish in the state; however, the state has no official language. New Mexico's laws are promulgated bilingually in Spanish and English. Although English is the state government's paper working language, government business is often conducted in Spanish, particularly at the local level. Spanish has been spoken in the New Mexico-Colorado border and the contemporary U.S.–Mexico border since the 16th century.[citation needed]

Because of its relative isolation from other Spanish-speaking areas over most of its 400-year existence, New Mexico Spanish, and in particular the Spanish of northern New Mexico and Colorado has retained many elements of 16th- and 17th-century Spanish and has developed its own vocabulary.[22] In addition, it contains many words from Nahuatl, the language spoken by the ancient Aztecs of Mexico. New Mexican Spanish also contains loan words from the Pueblo languages of the upper Rio Grande Valley, Mexican-Spanish words (mexicanismos), and borrowings from English.[22] Grammatical changes include the loss of the second person verb form, changes in verb endings, particularly in the preterite, and partial merging of the second and third conjugations.[23]

"No Smoking" sign in Spanish and English at the headquarters of the Texas Department of Health in Austin, Texas

In Texas, English is the state's de facto official language (though it lacks de jure status) and is used in government. However, the continual influx of Spanish-speaking immigrants increased the import of Spanish in Texas. Although it is a part of the Southern United States, Texas's counties bordering Mexico are mostly Hispanic, and consequently, Spanish is commonly spoken in the region. The Government of Texas, through Section 2054.116 of the Government Code, mandates that state agencies provide information on their websites in Spanish to assist residents who have limited English proficiency.[24]

Puerto Rico

The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico recognizes Spanish and English as official languages; Spanish is the dominant first language.

Spanish place names

Learning trends in the United States

Spanish is currently the most widely taught non-English language in American secondary schools and higher education.[25] More than 790,000 university students were enrolled in Spanish courses in the autumn of 2013, with Spanish the most widely taught language in American colleges and universities. Some 50.6 percent of the total number of U.S. students enrolled in foreign-language courses take Spanish, followed by French (12.7%), American Sign Language (7%), German (5.5%), Italian (4.6%), Japanese (4.3%), and Chinese (3.9%), although the totals remain relatively small in relation to the total U.S population..[26]

La Época is an upscale Miami department store, whose Spanish name comes from Cuba. La Época is an example of the many businesses started and owned by Spanish-speakers in the United States.

The influence of English on American Spanish is very important. In many Latino[27] (also called Hispanic) youth subcultures, it is fashionable to variously mix Spanish and English, thereby producing Spanglish. Spanglish is the name for the admixture of English words and phrases to Spanish for effective communication.

The new generation of American Hispanics want to preserve knowing and using Spanish as equal to learning and using English. The Academia Norteamericana de la Lengua Española (North American Academy of the Spanish Language) tracks the developments of the Spanish spoken in the United States, and the influences of English upon it.[citation needed]

Spanish sub-types

Language experts distinguish the following varieties of the Spanish spoken in the United States:

  • Mexican: the U.S.–Mexico border, throughout the US southwest from California to Texas, as well as the city of Chicago, but becoming ubiquitous throughout the continental United States as Mexican Spanish is used as the standardized dialect of Spanish in the continental United States.
  • Caribbean Spanish: Spanish as spoken by Puerto Ricans, Cubans, and Dominicans. Largely heard throughout the Northeastern United States and Florida, especially New York City and Miami, among other cities in the Eastern US.
  • Central American Spanish: Spanish as spoken by Hispanics with origins in Central American countries such as El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama. Largely heard in major cities throughout California and Texas, as well as Washington DC, New York, and Miami.
  • Colonial Spanish: Spanish as spoken by descendants of Spanish colonists and early Mexicans before United States expansion and annexion of the US southwest and other areas.
    • Californian (1769–present): California, especially the Central Coast
    • Isleño (Islander) (18th century–present): St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana
    • New Mexican Spanish: Central and north-central New Mexico and south-central Colorado and the border regions of Arizona, Texas, and New Mexico, and southeastern Colorado

Most post-first generations of Spanish-speakers tend to speak the language with American English accents of the region they grew up in.

