"Castellano:" A.k.A. Argentine Spanish

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Hola a todos,

So yeah, I was getting a little frustrated with my language skills, in Español, as compared to what was going on here in Argentina, "Castellano." Basically, this blog is a lil "how to" guide to Argentine Span...I mean, "Castellano."

Argentine Dialect

Anyone who has learned Spanish outside Argentina will be in for some surprises when they hear how the locals talk. There are many differences of vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation between the Spanish used in Spain or the rest of Latin America and what you hear in Buenos Aires. What follows is by no means all inclusive - it's simply an introduction to some of the details that many experts have found striking when they arrive here. We will look at the way Argentines tend to speak English, as well as some differences Argentina's dialect and then finally at the distinctive Argentine slang known as 'lunfardo'.

Anyhow, Argentines are very fond of claiming that their form of Spanish (which they refer to as 'castellano' rather than 'espanol') is a purer form of the language than is spoken elsewhere - a claim which is understandably challenged by other Spanish speakers. What is universally agreed, however, is that Argentine Spanish is distinctive. We'll take a brief look at some of the most important details of pronunciation, grammar and vocabulary.

Pronunciation: This is probably the first thing which hits the newcomer to Argentina - there are a few sounds used in Argentine Spanish which are not common in the rest of the Spanish-speaking world (apart from Uruguay, one of Argentina's closest neighbors). These are the following:

* 'y' and 'll', pronounced like the 'y' of 'yes' in most Spanish-speaking places, are both pronounced somewhere between English 'shout' and 'television'. So, for example, when you hear the words 'pollo' (chicken) or 'mayo' (the month of May), you won't hear 'po-yo' or 'ma-yo', as you might be used to from Mexican or Iberian Spanish - in Argentina, you'll hear 'posho' and 'masho'.

* 's', when it occurs: a) in the middle of a word, before another consonant (e.g. 'pasta'), or b) at the end of a word, unless the next word begins with a vowel (e.g. 'mis padres'/'my parents') is usually pronounced as an aspirated 'h' sound. If you're used to hearing a clear 's' in words like 'vestir' (to get dressed) or 'dos' (two), it may take some time to get used to Argentine 'vehh-tir' or 'dohh'.

* There is some social variation here: it is considered 'low class' by some Argentines to pronounce this 'h' strongly. In fact, some Argentines will claim that they themselves pronounce it as 's', but the phonological evidence from linguists says otherwise. What's more, the difference between a 'low class' and 'elegant' pronunciation of this sound is all but indistinguishable to the ex-pat ear. (Final note: Argentines love to make fun of the Spaniards, whom they call 'los gallegos', and often imitate them by pronouncing 's' as 'sh' - think of a Sean Connery or Winston Churchill impression, and you'll get the idea).

* 'c' and 'z' are not lisped, as in parts of Spain. In Argentina, you don't order 'una thair-vay-tha' ('una cerveza'/ a beer), but rather 'una sair-vay-sa'.

Looking at pronunciation in a more general way, it is often said that Argentines 'speak Spanish with an Italian accent', and it certainly true that the rhythms of the language (and the use of hand gestures) will remind you less of Mexico City or Madrid than of Rome.

Grammar: The most distinctive grammatical feature of Argentine Spanish is the use of 'vos' in place of 'tu' as the familiar form of 'you' (singular). Along with 'vos' come certain changes in the formation of verbs:

1. Second person singular verbs are formed by replacing the infinitive ending '-er' or '-ar' with a stressed '-es' or '-as'. For example, instead of standard Spanish 'caminas' ('you walk'), Argentine Spanish uses 'caminas', with the stress on the final syllable.

This is essentially important in the formation of irregular verbs. Instead of the standard 'puedes' ('you can'), Argentines form the second person directly from the infinitive, and say 'podes'. This makes it easier to conjugate irregular verbs, since the 'vos' form is always built directly from the infinitive stem.

2. Familiar commands are made by removing the final '-r' from infinitives, then stressing the final consonant. E.g. 'Habla!' ('Speak!') / 'Mira!' ('Look!') / 'Volve!' ('Come back!')

Argentines are familiar with the standard forms, and often use them in more formal situations, or with foreigners. As with the 'tu / usted ' distinction in standard Spanish, the rules for use of 'vos' are hard to codify. Basically, it seems that Argentines use 'vos' in preference to 'usted', unless it is important for social or psychological reasons to maintain the distance and formality of 'usted'. If in doubt, you?re unlikely to go wrong by using 'usted'.

