# Latin American Spanish vs. Castillian Spanish **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 27, 2008, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-american-spanish-vs-castillian-spanish/442983 "2008-03-27T22:47:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2008, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-american-spanish-vs-castillian-spanish/442983/1 "2008-03-27T22:47:51Z")
[Since we’re doing this with French](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=461207&page=1&pp=50)… What are the principal differences between Castillian Spanish and Latin American Spanish? I learned in high school about a pretty obvious difference: the absence of the _vosotros_ verb form outside of Spain. Other than that, I’ll defer to actual speakers of the language. Are there differences that make the languages unintelligible, or is it mostly about regionalisms and accents? Also - I note that there are differences within Latin America, as well. I have heard (though I can’t confirm first-hand), that Dominicans tend not to pronounce the last s in a word (so _buenos dias_ becomes _bueno dia_ when spoken), and that Argentinians pronounce beginning y’s as j’s (so _yo_ becomes _jo_ when spoken). [Funny Story] I was once having lunch with an Argentinian guy and a Mexican woman. At some point, the Argentinian dude took exception to something I had said and called me “puto.” I returned the favor and called him “cavrón.” While the Mexican woman was gasping for breath, the Argentinian fellow just looked confused. Apparently, in Argentinian Spanish, “puto” is harmless and means something like “poopyhead,” and “cavrón” doesn’t mean much of anything. [/Funny Story] ---
**Author:** ![KarlGrenze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/dbc845/32.png) [@KarlGrenze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGrenze)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2008, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-american-spanish-vs-castillian-spanish/442983/2 "2008-03-27T22:59:22Z")
I’m sure others will come along soon, and there have been other threads with similar topic. I think Argentinian Spanish (and other South American countries) use _vos_, but I don’t know if they use the plural _vosotros_ instead of _ustedes_. I’m barely guessing they do, but I can’t remember from the last conversation I had with someone from one of those countries. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGrenze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/dbc845/32.png) [@KarlGrenze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGrenze)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2008, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-american-spanish-vs-castillian-spanish/442983/3 "2008-03-27T23:23:36Z")
Slow search engine, and crappy pages that keep getting error messages… Anyways, different threads comparing Spanish language in different countries and regions. [Here’s one thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=319211&highlight=Spanish) [And another one](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=419173&highlight=Spanish) [A third one](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=418864&highlight=Spanish) [And the most recent one!](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=459404&highlight=Spanish) As a rule, despite the accent, a person speaking formal Spanish (for the “standard” that Nava mentioned in the last thread, or for its own dialect, like I mentioned), will be well understood by most of the Spanish speakers across the countries. The more one descends into informal, slang, street, and vulgar, the more one restricts the ability to be understood to just people from a certain region (or those that know about it). Heh, speaking of that, last night I was watching a Mexican movie with a Mexican (from the capital) friend. I didn’t like it, he eventually changed it (I think I’m training him 😃 ), but one of the things that stuck to me was that I couldn’t understand half of the jokes. He asked me if I didn’t hear, my reply was “I heard the words, together they make no sense to me!” OTOH, he knows Puerto Rican Spanish enough that when I start using the local vocabulary he doesn’t flinch or ask me WTF I meant. Similar, he’s quick to point out when our “same words, different meanings” differences come up, since I look at him weird. ---
**Author:** ![Open\_Your\_Eyes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e8c25b/32.png) [@Open\_Your\_Eyes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Open_Your_Eyes)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2008, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-american-spanish-vs-castillian-spanish/442983/4 "2008-03-27T23:38:38Z")
I’m from Argentina, so I think I can help you out a little. It’s true we say the \y\'s like \j\'s. And the \vos\ it also right, so you got that much down 😃 Since Argentineans are mostly Spanish and Italian, we take a lot of words and grammar from them. \Are there differences that make the languages unintelligible, or is it mostly about regionalisms and accents?\ I think both are right. There’s differences and regional slang. Mexicans can talk differently than someone from Venezuela, perhaps, and the same with a Colombian and Argentinian. I think Argentina stands out the most in difference because we’re European and we share languages. And about your story: too funny. ‘Puto’ is actually cussing, but swearing isn’t as bad as it is in English because we use it mostly in a friendly way. The guy was probably jokingly messing with you. Hope I helped. ---
**Author:** ![from\_a\_to\_z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5fc32e/32.png) [@from\_a\_to\_z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/from_a_to_z)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2008, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-american-spanish-vs-castillian-spanish/442983/5 "2008-03-27T23:50:16Z")
[QUOTE=HeyHomie] …“puto” is harmless and…“cavrón” doesn’t mean much of anything. [/QUOTE] Rather than search for the various previous threads on this topic, I’d say to be very careful when throwing around such terms. At least smile 🙂 when you call someone that. The reaction (like a knifing) could, though, give you insight on the effectiveness of these words that are new to you. “cabrón” is, at the least, “cuckold” and per my _Collins Spanish Dictionary_ “traitor” in Argentina (besides other meanings in other countries). ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2008, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-american-spanish-vs-castillian-spanish/442983/6 "2008-03-28T04:29:24Z")
