Author: Constanza Jeldres

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The language today

The influence of cinema and TV on language

Film and television are part of popular culture, which takes elements from the real world for inspiration and either exaggerates or creatively reinterprets them. But what happens when it is communication in the real world that is influenced by what is projected on the screen?

Many movie phrases are already part of everyday language. The voice of our conscience, or the one who plays the role of being our critical advisor, is known as Jiminy Cricket, in reference to the character from the animated film Pinocchio of 1940. Jiminy Cricket was responsible for reorienting Pinocchio’s steps after he became a compulsive liar.

Cinema and television influence us consciously and unconsciously. Often, words or expressions used on the screen are part of popular culture, so explaining an idea further is unnecessary.

Some expressions are in the collective unconscious, such as movie scenes or scenes that are believed to belong to a movie, although, they never existed. In fact, in the classic film Tarzan, the protagonist never says, I Tarzan, you Jane but hits her chest and says Tarzan, then hits Jane and says Jane. This curiosity also occurs in original novels such as Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle, where the famous phrase elementary, my dear Watson never existed.

We have all grown up watching movies whose dialogues have remained forever in our subconscious. Some expressions are so massively naturalised that we often ignore their origin. For example, the word paparazzi is a linguistic loan originating from Italian, incorporated into the lexicon of Spanish, English and other languages. Its origin is in the character Paparazzo from the famous film La Dolce Vita (1960) by Federico Fellini. Paparazzo means mosquito, and in the film, it was the name of the protagonist photographer. After the film, the term began to refer to the photographers of the so-called tabloid press.

From theatre and television

Another influence of the world of entertainment on everyday speech is found in the expression gaslighting. This term originated in 1938 after the premiere of the play of the same name. In this English play, a husband tries to drive his wife into madness by dimming the gas lights in his house and then denying that the light changes when his wife points it out. From then on, the expression refers to the psychological manipulation that someone exercises on another to make them question the validity of their thoughts and perception of reality.

Peinar la muñeca (combing the doll) is a localism used in Chile to refer to someone going through an episode of alienation or disturbance or whose mental faculties are disturbed. This ingenious phrase commonly used in the country originates in the last chapter of Los Títeres. A famous soap opera shown on Chilean television in 1984. In it, the character of actress Gloria Munchmayer, now entirely out of her mind, begins to talk to her dolls and aggressively throw them into the pool. After this, the protagonist enters the pool and hugs some dolls while dips the heads of others. Finally, she maternally hugs them all while stroking their hair. The disturbing scene exuded so much isolation and madness that it remained in the national collective subconscious and became the saying peinar la muñeca used to refer to someone who does not seem to be in their right mind.

If you have been interested in the anecdote of the origin of this expression, you can review the last scene of Los títeres.

The sagas that accompany generations

A film that has influenced the language of both older and younger generations is Star Wars. It is common for some to refer to their apprentices as my young Padawan. In addition, the film saga is complete with well-known phrases, such as the traditional I am your father, from Darth Vader or the countless references people make to the dark side of the force.

And, you know: May the force -and iScribo- be with you.

Keep learning curiosities about the language and the Spanish language, visiting and reading the articles we publish weekly on the iScribo blog. If you are looking to improve your Spanish writing and correct a specific variant of this language, remember to subscribe to our wonderful grammar checker. We are waiting for you!

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History of Spanish language

Metathesis: Murciégalo, cocreta y cocodrilo. Are they actually mistaken words?

When children whose mother tongue is Spanish begin to speak, it is standard for them to make mistakes such as saying murciégalo instead of murciélago (bat) or cocreta instead of croqueta (croquette). Does that sound familiar to you? These errors called metatheses, correspond to when the sound changes places within a word. But what if I told you that those children are not wrong? Does it take you by surprise? For sure, yes.

Let’s look at the example of a murciégalo. In the current dictionary, this word appears to be a variant of murciélago, although it is perceived as vulgar. However, the original term is precisely murciégalo, as it derives from the Latin voices mus, muris (mouse) and caecúlus, a diminutive of caecus (blind). In this case, the original metathesis, murciélago, has been documented since the 13th century and soon passed into the cultured language. The first academic dictionary included, already in 1734, the two variants. But this is not the only case.

