About us
- Objective and Mission of the Observatory
The Observatory of the Spanish language and Hispanic cultures in the United States is a research center of the Instituto Cervantes–a public non-profit organization–at the Faculty of Arts and Sciences of Harvard University. Intended for the study of Spanish in the U.S. both in its linguistic and cultural dimensions, the Observatorio aims to serve as an international forum for analysis and debate among experts from Harvard University and other universities in the U.S., as well as from Spain and Latin America.
Unique among the Instituto Cervantes centers due to its focus on research, the Observatorio commissions and publishes studies, sponsors projects, and organizes cultural and academic events, with the purpose of promoting the prestige and knowledge of Hispanic language and cultures in the U.S. context. Its programming pays particular attention to the social and linguistic evolution of Spanish, to how it is used, learned and perceived by different kinds of speakers in the country, and to its coexistence with other languages in this multilingual and multicultural context; its research and activities also focus on literary, artistic and intellectual creation in Spanish and its dissemination both in original form and English translation.
A PDF version with general information on the Observatorio can be downloaded here.