Common English words derived from Spanish

Analogously, many Spanish words now are standard American English.

  • Admiral
  • Avocado (aguacate from Nahuatl aguacatl)
  • Aficionado
  • Banana (originally from Wolof)
  • Buckaroo (vaquero)
  • Cafeteria (cafetería)
  • Chocolate (from Nahuatl xocolatl)
  • Cigar (cigarro)
  • Corral
  • Coyote (from Nahuatl coyotl)
  • Desperado (desesperado)
  • Guerrilla
  • Guitar (guitarra)
  • Hurricane (huracán from the Taíno storm god Juracán)
  • Junta
  • Lasso (lazo)
  • Potato (patata; see Etymology of "potato")
  • Ranch (rancho)
  • Rodeo
  • Siesta
  • Tomato (tomate from Nahuatl tomatl)
  • Tornado
  • Vanilla (vainilla)
Univisión is the country's largest Spanish language network, followed by Telemundo. It is the country's fourth-largest network overall.[28]

Phonetic features

First settled by the Spanish in the 16th century, today, 19% of Floridians speak Spanish, and is the most widely taught second language. In Miami, 67% of residents spoke Spanish as their first language in 2000.
  • As most ancestors of Hispanic Americans came from Hispanic America, ⟨z⟩ and ⟨c⟩ (before /e/ and /i/) are pronounced as [s], the same as ⟨s⟩. However, seseo (replacement of [θ] with [s]) is also typical of the speech of Hispanic Americans of Andalusian and Canarian descent. Andalusia's and the Canary Island's predominant position in the conquest and subsequent immigration to Hispanic America from Spain is thought to be the reason for the absence of this distinction in most Hispanic American dialects. Most Americans of Spanish descent pronounce the two letters as [s].
  • Most speakers in Spain, particularly the regions that have a distinctive /θ/ phoneme, realize /s/ with the tip of tongue against the alveolar ridge. Phonetically this is an "apico-alveolar" "grave" sibilant [], with a weak "hushing" sound reminiscent of retroflex fricatives. To a Hispanic and Latino American speaker, European Spanish /s/ is close to [ʃ] like English sh as in she. However, this apico-alveolar realization of /s/ is not uncommon in some Latin American Spanish dialects which lack [θ]; some inland Colombian Spanish (particularly Antioquia) and Andean regions of Peru and Bolivia also have an apico-alveolar /s/.
  • Spanish in the United States usually features yeísmo: there is no distinction between ⟨ll⟩ and ⟨y⟩, and both are [ʝ]. However, yeísmo is an expanding and now dominant feature of European Spanish, particularly in urban speech (Madrid, Toledo) and especially in Andalusia and Canary Islands, though in rural use [ʎ] is preserved not only in central and northern Spain but also in scatter areas of Andalusia and the Canary Islands. Speakers of Rioplatense Spanish pronounce both ⟨ll⟩ and ⟨y⟩ as [ʒ] or [ʃ]. The traditional pronunciation of the digraph ⟨ll⟩ as [ʎ] is preserved in some dialects along the Andes range, especially in inland Peru and the Colombia highlands (Santander), northern Argentina, all Bolivia and Paraguay.
  • Most speakers with ancestors born in coastal regions may debuccalize or aspirate syllable-final /s/ to [h], or drop it entirely, so that está [esˈta] ("s/he is") sounds like [ehˈta] or [eˈta], as in southern Spain (Andalusia, Murcia, Castile–La Mancha (except North-East), Canary Islands, Ceuta and Melilla).
  • ⟨g⟩ (before /e/ or /i/) and ⟨j⟩ are usually aspirated to [h] in Caribbean and other coastal dialects, as well as in all Colombia, and southern Mexico, as in most southern Spanish dialects. While it may be [x] in other dialects of Hispanic Americans and often [χ] in Peruvian Spanish dialect, this is a common feature of Castilian Spanish. It is usually aspirated to [h] as in most southwestern Spanish varieties. Very often, especially in Argentina and Chile, [x] becomes more fronted [ç] when preceding high vowels /e, i/ (these speakers approach [x] to the realization of German ⟨ch⟩ in ich); in other phonological environments it is pronounced either [x] or [h].