Many Spanish words owe their current form to the phenomenon of metathesis. Another representative case is cocodrilo, which is corrupted by crocodrilo (another classic “mistake” children make). It resembles the English word crocodile, and, as in the case of murciégalo, the etymological term that ended up being lost due to a metathesis. The original Latin word was crocodilus, derived from the Greek krokódeilos, from króke (pebble) and drilos (worm). It must be said that in this case, metathesis was already used in medieval Latin, where reference was made to crocodillus.

Peligro is another word that has undergone a change in the order of its sounds and the acceptance of this. Peligro (danger) comes from the Latin pericùlum. This voice should have evolved into periglo, a variant that was documented until the 16th century. Something similar happened with milagro (miracle); This word comes from miraglo. Other cases are guirnalda (garland), whose word was initially guirlanda, or Algeria, which, like in English, was initially said Algeria.

In popular speech, metathesis has given rise to words such as dentrífico, mistakenly used instead of dentífrico, from the Latin denifrícum, which in turn derives from the Latin words dens, dentis (tooth) and fricare (rub).

When the error of the error is the right thing

If we think about it, many of today’s metatheses children make are the original voices derived from Latin. That is, the original voice will probably be returned if, as happened previously, the vulgar voice or error is accepted as part of educated speech.

The error of the error seems to be the return to the etymological origin of these words. A journey of several centuries to return to the same place, but with a very interesting route, don’t you think?

So, if you have children, and they say crocodilo or murciégalo, remember that they are not completely wrong and that they are the ones who are closest to the origin of the word in Latin. Most likely they will not be able to refer to the etymological origin of the word, thanks to what you just learned today, perhaps you can do it.

Keep learning curiosities about the language and the Spanish language, visiting and reading the articles we publish weekly on the iScribo blog. If you are looking to improve your Spanish writing and correct a specific variant of this language, remember to subscribe to our wonderful grammar checker. We are waiting you!

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Spanish as a language

Genders in transition

If Spanish is not your first language, it is not unusual for you to get confused about the gender or the use of articles corresponding to a word. As a rule, a poorly chosen article or an adjectival disagreement does not represent a big problem since the meaning of what you want to say remains intact. But what happens when the article defines the meaning of a word? Well, in that case the matter is a little more complicated.

We talk about homonymous words. They are written and pronounced the same, but their meaning is different and is determined by the article that precedes it. Examples of this type of homonym are:

  1. El cólera (Cholera) and la cólera (anger): the word cólera preceded by the masculine article (el) refers to the disease. It defines it as an acute epidemic disease of bacterial origin, characterised by repeated vomiting and intense diarrhoea. At the same time, la cólera means anger, fury, or rage.
  2. El orden (order) and la orden (command): one meaning of order is placement of things in their rightful place, and the second meaning of the masculine term is “field of subjects or activities in which someone or something is framed.” In the case of la orden, the meaning changes to “command that must be obeyed, observed and executed”.
  3. El capital (capital) and la capital (money): El capital is “the set of assets and economic goods intended to produce greater wealth”; while la capital is a city or locality where the public powers of a State, country, demarcation, province, etc.

In addition to homonyms whose meaning varies depending on the article, two cases can represent a headache for those learning Spanish: 1) nouns that are masculine in the singular and change to feminine in the plural and 2) ambiguous nouns that change the grammatical gender depending on the country.

Nouns that transition from masculine to feminine

Within the wide range of nouns in Spanish, there is a long list of nouns whose gender is masculine and changes to feminine when we pluralise the word. There is no norm nor a name to call this phenomenon. For native Spanish speakers, it probably will not be easy to list the items on the list if they have not stopped to think about it before. Natives know when to apply the grammatical gender change, even if they do not explain it. Let’s review some of these cases:

SingularPlural
El arte (art)Las artes (arts)
El águila (eagle)Las águilas (eagles)
El agua (water)Las aguas (waters)
El alga (seaweed)Las algas (seaweeds)
El ansia (longing)Las ansias
El hada (fairy)Las hadas (fairies)
El ave (bird)Las aves (birds)
El área (area)Las áreas (areas)
El aula (classroom)Las aulas (classrooms)

Finally, another case of gender transition occurs from one country to another. Here, the alternation is due to geographical factors. For example, in much of Latin America, tanga is feminine, while in Spain, it is a masculine noun. In Chile, sartén (frying pan) is masculine, while in Spain it is feminine. Pijama is mainly masculine but feminine in Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean. In Argentina, it is expected to hear about la vodka, while for the rest of the Spanish speakers, it is a masculine noun, so the differences continue.