Like many other South American countries, Argentina has dropped the Iberian Spanish distinction between formal and informal second person plural ('ustedes / vosotros'). You will only hear the 'ustedes' form, which is conjugated as in other Spanish-speaking countries.

One last feature of Spanish in Buenos Aires is the absence of the present perfect / past simple distinction (in English, 'I've been there' vs. 'I went there') In Buenos Aires, only the past simple tends to be used, so that you?ll hear 'El tren llego' ('The train arrived') instead of the more common Spanish 'El tren ha llegado' ('The train has arrived'). This can lead to confusion in English: If an Argentine says 'Did you go to Bariloche?', he may not be asking about some specific trip which you both know about, but rather want to know if you've ever been there.

VOCABULARY

Well, now it's time to take a look at some of the MANY differences from the Spanish you might have learned elsewhere. The Argentine word or phrase is given first, then the English translation, then the Iberian Spanish. Pay special attention to the warning about 'coger' in the 'TRANSPORT AND VEHICLES' section.

Food and Drink

* las arvejas - peas - los guisantes
* un durazno - a peach - un melocotón
* una frutilla - a strawberry - una fresa
* una palta - an avocado - un aguacate
* las papas - potatoes - las patatas
* un pelon - a nectarine - una nectarina
* los porotos - (kidney) beans - las judias
* tomar - to drink - beber
* un mozo - a waiter - un camarero
* tomar desayuno - to have breakfast - desayunar
* Me trae...? - Could you bring me...? - Me pone...?

Transport and Vehicles

* un auto - a car - un coche
* un colectivo - a (city) bus - un autobus
* el subte - the subway/the underground - el metro
* la boleteria - ticket office - la taquilla
* un boleto/un pasaje - a ticket - un billete
* un chofer - a driver - un conductor
* el estacionamiento - car park/parking lot - aparcamiento
* estacionar - to park - aparcar
* una goma - a tire - un neumatico
* la nafta - gasoline/petrol - la gasolina
* manejar - to drive - conducir
* tomar (un vehiculo) - to take (a vehicle) - coger NOTE: it is a slang word for 'to have sex'

House and Hotel

* una canilla - a water tap - un grifo
* un departamento - an apartment/a flat - un apartamento
* una lampara - a light bulb - una bombilla (in Argentina, this word is used for the straw for drinking mate, the national drink
* una pileta - either a washbasin (un lavabo) or a swimming pool (una piscina) In Argentina, una piscina is an Olympic-sized swimming pool

Note: Because of television and films, Argentines are used to non-Argentine Spanish, and you will be understood if you retain your pronunciation and vocabulary. However, you'll need to understand Argentine Spanish, and you'll also seem like less of an outsider if you try to modify your own speech to a more Argentine variety.

Well, I think I've pointed out all that I need to to make the point that Argentine Spanish, just like that of most Latin-American countries, is VERY different from what is learned in school in US, what I would consider Spain/Mexican Spanish.

Until next time...

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Comments

[liz]

found your calling?
Hey Micky, I know you're an MT major and all...but after this little lesson, maybe your calling is to be a SPanish teacher! HA! I hope you're doing well!

[MyM]

Who knows...
Yeah, I have thought about that more and more recently. I love working in the language lab as a Span tutor. I love the grammatical aspects of the language, I just have a problem speaking it. P.S. - I do hope to get a Masters in Special Ed. and after that, I wanna get certified to teach Spanish too :D

[ale]

Very good.
Congratulations my friend, very good job in desciphering the "argentinian" spanish. But two things: first, the s is never pronounced as an "h", except for some people that we say "they eat the s". The lack of pronunciation of letter s has it's explaniaton in the next paragraph. Uneducated people tend to speak "comiendose las s" as you mentioned. The second, the original name of the language is Castellano, everybody used to call it Castellano, not only argentinian people, isa little more complicated this topic. And last, made me laugh a lot this comment "Note: Because of television and films, Argentines are used to non-Argentine Spanish, and you will be understood if you retain your pronunciation and vocabulary. However, you'll need to understand Argentine Spanish, and you'll also seem like less of an outsider if you try to modify your own speech to a more Argentine variety." MY GOD, YOU ARE SOOOOO FUNNY!!!!!! Greetings my friend.