U.S. Hispanic Groups

Mexican-American

The Mexican-American population in the United States represents the largest Hispanic demographic in terms of population size (Lipski, 2003, p. 223) and accordingly has a relatively large impact on the form of Spanish spoken in the U.S. In areas where Hispanics of Mexican descent dominate, such as the Southwest and some Midwestern cities, Mexican Spanish is the only form represented in advertising, schools, and on television and radio stations.

The extended family or "la familia" remains an important institution among Mexican-Americans and is functionally defined as putting the welfare of the family above all else (Alverez, 2003, p. 258-259). This ideology benefited agricultural workers when the pay was so low that everyone had to contribute in order to survive, yet tends to get in the way of individual success that's so important for life in the U.S. The relative geographic isolation of the Southwest and its...
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