Standard Language Ideology and Monoglossia: Bello, Cuervo, and the Ideological Framework of Pan-Hispanism
Fabian Horrocks
Abstract
This paper revisits two dominant linguistic ideologies –standard language ideology and monoglossia –to explore their role in shaping language thought during the pan-Hispanist movement. Focusing on the work of Andrés Bello and Rufino José Cuervo, the study examines how efforts to standardise and regulate language were central to constructing a unified pan-Hispanic identity in the wake of colonial fragmentation. While these ideologies promoted linguistic cohesion, they also reinforced notions of fixity, exclusivity, and cultural hierarchy, often at the expensive of variation and plurality. This paper also highlights how ideologies of linguistic unity are not static but historically contingent. This work contributes to broader debates on language and power by demonstrating how standard language ideology and monoglossia both enable and constrain identity formation in multilingual, post-colonial contexts.
Keywords: Language, ideology, identity, pan-Hispanism, homogeneity.