A brief history of Spanish in Latam
Keywords: History, Spanish, Castelano, Latin America, Neutral Spanish
Maria Pilar Mauriño
BA in Spanish and Literature
In this article, I want to reflect on two deeply rooted beliefs among Spanish learners and dismantle them: «it is better to learn neutral Spanish» and «English does not have as many regional differences.»
It is often said that Argentine Spanish is very different, peculiar, or that we significantly change words and the way we pronounce certain phonemes. I wonder, how is it different? in relation to what ? People have the misconception that the language spoken in Argentina is different because it´s Castilian (Castellano) and that it has a different origin from the language spoken in Spain, Colombia, Mexico, or Peru.
Is Spanish the same as Castellano? Why don’t we speak Peruvian, Argentine, or Mexican?
Those who learned Spanish as a foreign language in school in the United States consider Argentine Spanish very difficult to understand, and those who studied it at a university in the United Kingdom can understand someone from Madrid but not a Mexican. This diversity might cause a lot of frustration for tourists, travelers, students, and business people who need to use Spanish but encounter so many varieties that it causes a big confusion.
Most people, specially beginners say that they prefer a neutral Spanish. But I thinkr, does neutral Spanish really exist? Is «neutral» Spanish the language of any real person? Is there an equivalent in every language?
As a Spanish teacher and traveler who was once an English student, it´s interesting to hear that many English speakers hold the false belief that their language is easier to learn because there aren’t as many regional differences or because their grammar is simpler or easier..
Every time I notice this belief in a student, tourist or friend, I consider it necessary to clear this out and state and show that differences in English are several and notable, and that for English learners, it is just as difficult as it is for students of any language.
Dialectal and social differences in usage exist in all languages, and they are correct and valid because they contribute to linguistic and cultural diversity. Because American English is not the same as Australian English, and because an Australian does not speak the same way as a Scot, let alone a South African, even though they can read what each other writes, listen to songs and understand the lyrics and just communicate without problems. Because same as there are more than twelve words to say popcorn in Spanish, there are at least six different ways to say toilet in English, and this is fine and super interesting.
Although it is tough to understand and learn these differences, we must embrace them as proof that humanity remains beautifully diverse.
This reflection leads to answer the question of whether or not we speak the same language in all Spanish-speaking countries when there are so many regional differences, and what this language is or should be called.
In Europe, Spanish is the official language of Spain, as it is its place of origin. In Africa, Equatorial Guinea has it as an official language, and on the American continent, from Mexico to Argentina, twenty countries have Spanish as their official language. Also, in many countries such as Portugal, Brazil, the United States, and the Philippines, Spanish is a widely used language even though it is not official.
Spanish or Castellano are the same language with different names. The language we know as Spanish was originally Castellano, a language spoken in the territory of Castile, a central region of what is today Spain—a country formed by different kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula unified under the rule of the same empire at the end of the 15th century and the beginning of the 16th century. This new empire adopted Español (Spanish) as the demonym and name of its official language, and the Catholic faith as the official faith. Under this principle of «one nation, one language, one religion,» a process of unification, enrichment, and expansion began, leading the empire to conquer and colonize territories on different islands and continents, imposing its language and idiosyncrasy. This is how the empire’s language and culture reached America, Africa, and Asia, and were imposed.
In Latin America, the European languages imposed through colonization underwent a process of transformation that resulted in their profound enrichment. After centuries of colonialism, the languages and cultures brought by Europeans took root in these territories while fusing with local indigenous and African languages, creating new regional varieties of those languages and a unique idiosyncrasy as a result. Upon gaining independence, most of these countries adopted the European language that was already established, but in their own variety, and each of these varieties continued its transformation until it distinguished itself considerably from the others, especially from the original variety, but without losing its linguistic foundation.
The language we speak today in Argentina is the same language they speak in Spain, but it is definitively not the same as the one spoken in Castile in the 16th century, and it is evident that in many aspects it is not the same for different regions, ages, or social groups. However, it remains the same language because we manage to understand each other without using a translator. That is why we do not call it Madrileño, Argentine, Peruvian, or Mexican, but rather Peninsular Spanish, Rioplatense Spanish, Northern Mexican Spanish, or NEA (Northeast Argentina) Spanish, among others. This is partly due to linguistic affiliation but also due to a cultural and political connection tied to a heritage we cannot entirely reject.
Languages are alive; they evolve and develop particularities according to different factors. The influence of neighboring languages, native languages, heritage languages of immigrants, and even foreign languages from music and entertainment cause constant changes in vocabulary, pronunciation, meaning, and grammar of the language spoken in a country and region, but generational differences and sociocultural processes also add to these changes. We could even say that each individual person has their own unique language, in which many aspects of their identity can be manifested: age, gender, geographical origin, cultural heritage, educational level, political orientation, and much more.
And now is time to talk about language neutrality. I will stop repeating that a neutral language does not exist; rather, there are standard varieties that are socially and/or institutionally accepted in each region and field. Neutral Spanish, just like any other neutralized version of a language, is an invention, artificially created by social convention for the specific purpose of erasing regional and personal traces in the way announcers or dubbing actors speak, attempting to make them sound as generic as possible for mainly commercial purposes. But even this neutral accent was forged by taking a Mexican variety of Spanish and stripping it of its most regional aspects, so anyone outside of Mexico can identify the Mexican accent in this Spanish that tries to be neutral.
Therefore, it becomes clear that what sounds neutral or natural to one person is actually their own or closest variety of that language.
Consequently, if you are learning Spanish and find it difficult to sound «natural» when speaking, or if you are a native speaker who was once mocked for the way you speak, do not be ashamed or try to force changing your accent, because your way of expressing yourself is your personal brand.
It is time to dismantle those beliefs that assume one language or variety is superior or better than another, or that the only correct way to speak is the one that pleases a particular sector of society.
In the next article, I am going to tell you a bit about my variety of Spanish and the particularities of the way I speak: Correntino Spanish and NEA Spanish.