|
Job Discussion Forums
"The Internet's Meeting Place for ESL/EFL Students and Teachers from Around the World!"
|
| View previous topic :: View next topic |
| Author |
Message |
Tiger Beer
Joined: 08 Feb 2003
Posts: 778
Location: Hong Kong
|
 Posted: Mon Oct 15, 2007 8:40 am Post subject: |
 |
|
| naturegirl321 wrote: |
| MELEE wrote: |
| Colombian Spanish is also concidered to be the "cleanest" Spanish. |
I thought that Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru had the best Spanish. But try telling that to a Spaniard. |
I've always heard that too - Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru. I also heard that it extends up into Colombia as well. But Cartagena is more Carribbean and not as good from what I was told and read.
I studied in Ecuador for a little while, so maybe I'm a bit biased...  However I did like the fact that everything I studied was always said. There doesn't seem to be nearly as much slang and variation as in other Spanish-speaking countries. Plus it's so clear and every syllable seems to be spoken without swallowing any syllables (thinking of in comparison to Chile/Argentina! Supposedly the Carribbean as well, although I wouldn't know about that myself). |
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
john_n_carolina
Joined: 26 Feb 2006
Posts: 700
Location: n. carolina
|
| Posted: Mon Oct 15, 2007 1:48 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| i'd say Colombian Spanish is the fastest in the World, second to Puerto Rico / Dominican Rep. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
SeanStock
Joined: 18 Oct 2007
Posts: 4
Location: Buenos Aires
|
| Posted: Tue Oct 23, 2007 1:41 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Well, as someone who learned in Buenos Aires, I think Colombians are easier to understand than Mexicans. But I would never make a decision based off of it. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Vanica
Joined: 31 Aug 2006
Posts: 368
Location: North Carolina
|
| Posted: Wed Oct 24, 2007 1:41 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| At the UN, Colombian Spanish is considered the standard. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Justin Trullinger
Joined: 28 Jan 2005
Posts: 3110
Location: Seoul, South Korea and Myanmar for a bit
|
| Posted: Wed Oct 24, 2007 3:56 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Quote: |
| At the UN, Colombian Spanish is considered the standard. |
Could you provide a source for that?
Aside from that, my experience having lived in several Spanish speaking countries is that the best, clearest, most correct Spanish, the one which all foreigners should and do aspire to learn is...the one where you are. Just ask the locals. Honestly, the reasons vary, but they say this everywhere.
Can you imagine how weird this would be if we were discussing the "best," "clearest" or "easiest" variety of English? As English teachers, we all know that mostly, it depends on what the listener/student is used to; nothing else. If you studied Spanish in Andalucia, then Andaluz Spanish is going to be "easiest" to you- in spite of the fast rate, and the tendency to slur some sounds and drop others. Likewise anywhere else.
| Quote: |
| I studied in Ecuador for a little while, so maybe I'm a bit biased... However I did like the fact that everything I studied was always said. There doesn't seem to be nearly as much slang and variation as in other Spanish-speaking countries. Plus it's so clear and every syllable seems to be spoken without swallowing any syllables (thinking of in comparison to Chile/Argentina! Supposedly the Carribbean as well, although I wouldn't know about that myself). |
I haven't studied Spanish much in Ecuador, but have lived here for several years, and speak it a lot. And Ecuadorians may think that they don't have as many non-standard usages as others...but I'd have to say it ain't so. Diminutives are an incredibly Andean thing, non-standard in many other parts. (Using "ahorita" instead of "ahora" creates some interesting nuances...) Overuse of the gerund (compared to others) seems to be Quichua influenced. Use of futures and gerunds as polite imperatives (literally "give me opening the door" or "you will give me the door opening" to mean "please open the door.") are gramatical structures lifted directly from pre-Spanish languages in the region. "Vos" is in common usage, but here goes with the same verb conjugations as "tu" instead of the Argentine/paraguayan/uraguayan variety...
the mind boggles.
It's all really "ch�vere..."
Best,
Justin |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
MELEE
Joined: 22 Jan 2003
Posts: 2583
Location: The Mexican Hinterland
|
| Posted: Wed Oct 24, 2007 5:30 pm Post subject: |
|
|
I didn't say anything last week, because it really is a silly argument. But Ecuadorian Spanish, especially in the highlands is famous for over use of the gerund. That was one of my prof's area of study back in university. How Quichua had influenced Ecuadorian Spanish.
The Chileans also loved diminutives when I was there. I also enjoyed the way Chileans would double an adjective. "Esta en el centro centro". Where as in Mexico they use the word mero. "Esta en el mero centro"
To link to another thread, Chileans also had there own special relationship with English. "Lo qual me tinka es super, cachia." |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Vanica
Joined: 31 Aug 2006
Posts: 368
Location: North Carolina
|
| Posted: Wed Oct 24, 2007 8:35 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Justin Trullinger wrote: |
| Quote: |
| At the UN, Colombian Spanish is considered the standard. |
Could you provide a source for that?
|
I went through the interpretation training programme at the UN Secretariat in 1992, wrote the translation exam in 1995, and have worked for the UN as a translator and interpreter of French and Spanish to English ever since. My friend who works in the Spanish booth is from Argentina, she doesn't change her accent when she interprets! It's just what's traditionally been the standard. For Arabic, it's Egyptian, for French, well, Quebec is actually well regarded for its glossaries but unfortunately not for its accent, Beijing's Mandarin.......and for English, does anyone remember RP?
Remember, the United Nations dates from the 1940s, and even then one often is reminded of pre-1918 diplomacy. Every speech refers to "my esteemed colleagues" and "the honour of appearing before this august body." |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Justin Trullinger
Joined: 28 Jan 2005
Posts: 3110
Location: Seoul, South Korea and Myanmar for a bit
|
| Posted: Thu Oct 25, 2007 8:02 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Quote: |
| At the UN, Colombian Spanish is considered the standard. |
| Quote: |
| My friend who works in the Spanish booth is from Argentina, she doesn't change her accent when she interprets! It's just what's traditionally been the standard. |
I'm not picking fights, Vanica. Just trying to work out what you mean. Sounds to me like there's more than one accepted standard, in your experience.
Best,
Justin |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Tiger Beer
Joined: 08 Feb 2003
Posts: 778
Location: Hong Kong
|
| Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2007 10:17 am Post subject: |
|
|
From what I understand, ANDEAN SPANISH (Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador and parts of Colombia like BOGOTA) are the cleanest Spanish.
Cleanest meaning they pronounce every syllable and there are singificantly less slang words in the vocabulary. So if someone is speaking Andean Spanish, the largest variety of different people have a much higher chance of understanding them.
I know this was the case for me when I traveled through the region, but when I went to Chile, it was common for most Spanish-speakers to not understand them. So much so that every bookstore in Santiago had a famous book entitled 'How to speak Chilean' because so few non-Chileans had any idea what they were talking about. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
|
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum
|
This page is maintained by the one and only Dave Sperling.
Contact Dave's ESL Cafe
Copyright © 2018 Dave Sperling. All Rights Reserved.
Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2002 phpBB Group
|
FAQ
Search
Memberlist
Usergroups
Register
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Log in
