Offers insight into the histories, cultures, and social dynamics of Portuguese and other Lusophone and Luso-African of the northeastern seaboard of the U.S.

Holds special interest for Portuguese Americans and people of Portuguese ancestry; students of Portuguese language and culture; readers interested in New England or American studies. Personal stories...oral histories, literary contributions...plus journalism reports, sociological information, and folk tales provide a thorough and enjoyable look at the saga of Portuguese migration and culture in southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island...where the largest Portuguese population in America resides. Hundreds of photographs portray the magnificent beauty of the Portuguese islands and mainland and take us into the many corners of American life where Luso Americans have left their mark. Together, the words and images of Portuguese Spinner create a beautiful tribute.

Since the mid-1800's Portuguese Americans have been quietly at work, adjusting to a new culture and adapting a pre-existing American landscape to suit their needs. In the process, they have created a hybrid Portuguese American landscape quite different from both standard American urban landscapes and the landscapes they left behind in Portugal. The three states of southern New England -- Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island -- are now home to more than 467,000 person of Portuguese ancestry, 88,000 of whom were born in Portugal. The main concentration of Portuguese Americans, the largest cluster in the United States and the main focus of this book, is nestled in a corner of southeastern New England along the Massachusetts-Rhode Island border. The cities of Fall River and New Bedford in Massachusetts and nearby East Providence, Rhode Island are the main urban centers housing large numbers of Portuguese. These cities are connected by Interstate 195, the "Portuguese American Interstate Highway." The landscape these Portuguese immigrants created is an American landscape, but a hybridized landscape showing Portuguese cultural influences. The landscape is characterized by the distinctive three-deckers and by Portuguese iconography in the landscape especially in cultural symbols such as shrines, flags, architectural embellishments and gardens. Some of these features were not just importations into the American landscape but reactions to it.Portuguese Americans in New England still struggle to assimilate into American culture. Their lower levels of educational attainment and corresponding lower levels of income have kept the suburban American dream out of reach of some, but not all, of the immigrants. Lower levels of obtaining citizenship have kept the Portuguese a generation or more behind in assuming political power comparable to their numbers. Patriarchy, still strong in the culture, presents barriers for equal achievement by women. Prejudice against the community is still strong in some places. Even within the Portuguese community itself there are complex prejudices between mainlanders and islanders, among immigrants from various islands, and between Portuguese and the linguistically affiliated Brazilian and Cape Verdean groups. Assimilation comes slowly and when it comes the Portuguese must struggle to avoid downward assimilation into a perpetual lower class status. The Portuguese in New England rode the economic waves of southern New England's booms and busts. Just as the whaling industry that had brought the early Portuguese died out, the textile mills began to move to the Southern states or go bankrupt. For a generation the apparel industry blossomed by moving into the abandoned textile mills. When that industry declined, some plastics and electronics activity moved in but largely the heyday of manufacturing was over. Even the fishing industry that employed many Portuguese in New Bedford and in smaller towns such as Gloucester and Provincetown fell upon hard times.This book tells the story of the Portuguese Americans of southeastern New England by using concepts from geography, sociology and other social sciences.

Portuguese and Cape Verdean immigrants have had a significant presence in North America since the nineteenth century. Recently, Brazilians have also established vibrant communities in the U.S. This anthology brings together, for the first time in English, the writings of these diverse Portuguese-speaking, or "Luso-American" voices. Historically linked by language, colonial experience, and cultural influence, yet ethnically distinct, Luso-Americans have often been labeled an "invisible minority." This collection seeks to address this lacuna, with a broad mosaic of prose, poetry, essays, memoir, and other writings by more than fifty prominent literary figures--immigrants and their descendants, as well as exiles and sojourners. It is an unprecedented gathering of published, unpublished, forgotten, and translated writings by a transnational community that both defies the stereotypes of ethnic literature, and embodies the drama of the immigrant experience.

What are the most widely spoken non-English languages in the USA? How did they reach the USA? Who speaks them, to whom, and for what purposes? What changes do these languages undergo as they come into contact with English? This book investigates the linguistic diversity of the USA by profiling the twelve most commonly used languages other than English. Each chapter paints a portrait of the history, current demographics, community characteristics, economic status, and language maintenance of each language group, and looks ahead to the future of each language. The book challenges myths about the 'official' language of the USA, explores the degree to which today's immigrants are learning English and assimilating into the mainstream, and discusses the relationship between linguistic diversity and national unity. Written in a coherent and structured style, Language Diversity in the USA is essential reading for advanced students and researchers in sociolinguistics, bilingualism, and education.