Keep learning curiosities about the language and the Spanish language, visiting and reading the articles we publish weekly on the iScribo blog. If you are looking to improve your Spanish writing and correct a specific variant, remember to subscribe to our wonderful grammar checker.

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The language today

Emojis: the current economy of language

Since the Rosetta stone was discovered in 1799, 23 years passed before the method of reading Egyptian hieroglyphs was deciphered, mainly thanks to the studies carried out by Thomas Young, an English linguist and Jean-François Champollion, a French historian.

Similarities between ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs and the emojis of the digital age are evident. However, their differences are remarkable: Hieroglyphs were a complete language represented in a writing system of strict rules. Although an illiterate person can understand some basic symbols, a high skill level is required to handle them fully.

Emojis, on the other hand, were born under the auspices of digital messages on social networks, and here, the economy of language takes precedence. Emojis are the evolution of emoticons. The origin of the latest word comes from an acronym for the terms emotion and icon. Emoticons are, as their name indicates, iconic representations that complement written texts, adding nuances or complicities in the language.

Write with images 😎 😏

In a written conversation, intonation, and everything that non-verbal communication provides disappears. Although emoticons are characteristic elements of written language, they bring those who use them closer to orality. It gives a hybrid communication style to the written communication of digital messaging. The emojis can be attributed to a change in intonation, the volume of the voice, a facial gesture, or a particular movement of the body. In short, these actions are typical of the field of study of pragmatic linguistics, which, if it were not for the emoticons, would not be present in the chat conversation.

An emoji is a wild card in written conversation since it easily and quickly explains the sender’s intention and often breaks the ice or removes the apparent abruptness of what is said in words. You can indicate that you are exhausted 😴 without having to say it by writing many words. Hyperbole can be expressed, such as being “red with anger” 😡, “being about to explode” 🤯 or “freezing to death” 🥶.

With an emoticon, we can ask for discretion 🤫, express sadness 😞, empathy 🙏, etc. In short, images economise, and at the same time enhance, the expressive function of language. They give it flavour and an essential cultural load.

History of emojis

In 1844, Morse code was used as a telegraphic communication system for the first time. What does that have to do with emojis?!, you might ask. Well, now comes the interesting detail: it turns out that, in 1857, that is, 13 years after this code began to be used, the National Telegraphic Review and Operators Guide documented that the number 73 of the code started to be employed to express “love and kisses” and then led to something more formal like “kind regards” or “best wishes.” Many radio operators say “73” at the end of a friendly call precisely since, in that context, it is currently a close way of saying goodbye or saying thank you.

World Emoji Day

As a result of all the communication commotion that emojis have caused in the digital age, in 2010, a curious holiday arose called Emoji Day. Since that year, World Emoji Day has been celebrated every July 17. This day was chosen because the first 176 emojis were created in 1999. Today, the Unicode consortium (made up of Apple, Microsoft, Google, and IBM) oversees creating new emojis.

If you dare, you should know that anyone can submit a proposal to create a new emoticon, but it is a challenge. It must meet formal requirements and demonstrate that the image will have an expected level of use. So now you know, if you want to brag that incorporating a new emoticon was thanks to your management, observe your surroundings and play, we all support you here! 😉

Keep learning curiosities about the language and the Spanish language, visiting and reading the articles we publish weekly on the iScribo blog. If you are looking to improve your Spanish writing, remember to subscribe to our wonderful grammar checker.

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Culture around Spanish language

Spanglish. The influence of a giant

Estás ready to read this article? Yes, I know that sometimes it can be hard but let’s understand un poco about what Spanglish or espanglish is.

Spanglish is how some non-standard Spanish spoken in North America are colloquially known in contexts where Spanish and English are in prolonged contact due to group bilingualism.

