Testing English influence on first person singular “yo” subject pronoun expression in Sonoran Spanish

Abstract The present investigation seeks to explore the impact that contact with English has on the variation of first person singular “yo” subject pronoun expression in Sonoran Spanish by analyzing sociolinguistic interviews from sixteen monolinguals from Sonora, Mexico and sixteen bilinguals from Arizona, United States from Sonora born parents/grandparents. Based on previous research, it is expected that if there is English influence on the Spanish of the bilinguals, there will be an increased rate of expressed pronouns, the bilinguals will show decreased sensitivity to switch reference, there will be a decrease of expressed pronouns in coordinate clauses with the same referent, and community (Arizona/Sonora) will be a significant factor. These hypotheses are not born out and thus the results show a lack of evidence for English influence on the variable for the bilinguals in the study.