  • In many Caribbean dialects, the phonemes /l/ and /r/ at the end of a syllable sound alike or can be exchanged: caldo > ca[r]do, cardo > ca[l]do; /r/ in word-final position becomes silent, giving Caribbean dialects of Spanish a partial non-rhoticity. This happens at a reduced level in Ecuador and Chile[citation needed] as well and is a feature brought from Extremadura and westernmost Andalusia.
  • In many Andean regions, the alveolar trill of rata and carro is realized as an alveolar approximant [ɹ] or even as a voiced apico-alveolar [z]. The alveolar approximant realization is particularly associated with an indigenous substrate and it is quite common in Andean regions, especially in inland Ecuador, Peru, most of Bolivia and in parts of northern Argentina and Paraguay.
  • In Puerto Rico, aside from [ɾ], [r], and [l], syllable-final /r/ can be realized as [ɹ], an influence of American English on the Puerto Rican dialect; "verso"' (verse) becomes [ˈbeɹso], aside from [ˈbeɾso], [ˈberso], or [ˈbelso], "invierno" (winter) becomes [imˈbjeɹno], aside from [imˈbjeɾno], [imˈbjerno], or [imˈbjelno], and "escarlata" (scarlet) becomes [ehkaɹˈlata], aside from [ehkaɾˈlata], [ehkarˈlata], or [ehkaˈlata]. In word-final position, /r/ will usually be one of these:
    • a trill, a tap, approximant, [l], or elided when followed by a consonant or a pause, as in amo[r ~ ɾ ~ ɹ ~ l] paterno 'paternal love', amor [aˈmo],
    • a tap, approximant, or [l] when the followed by a vowel-initial word, as in amo[ɾ ~ ɹ ~ l] eterno 'eternal love').
  • The voiced consonants /b/, /d/, and /ɡ/ are pronounced as plosives after and sometimes before any consonant in most Colombian Spanish dialects (rather than the fricative or approximant that is characteristic of most other dialects): pardo [ˈpaɾdo], barba [ˈbaɾba], algo [ˈalɡo], peligro [peˈliɡɾo], desde [ˈdezde/ˈdehde]—rather than the [ˈpaɾðo], [ˈbaɾβa], [ˈalɣo], [peˈliɣɾo], [ˈdezðe/ˈdehðe] of Spain and the rest of Spanish America. A notable exception is the Department of Nariño and most Costeño speech (Atlantic coastal dialects) which feature the soft, fricative realizations common to all other Hispanic American and European dialects.
  • Word-final /n/ is frequently velar [ŋ] in Latin American Spanish; this means a word like pan (bread) is often articulated ['paŋ]. To an English-speaker, those speakers that have a velar nasal for word-final /n/ make pan sound like pang. Velarization of word-final /n/ is so widespread in the Americas that it is easier to mention those regions that maintain an alveolar, European-style, /n/: most of Mexico, Colombia (except for coastal dialects) and Argentina (except for some northern regions). Elsewhere, velarization is common, though alveolar word-final /n/ can appear among some educated speakers, especially in the media or in singing. Velar word-final /n/ is also frequent in Spain, especially in southern Spanish dialects (Andalusia and the Canary Islands) and also in the Northwest: Galicia, Asturias and León.

Lexical features

The usage of Spanish words in American bilinguals shows a convergence of semantics between English and Spanish cognates. For example, the Spanish words atender ("to pay attention to") and éxito ("success") acquire a similar semantic range in American Spanish to the English words "attend" and "exit". In some cases, loanwords from English give existing Spanish words a homonymic meaning: so while coche has come to acquire the additional meaning of "coach" in the United States, it retains its older meaning of "car".[29]

  • Disappearance of de (of) in certain expressions, as is the case with the dialect of Spanish in the Canary Islands. Example: esposo Rosa instead of esposo de Rosa, gofio millo instead of gofio de millo, etc.
  • Doublets of Arabic-Latinate synonyms with the Arabic form are more common in American Spanish, which derives from Latin American Spanish and so influenced by Andalusian Spanish like Andalusian and Latin American alcoba for standard habitación or dormitorio ('bedroom') or alhaja for standard joya ('jewel').
  • See List of words having different meanings in Spain and Hispanic America.