Spanish and English are two widely spoken languages worldwide. Although these two languages are studied and spoken separately, we cannot ignore a sociolinguistic phenomenon that occurs when bilingual speakers of English and Spanish interact. They do not always choose to conduct the conversation purely in Spanish or English but rather choose a third way: Spanglish.

You may like it or not, but here there is. A hybrid between English and Spanish that linguists don’t know how to classify. There are no rules; It may seem like Spanish with many anglicisms between sentences or English with many Spanish words intertwined. For some linguists, it is simply code-switching, such as switching from a dialect to a standard language or when speaking the formal language and then switching to a more informal use. In many sectors, it tends to bother; for some, it is a sign of a low cultural level, while others say it shows how language is in constant creation. Others observe the phenomenon attentively and without judgment, but let’s start at the beginning: when did people start talking like this?

When did people start speaking Spanglish?

The origin of Spanglish can be seen in the early interactions between Spanish explorers and the indigenous people of the Americas, and later, during the Spanish colonisation of the southwestern United States, the Mexican- American War, and the annexation of territories such as Texas and California. Then, in the 20th century, increased migration and cultural exchange between Spanish-speaking immigrants and English-speaking communities, particularly in urban areas, further boosted the development of Spanish. This was especially true in families where the first generation did not speak English, but their children did.

The Puerto Rican writer Salvador Tió used the term Spanglish for the first time in an article titled “Teoría del Spanglish”, published on October 28, 1948, in the Diario de Puerto Rico. There, he referenced native Spanish speakers who renounced their mother tongue to learn English and immigrate to non-Hispanic countries.

Currently, Spanglish’s influence on popular culture is reflected in social networks, music, and cinema, especially among the younger generations, where it is widely accepted.

Chicano, Tex-mex and Cubonics: living la vida loca

The places where it is most common to speak Spanglish are those in the United States, where there is a large population of Latinos. For this reason, Southern California and Puerto Rico are significant hotspots for Spanglish.

Do you remember Ricky Martin’s song “Living la vida loca”? Well, that’s Spanglish. And Ricky Martin is Puerto Rican; it all makes sense now, right?

Chicano English is often used to refer to the dialect of English spoken by Americans of Mexican origin. Within this is the Texan variant, which is spoken mainly in southern Texas. However, these terms are also used to refer to the Spanglish spoken in these geographical areas, which differs, for example, from that developed by Cuban Americans residing in Miami, whose Spanglish is usually known as the Cubonics language.

What do you think of Spanglish? Is it possible that English and Spanish will merge into a single language and Spanglish will finally be recognised? Would you like that to happen? Share with us what you think of this linguistic phenomenon, whether you like it or not and if you are a user. We would want to know what you think.

Spanglish exists -that is a fact- but we still have English and Spanish. So, if you want to improve your writing in Spanish, take advantage of iScribo, our excellent spelling and grammar correction tool. You will not regret it!

Hasta la vista, baby.

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History of Spanish language

The Spanish calendar: days, months, and seasons of the year. Where do their names come from?

What is time? From philosophy, the thinking around time lies in its nature: does time exist or not, and if it exists, can we really measure it?

Today, we will observe time from physics, where it is proposed that time is a magnitude with which the separation, simultaneity or duration of events is measured. This allows us to organise them in their simplest temporal form. That is, past, present, and future. Where events are in each of these sets depends on their relationship.

The best-known system of representing the passage of time is the calendar. The calendar model officially used in almost the entire world is the Gregorian calendar, named in honour of its promoter, Pope Gregory XIII.

The term calendar comes from the Latin calendarium, from calendae (calendas), a name that in ancient Rome was given to the first day of each month, corresponding to the phase of the new moon. Furthermore, the calendarium was the book where the loans that fell due on the calendas were recorded.

In different ancient peoples, the days were grouped into seven concerning the lunar phases. Rome continued with this organization, where each day was linked to a divinity: Luna (Moon), Marte (Mars), Mercurio (Mercury), Jupiter, and Venus. Sábado is a consecration to Saturn and domingo derives from dies dominicus (day of the Lord).

