29.1226, Rising Stars: Meet Michelle Michimani Leyva

Tue Mar 20 17:21:35 UTC 2018

LINGUIST List: Vol-29-1226. Tue Mar 20 2018. ISSN: 1069 - 4875.

Subject: 29.1226, Rising Stars: Meet Michelle Michimani Leyva

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Editor for this issue: Clare Harshey <clare at linguistlist.org>
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Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2018 13:20:51
From: LINGUIST List [linguist at linguistlist.org]
Subject: Rising Stars: Meet Michelle Michimani Leyva

 Dear Readers,

For several years, we have featured linguists with established careers and
interesting stories to tell. This year, we will also be highlighting “Rising
Stars” throughout our Fund Drive, undergraduates who were nominated by their
mentors for their exceptional interest in linguistics and eager participation
in the global community of language researchers.

Selected nominees were asked to share their view of the field of linguistics:
what topics they see emerging as important or especially interesting, what
role they see the field filling in the coming decades, and how they plan to
contribute. We hope you will enjoy the perspectives of these students, who
represent the bright future of our field.

Today, we are happy to share the thoughts of Michelle Michimani Leyva, a
senior at St. Mary’s University in San Antonio, Texas. She is majoring in both
English-Communication Arts and Spanish, and is especially interested in
applying her knowledge of lexicology to advertising and reaching minority
Spanish-speaking populations. You can learn more about her research on her
portfolio at http://michimani.com/ .

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The role of language in cultural identity is often overlooked. However,
acknowledging the connections between cultural and linguistic identities
contributes to a fuller understanding of societies. Deepening our
understanding of linguistics helps prevent miscommunication between dialects,
fosters a sense of belonging through common linguistic features, and
counteracts stigmas associated with variations between dialects. Knowledge of
linguistic identities helps us understand communities and individuals better
and helps us accept and cherish our unique linguistic attributes.

As an advertiser and linguist, I hope that the intersection of these fields
emerges as a “hot topic.” Linguistics has been explored in media, but its
application to advertising specifically has not been explored in as much
depth. Advertising is about communicating, whether it is through art or
through its copy; but if advertisement’s main point is to create a customized
ad specific to a target audience, why is copy language so generalized? I am
personally interested in the topic of using Spanish dialects in copy since
Spanish has a vast lexical bank throughout its many dialects. During my
internship as media planner at Wavemaker (formally known as MEC) in New York
City, I was able to see the advertising industry’s push for placing the right
advertisement in front of the right person. However, there seems to be an
oversight on the affect linguistics has on an advertisements’ performance. For
example, in 2004 Hershey partnered with Thalia Sodi to create a “Hispanic
inspired” candy line. The new candy bar was called “Cajeta Elegancita.”
“Cajeta” in Mexico is defined as a caramel sauce made of goat’s milk, but in
Argentina, “cajeta” is a slang term used to describe a part of the female
anatomy. Linguistic knowledge helps optimize creative advertising and
branding, and it helps advertisers craft ads that resonate with various
audiences. Gloria Anzaldúa wrote, “Ethnic identity is twin skin to linguistic
identity.” Being able to portray various linguistic identities in advertising
would help remediate the issues of non-representation and misrepresentation of
minorities in advertising.

This year, I finished my research study, Lexical Variation in Spanish
Speakers, and presented it at the Third International Conference on
Heritage/Community Languages in the University of California, Los Angeles. My
research surveyed the lexical bank of Spanish speakers in the United States
and compared the results to the lexical bank provided in five 1st and 2nd year
Spanish textbooks for college students. The results of my research indicated
that Spanish heritage speakers lexical bank varied significantly from standard
Spanish. My conclusion focused on the lexical variety in Spanish speakers and
the stigmas among variations that are not the norma culta or standard Spanish.

While I work in the advertising field, I hope to contribute to linguistics
research by completing an extension of my study. In this future research, I
would like to examine lexical variation in Spanish speakers and its
application to Spanish advertising. Through my research and my work, I hope to
create awareness of the importance of linguistics features that makes language
so unique. Eventually I would like to attend graduate school for linguistics
and dream of creating my own multi-cultural advertising agency that embodies
linguistics in advertising in order to represent the beautiful diversity in
language.

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If you have a student who you believe is a “Rising Star” in linguistics, we
would love to hear about them! We are still accepting nominations for
exceptional young linguists. Please see the call for nominations for more
information: https://linguistlist.org/issues/29/29-831.html

If you have not yet–please visit our Fund Drive page at
https://funddrive.linguistlist.org/ to learn more about us and why we need
your help! The LINGUIST List relies on your generous donations to continue it
support of linguists around the world.

Gratefully,

Your LINGUIST List Team

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