Future of Spanish in the United States

Spanish-speaking Americans are the fastest growing linguistic group in the United States. Continual immigration and prevalent Spanish-language mass media (such as Univisión, Telemundo, and Azteca América) support the Spanish-speaking populations. Moreover, because of the North American Free Trade Agreement, it is common for many American manufacturers to use multilingual product labeling using English, French and Spanish.

Besides the businesses that always have catered to Hispanophone immigrants, a small, but increasing, number of mainstream American retailers now advertise bilingually in Spanish-speaking areas and offer bilingual, English-Spanish customer services. One common indicator of such businesses is Se Habla Español which means "Spanish Is Spoken".

Federal agencies such as the United States Postal Service translate information into Spanish.

The State of the Union Addresses and other presidential speeches are translated into Spanish, following the precedent set by the Bill Clinton administration. Moreover, non-Hispanic American origin politicians fluent in Spanish speak in Spanish to Hispanic majority constituencies. There are 500 Spanish newspapers, 152 magazines, and 205 publishers in the United States; magazine and local television advertising expenditures for the Hispanic market have increased substantially from 1999 to 2003, with growth of 58 percent and 43 percent, respectively.

Historically, immigrants' languages tend to disappear or become reduced through generational assimilation. Spanish disappeared in several countries and U.S. territories during the 20th century, notably in the Philippines and in the Pacific Island countries of Guam, Micronesia, Palau, the Northern Marianas islands, and the Marshall Islands.

The English-only movement seeks to establish English as the sole official language of the United States. Generally, they exert political public pressure upon Hispanophone immigrants to learn English and speak it publicly; as universities, business, and the professions use English, there is much social pressure to learn English for upward socio-economic mobility.

Generally, Hispanic American origin US residents (13.4% of the 2002 population) are bilingual to a degree. A Simmons Market Research survey recorded that 19 percent of the Hispanic American origin population speak only Spanish, 9 percent speak only English, 55 percent have limited English proficiency, and 17 percent are fully English-Spanish bilingual.[30]

Intergenerational transmission of Spanish is a more accurate indicator of Spanish's future in the United States than raw statistical numbers of Hispanophone immigrants. Although Hispanic American origin immigrants hold varying English proficiency levels, almost all second-generation Hispanic American origin U.S. residents speak English, yet about 50 percent speak Spanish at home. Two-thirds of third-generation Mexican Americans speak only English at home. Calvin Veltman undertook in 1988, for the National Center for Education Statistics and for the Hispanic Policy Development Project, the most complete study of English language adoption by Hispanophone immigrants. Veltman's language shift studies document abandonment of Spanish at rates of 40 percent for immigrants who arrived in the U.S. before the age of 14, and 70 percent for immigrants who arrived before the age of 10.[31] The complete set of these studies' demographic projections postulates the near-complete assimilation of a given Hispanophone immigrant cohort within two generations. Although his study based itself upon a large 1976 sample from the Bureau of the Census (which has not been repeated), data from the 1990 Census tend to confirm the great Anglicization of the U.S. Hispanic American origin population.

American literature in Spanish

Southwest Colonial literature

In 1610, Gaspar Pérez de Villagrá published his Historia de Nuevo México (History of New Mexico).

19th century

In 1880, José Martí moved to New York City.

Eusebio Chacón published El hijo de la tempestad in 1892.

20th century

Federico García Lorca wrote his collection of poems, Poeta en Nueva York, and the two plays Así que pasen cinco años and El público while living in New York. Giannina Braschi wrote the Hispanic postmodern poetry classic El imperio de los sueños in Spanish in New York. José Vasconcelos and Juan Ramón Jiménez were both exiled to the United States.

In her autobiography When I was Puerto Rican (1993), Esmeralda Santiago recounts her childhood on the island during the 1950s and her family's subsequent move to New York City, when she was 13 years old. Originally written in English, the book is an example of New York Rican literature.