Months and seasons of the year

Initially, the lunar calendar consisted of ten months: Martius (marzo), in honour of Mars. Aprilis (abril), perhaps related to the Etruscan Apru and this to the Greek Aphrô of Aphrodite. Maius (mayo) is linked to Maia, a deity related to flowering. Iunius (Junio) in memory of the goddess Juno. Quintilis (quintile), Sextilis (September) derived from septem (seven), being the seventh month and following the same formula, it was continued with October, November, and December (octubre, noviembre and diciembre). In the 8th and 7th centuries, the months of Ianuarius (enero) and Februarius (febrero) were added in honour of Janus, God of the double face, symbol of the beginning and the end, and Februus to whom the purification rites were dedicated. In 153 BC, Ianuarius became the first month of the year. Quintilis was renamed Iulius (julio) in a clear allusion to Julius Caesar, while Sextilis was replaced by Augustus (agosto) in homage to Octavius Augustus.

The months were grouped into seasons, which since the Romans until now we divided into four: ver, aestas, autumnus and hiems (verano [current primavera], estío, otoño e invierno). Later, the voice prima vera (primera primavera) was incorporated, and the seasons became five: primavera, verano, estío, otoño e invierno. From the 17th century onwards, primavera – the time of the first flowering – displaced verano and merged with estío, definitively forming the four seasons that we know now.

So, we already know that, if time exists, the Spanish calendar tells us that today is spring and summer on one side of the world and autumn and winter on the other. Moreover, it is March [Marzo] (Martius) worldwide in honour of Mars.

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History of Spanish language

Words from Quechua and Mayan in Spanish

Quechua and Mayan are two indigenous languages of Latin America. Quechua is one of the two indigenous languages with the largest number of speakers today (about 14 million, considering all its variants). Mayan or, rather, the Mayan languages currently have nine hundred thousand native speakers of the languages that make up this linguistic family.

Quechua is the language of the Inca Empire and has more than 500 years of contact with Spanish, so the influence between both languages has been natural. Loanwords happen from Spanish to Quechua and from Quechua to Spanish. Today, we will see some examples of words of Quechua origin that are part of the usual lexicon of Spanish, especially the one spoken in many Latin American countries.

On the other hand, Mayan is another of the native languages of Latin America that has influenced the Spanish we speak today. Notice, however, that what is currently known as the “Mayan language” is a linguistic family of around 30 different languages spoken in the ancient Mayan territory, which ranges from southeastern Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, and El Salvador. These languages, which still live, share specific characteristics but are very different. Among all these, Peninsular Mayan is one of the official languages of Mexico.

In today’s article, we will see what are some of the words originating from Quechua and Mayan in Spanish:

The mayisms

Patatús: in Mayan, it means feigned death, and in current Spanish, it is a colloquial expression used to express astonishment or fainting. For example: con esta noticia me va a dar un patatús [This news is going to give me a patatús].

Cachito: Is synonymous with a piece, rather a little piece and comes from the onomatopoeia [cach] heard when something breaks. In Mayan, cach means “broken thing” or “that breaks.”

Cacao: Cacao was “the food of the gods” since the Mayans considered its plant sacred. Today, this food is known throughout the world and is an essential ingredient to produce chocolate.

Cenote: They are the characteristic wells of Yucatán province, in Mexico. It comes from the Mayan word tz’onot, which means well or cavern with water.

Cigar: Comes from the Mayan siyar and is a word that has spread to other languages due to the custom of inhaling tobacco made in the form of a roll.

Quechuisms

Quechuisms are words of Quechua origin assimilated into Spanish over time. Some linguistic loans remain in Peru, Bolivia, Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, and Colombia. Countries that were part of the Inca Empire. Let’s review some of these:

Cancha: It comes from the Quechua kancha and means enclosure, like the space intended for specific sports or shows.

Charqui: Dehydrated and salted meat typical of South America’s Andean and southern regions.

Chaucha: Currency of low value. Chauchera: in Bolivia and Chile, it is synonymous with a purse.

Concho: Sediment located at the bottom of a container and used to refer to the last child of a couple. In the case of the last child, the diminutive conchito is more common.

Mate: Drink made from the leaves and branches of Ilex paraguariensis, the plant itself and the container used to drink it.

Nanai: caress to soothe pain. The Chilean Academy of Language defines it as “a very tender caress that attempts to soothe pain or sorrow.” It is also used to express tenderness; for example, when one sees a very tender baby, they express “Nanai!”