See also

International comparisons:

  1. ^ Instituto Cervantes (Enciclopedia del español en Estados Unidos)
  2. ^ Instituto Cervantes' Yearbook 2006–07. (PDF) . Retrieved on 2011-12-31.
  3. ^ "Más 'speak spanish' que en España". Retrieved October 6, 2007.
  4. ^ "2000 Census, Language in the US" (PDF). Retrieved June 5, 2007.
  5. ^ "Primary language spoken at home by people aged 5 or older". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2012.  Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  6. ^ US Census Bureau Public Information Office. "Facts for Features: Hispanic Heritage Month 2010: Sept. 15 — Oct. 15 - Facts for Features & Special Editions - Newsroom - U.S. Census Bureau". Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  7. ^ a b c d Garcia, Ofelia (2015). "Racializing the Language Practices of U.S. Latinos: Impact on Their Education". In Cobas, Jose; Duany, Jorge; Feagin, Joe. How the United States Racializes Latinos. Routledge. pp. 102–105.
  8. ^ Van Young, Eric (2001). The Other Rebellion: Popular Violence, Ideology, and the Mexican Struggle. Stanford University Press. p. 324. ISBN 978-0-8047-4821-6.
  9. ^ a b Guadalupe Valdés et al., Developing Minority Language Resources: The Case of Spanish in California (Clevedon, UK: Multilingual Matters, 2006), 28–29.
  10. ^ Martin, Daniel W. (2006). Henke's California Law Guide (8th ed.). Newark: Matthew Bender & Co. pp. 45–46. ISBN 08205-7595-X.
  11. ^ Winchester, J. The Statutes of California Passed At The First Session of the Legislature. San Jose: California State Printer. p. 51.
  12. ^ a b Crawford, James (1997). "Puerto Rico and Official English". Language Policy.
  13. ^ a b Drew Walker (2010). "A Countries and Their Cultures: Venezuelan American". Countries and their cultures. Retrieved December 10, 2011.
  14. ^ del Valle, Jose (2006). "US Latinos, la hispanofonia, and the Language Ideologies of High Moderinty". In Mar-Molinero, Clare; Stewart, Miranda. Globalization and Language in the Spanish-Speaking World: Macro and Micro Perspectives. Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 33–34.
  15. ^ "What is the future of Spanish in the United States?". Pew Research Center. 5 September 2013. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  16. ^
  17. ^ "The Future of Spanish in the United States". Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  18. ^ Data Access and Dissemination Systems (DADS). "American FactFinder - Results". Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  19. ^ "Primary language spoken at home by people aged 5 or older". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2010.  Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  20. ^ Nasser, Haya El (January 2, 2015). "Candidates Facing More Latino Voters Who Don't Speak Spanish". Al Jazeera.
  21. ^ Enrollments in Languages Other Than English in United States Institutions of Higher Education, Fall 2009.
  22. ^ a b Cobos, Rubén (2003) "Introduction" A Dictionary of New Mexico & Southern Colorado Spanish (2nd ed.) Museum of New Mexico Press, Santa Fe, N.M., p. ix, ISBN 0-89013-452-9
  23. ^ Cobos, Rubén, op. cit., pp. x-xi.
  24. ^ "Sec. 2054.001." Texas Legislature. Retrieved on June 27, 2010.
  25. ^ Richard I. Brod "Foreign Language Enrollments in US Institutions of Higher Education—Fall 1986". Archived from the original on November 25, 2001. Retrieved September 1, 2016. . AFL Bulletin. Vol. 19, no. 2 (January 1988): 39–44
  26. ^ Goldberg, David; Looney, Dennis; Lusin, Natalia (February 2015). "Enrollments in Languages Other Than English in United States Institutions of Higher Education, Fall 2013" (PDF). Modern Language Association. Retrieved May 20, 2015.
  27. ^ Jordan, Miriam (April 4, 2012). "'Hispanics' Like Clout, Not the Label". The Wall Street Journal.
  28. ^ D.M. Levine (2012-01-19). "As Hispanic Television Market Grows, Univision Reshuffles Executives". Adweek. Retrieved 2013-10-02.
  29. ^ Smead, Robert; Clegg, J Halvor. "English Calques in Chicano Spanish". In Roca, Ana; Jensen, John. Spanish in Contact: Issues in Bilingualism. p. 127.
  30. ^ Roque Mateos, Ricardo (2017). A Good Spanish Book. University Academic Editions. p. 37.
  31. ^ Faries, David (2015). A Brief History of the Spanish Language. University of Chicago Press. p. 198.
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Wednesday, December 5, 2012

IWSG - A happy writing memory!

It's the first Wednesday of the the hell did that happen?...and its time for Alex J. Cavanaugh's The Insecure Writer's Support Group!

Trolling the blogosphere I noticed another blogger mentioned they had just begun a fiction collaboration with another writer.

It reminded me of how I began writing stories.

While in high school a friend and I would write chapters to each other in a notebook and exchange it between classes.

Even then I was writing romantic stories.

Girls in love with Rock Gods go to see them in concert. Rock Gods notice girls. Rock Gods fall in love with girls and take them on tour with them, living happily ever after.

You know that story, right?

The challenging part was you never knew what your friend was going to write. It could have been anything. Whatever it was you just had to pick up from there and keep going.

I hated high school. Absolutely, positively hated high school. But, writing those stories is about the only happy memory of those years that I have.

Can you remember how you started writing?

  1. No wonder I wanted to be a rock god when I grew up...
    I wrote some in high school but forgot about it until many years later.
    And I hated high school as well.

  2. I too hated high school. I wrote poems in physics class to keep myself awake. :)

  3. That would've been so much fun. Don't know why my best friend and I never did that.

  4. Alex - I think you are a Rock God! Good to hear I am not alone.

    Tonja - I would have hated school even more if I had physics class. :)

    L. Diane - Never too late to put it on the bucket list.

  5. That's funny... my best friend in seventh grade and I used to write collaborations all the time. I read a lot of Sweet Valley High books and she read a lot of Stephen King novels so our collaborations were pretty much twins in a horror movie. But hey, it was super fun. Even if we did scare our teacher.

    Outside of my small circle of friends, I didn't much care for high school either.

  6. It's great that writing made your high school experience bearable. I think my first real writing experience also happened in high school. I wrote a poem one day. It was a real teenage-girl angst-filled poem, filled with strange romantic ideas. But, and this is why I remember it, my friend's LOVED it. I still remember their response, and I think it helped shape my desire to create written works. Great IWSG post!

  7. I wrote and produced my first play in the sixth grade. I've loved writing and reading for as long as I can remember. I loved high school, well most of it, composition is where I really excelled but those teachers forgot to include the art of English, and that is my painful downfall!

  8. This was fun---thanks for sharing. I wish I had been a writer in high school!

  9. Thankfully you had a positive writing memory from HS...

    Yes, I remember vividly how I began to seriously write. My business had sank to a new low and I had WAY too much time on my hands, so I decided to write and illustrate my first m./g Fantasy novel.

  10. I was inspired by "chapter books" when I first began reading them. My parents had a typewriter and one Saturday I had my mom set it up on the dining room table and I began typing my first story. I think I still have it somewhere!

  11. High school was and still is my idea of hell. It is great that you have your writing memories from high school. I remember being that awkward kid in school that was constantly just scribbling, just to avoid certain people.

  12. M.J. – I love twins in a horror movie! That could still work!

    Kim – Ah yes, it’s great when the friends love our stuff! Thanks for coming.

    Yolanda – A play in sixth grade? Wow. I’m way behind!

    Morgan – Thank you! Thanks for stopping in!

    Michael – Time on your hands. Remember that? No? Me neither! : )

    Karen – Nothing like the sound of a real typewriter. The feeling of accomplishment with every click of a letter!

    Murees – Avoidance was a major part of my life. Still is!

    Thanks for coming everyone!

  13. That's a great story & would actually make a great story to write about! Think of the possibilities. I guess I'm the odd man out. I loved high school. It was when I blossomed. But my son hated his school so I know how hard it can be. More fuel for the story fire!

  14. Nancy - I know lots of people who loved school. I could never wrap my head around why but they did. I won't hold it against you!

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