Morocho: Comes from the Quechua “muruch’u”, which means “variety of tough corn.” But in Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay, it is an adjective for a person with brown skin and black hair.

Palta: Peruvians and Chileans call palta to this green and creamy fruit. It is known as aguacate in the rest of the countries in the region.

Poncho: A coat consisting of a square blanket made of wool or cloth with an opening in the centre.

Pucho: means leftover. In Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Honduras, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay, it refers to a cigarette or its butt.

Guagua: Boy, girl and infant. Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, and Ecuador use it as a synonym for baby.

Yapa: Is an Andean idiom that refers to a gift or extra addition to a product during a commercial transaction, especially in a popular context.

As a bonus track, two Nahuatl words used in current Spanish: aguacate and apapachar. Aguacate: It comes from ahuacatl, which means testicles. The avocado has this name because of the shape of this fruit.  Acapachar is the action of squeezing or giving love to another with the first impulse. It is adorable and is a verb used in Latin American Spanish to hug or, to be more precise, to pamper to another.

Now you know that you can always comfort a loved one with a “nanai” or “apapacharlo” until he or she feels better. You know the influence of Quechua and Mayan in Spanish, and you can use it to take your Spanish to the next level.

Keep learning more and more about the Spanish language and its different cultures through the articles published on our blog.

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History of Spanish language

Why does the letter “h” exist in Spanish?

The letter “h” is a big headache for many Spanish speakers. When speaking, there is no problem; the difficulty is when writing a letter with no sound and having certainty about when and where to place it. It is such a discreet letter that many have advocated for its elimination, but this queen of imperceptible sounds has triumphantly held a place in the Spanish alphabet. Is it a simple whim? No. In grammar, everything generally has an explanation.

The letter h is the eighth letter in the Spanish alphabet. It is pronounced only when preceded by the letter c, forming the sound “ch”. The problem is that more than 2,000 words begin with the letter h in Spanish and a few more have this letter interspersed. But then, if it doesn’t sound, why do we write it? Why write something that doesn’t exist? One of the reasons is that it was not always mute.

The origins of the “h”

Let’s go back to its past: the Phoenicians were the first to use this letter and pronounced it as an aspirated “j”. The Phoenicians passed it to the Greeks, who adopted it with a gentle aspiration. Then, it passed into Latin, from Greek, and the sound became even softer.

 From Latin, it made its jump to Spanish, where at first it was also pronounced as an aspirated sound, accompanied by a small explosion of air similar to the current pronunciation of the aspirated “h” in English. But Spanish not only used Latin words that began with “h”, but it also appropriated numerous Latin words that began with “f”. At first, these words also began with “f” in Spanish, but as the years went by and since, in some parts of Spain, the “f” sound was also pronounced with an aspiration, in the 14th century, the “f” initial began to be replaced by the initial “h”. This is what happened with farina, which became harina (flour), the verb hacer (to do), which in its beginnings was facer, helecho (fern)(which during the Middle Ages was felecho), humo (smoke), which was fumo, hola (hello), which derives from fola and many other words. This change also affected some words that had the f interspersed, such as the case of búho (owl), which comes from bufo in Latin.

According to the RAE records, until the mid-16th century, the letter h in Spanish was still pronounced with an aspiration, especially in words initially written with f in Latin.

Starting in the 15th century, the trend changed, and the aspirated h began to be considered a vulgarism typical of the lower classes, so little by little, the h began to be silenced entirely until it became the silent letter that it is today.

H: the only letter that is not a sound but is equally necessary

One more historical fact explains the existence of this letter: in the past, both the letters u and v were written precisely the same, although they were not pronounced in the same way. Therefore, to identify that the corresponding sound was that of the vowel “u” and not that of the consonant “v”, an h was placed before it. In this way, it was known that huevo (egg) should be pronounced as “uevo” and not as “vevo” as it would have been without the h in front.

Furthermore, the letter h in Spanish differentiates homophonous words in writing. Those that are pronounced the same but have different meanings. Thus, we can quickly differentiate writing hola (hello) from ola (wave), hojear (leaf through) from ojear (to browse), hecho (fact) from echo (he/she drop) or differentiate the preposition a (to) by ha from the verb hacer (to do).

As you have seen, “H” is a silent letter with a great history that still fulfils essential functions in Spanish. The discreet queen can only be used correctly if you practice reading and writing a lot. The mere fact of being the only letter in Spanish that holds the title of having no sound makes it very special. After knowing its story, I hope you are encouraged to correct your spelling and remember your “Hs” here or there.

And remember that if you still need help with Spanish grammar, iScribo is always here to help you improve!

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Culture around Spanish language

The most beautiful words and expressions in Spanish

Spanish is the second most studied language in the world, and although it is difficult to say precisely, it is estimated that it has about three hundred thousand words in its lexicon. Let’s consider the combinations of these and the uses by the different variants of Spanish. We are talking about a vibrant language, where even conversations between speakers of different variants of Spanish cannot be understood so easily by each other.

There are also lovely words that have yet to have an exact translation in other languages. Today, iScribo invites you to see some of them and have fun getting to know part of Spanish speakers’ culture through their use of their language.

The fact that there are expressions or words without a precise translation is not a phenomenon unique to Spanish. It happens a lot between different languages. The reason for this is that language is the communication tool of a community, and what is essential for one is not necessarily crucial for others.

To be or to be? That is the problem

Languages have the words their speakers need: no more, no less. Therefore, learning a language implies being aware that you are also learning how to live the life of the culture corresponding to said language.

Let’s start with a beautiful distinction between ser and estar verbs. In Spanish, unlike English, we understand that in life, you can ser and you can estar, which are not the same thing. While estar implies occupying a space or becoming visible and includes a property susceptible to change, ser suggests some way of giving existence meaning. Ser transcends estar since it gives it meaning. It is the difference between essence and attribute; an attribute can change, but the essence cannot. I am a human being (essentially), and I am living on planet Earth, for example.

A fascinating use colloquially in Chile makes the difference between dejar ser (letting be) and dejar estar (letting be). When someone tells me dejé estar (I let myself be), he/she means that he/she did not do anything he should have done. On the other hand, when he/she tells me dejé ser (I let myself be), he/she means I freed myself, or I let myself go, something like the Beatles’ Let It Be.

Beautiful words without translation into other languages

The Spanish words in this selection are related to the culture around food and taking a walk, and some are linked to the night.

Sobremesa: everyone practices it, particularly on weekends. Millions and millions of families and friends spend a great time sharing at the table after eating. That pleasant moment is the after-dinner meal.

Provecho: I love this one, also because it has some controversy. For some, it is not polite to say it, while for others, it is a good wish. Anyway, there is something nice about it: by saying “provecho” or “buen provecho”, you are wishing the person who is eating, or with whom you are sharing the meal, that the meal will be pleasant. Isn’t that a good feeling towards each other? Its equivalent in French is “bon appetite”.

Now let’s move on to the night: has it happened to you that you are tired and try but can’t sleep? Well, that is what in Spanish is called desvelar(se): it means to prevent sleep or to lose sleep due to the inability to fall asleep.

Trasnochar: Are you one of those who likes to stay late? So, you are someone who usually stays up late. Some people do it only on the weekends when they go out to party, but some live a life that way because they are more productive; anyway, with them, we use the verb to stay up late.

Madrugada: refers to the moment when night and morning merge. It is before dawn and after night.

Estrenar: If one goes to the premiere of a movie in English, the verb release is used, but in Spanish, estrenar also refers to wearing a piece of clothing for the first time. It is a particular activity for many people: hoy estrenaré un vestido nuevo.

Vitrinear: It is somewhat related to the previous concept. Vitrinas are the shop windows where stores display their products. Vitrinear, therefore, is the verb that indicates going out to browse the windows without necessarily having the goal of purchasing. Let’s go window shopping is an invitation to go out and visit stores without necessarily buying. It is more of an invitation to walk.

Here comes a bonus track: la vergüenza ajena is amusing. Not all cultures have it, but the expression is understood. It is a borrowed feeling because here, one does not feel ashamed for what one did but instead for what someone else did. In English, it would be something like feeling embarrassed by someone else, although it is not precisely the same since, with that phrase, what is being done is rationalising the feeling.

I hope you enjoyed reading this article. Keep visiting the iScribo blog to learn more about the world that revolves around a language as beautiful as Spanish. Here we are, waiting for you with more topics of interest!

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