[QUOTE=HeyHomie] I have heard (though I can’t confirm first-hand), that Dominicans tend not to pronounce the last s in a word (so _buenos dias_ becomes _bueno dia_ when spoken), [/quote] That’s typical of “Caribbean” Spanish in general (Dominican, Cuban, Puerto Rican, Panamanian, and the north coast of Colombia. It’s also typical to drop the d in -ado; _venado_ (deer) becomes _venao_, etc. > [@](#): > > Apparently, in Argentinian Spanish, “puto” is harmless and means something like “poopyhead,” and “cavrón” doesn’t mean much of anything. I’d also be pretty cautious about tossing around _cabrón_ almost anywhere. Although the basic connotation is cuckold, in impact it pretty much equates to “motherfucker.” You shouldn’t use it to a stranger unless you don’t mind getting into a knife fight. ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2008, 11:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-american-spanish-vs-castillian-spanish/442983/7 "2008-03-28T11:35:58Z")
[QUOTE=Colibri] I’d also be pretty cautious about tossing around _cabrón_ almost anywhere. … You shouldn’t use it to a stranger unless you don’t mind getting into a knife fight. [/QUOTE] The guy wasn’t a stranger - he was a friend. Which is why I was so taken aback when he called me _puto_. ---
**Author:** ![Martha\_Medea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/43a26b/32.png) [@Martha\_Medea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martha_Medea)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2008, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-american-spanish-vs-castillian-spanish/442983/8 "2008-03-28T12:02:24Z")
[QUOTE=Colibri] That’s typical of “Caribbean” Spanish in general (Dominican, Cuban, Puerto Rican, Panamanian, and the north coast of Colombia. It’s also typical to drop the d in -ado; _venado_ (deer) becomes _venao_, etc. [/QUOTE] And Venezuela, parts of Central America and the south of Spain. ---
**Author:** ![SmackFu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/53a042/32.png) [@SmackFu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmackFu)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2008, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-american-spanish-vs-castillian-spanish/442983/9 "2008-03-28T14:18:17Z")
So if you just use ustedes in Spain instead of vosotros, do they think you’re being overly formal? ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2008, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-american-spanish-vs-castillian-spanish/442983/10 "2008-03-28T14:21:25Z")
Don’t Castillians have a lisp? Marc ---
**Author:** ![RedFury](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ec9cab/32.png) [@RedFury](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RedFury)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2008, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-american-spanish-vs-castillian-spanish/442983/11 "2008-03-28T14:43:01Z")
Deleted double post ---
**Author:** ![RedFury](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ec9cab/32.png) [@RedFury](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RedFury)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2008, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-american-spanish-vs-castillian-spanish/442983/12 "2008-03-28T14:44:02Z")
[QUOTE=MGibson] Don’t Castillians have a lisp? Marc [/QUOTE] Puez no ze si ze puede llamar azi, pero lo que esta clarisimo es que en Madriz nos tomamos la “z” en serio. Marchando una de zigalas! ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7bcc69/32.png) [@Mighty\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Girl)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2008, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-american-spanish-vs-castillian-spanish/442983/13 "2008-03-28T15:29:42Z")
[QUOTE=Open Your Eyes] I think Argentina stands out the most in difference because **we’re European** and we share languages. [/QUOTE] Say what? I think I need a new map. And welcome, I hope you stay. I second (third, fourth… whatever) the assertion that (reasonably) educated Latin-Americans and Spaniards are capable of speaking in a manner that is understood throughout the Spanish-speaking world. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2008, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-american-spanish-vs-castillian-spanish/442983/14 "2008-03-28T15:33:36Z")
[QUOTE=KarlGrenze] …As a rule, despite the accent, a person speaking formal Spanish (for the “standard” that Nava mentioned in the last thread, or for its own dialect, like I mentioned), will be well understood by most of the Spanish speakers across the countries. The more one descends into informal, slang, street, and vulgar, the more one restricts the ability to be understood to just people from a certain region (or those that know about it). Heh, speaking of that, last night I was watching a Mexican movie with a Mexican (from the capital) friend. I didn’t like it, he eventually changed it (I think I’m training him 😃 ), but one of the things that stuck to me was that I couldn’t understand half of the jokes. He asked me if I didn’t hear, my reply was "I heard the words, together they make no sense to me… [/QUOTE] Here in Houston, one of the Spanish Language TV stations shows lots of Cantinflas movies on holidays. As my understanding of Spanish increased, I still had problems understanding **him**. Eventually, I discovered he was using Mexico City slang & lots of double-talk! (I preferred the films of Pedro Infante & Jorge Negrete–who got their message across in song.) The great Cafe Tacuba does a rap tune called [Chilanga Banda](http://dayeffay.blogspot.com/2007/06/ch-ch-ch.html)–using words one will **not** learn in Spanish class. A co-worker from Argentina spoke very proper Spanish. But he got an unexpected phone call from an old friend in Buenos Aires & answered in a very different version of the language. (Yes, they really do say _Che_ a lot.) _[Destinos](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Destinos)_ is an educational telenovela, in which a long & complex story takes place in various Spanish speaking countries. There’s English narration at the beginning, which tapers off as the story unfolds. You get a chance to hear several different versions of the language–according to location, and levels of education and/or formality. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGrenze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/dbc845/32.png) [@KarlGrenze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGrenze)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2008, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-american-spanish-vs-castillian-spanish/442983/15 "2008-03-28T19:22:00Z")
Bridget, I remember that series, they aired it at one of the local PBS stations many years ago. As I was a teenage with nothing to do over the summer, I watched it. More entertaining then regular soap operas. 😉 Also, I grew up with Cantinflas movies and ended up understanding him. And some of his phrases were supposed to not make sense anyway. You can keep Negrete and Infante, I care not for them, give me Cantinflas. 🙂 The movie we were watching the other night was a more or less recent comedy movie about rural Mexicans. I agree with Mighty\_Girl regarding Open your Eyes’ line. Heh… And about the regionalisms, there is a difference between some of the features and others (not that it makes it less understandable). Not differentiating between c, s, and z is considered formal and acceptable (despite what some poster may say, the RAE and the other Academies considering it formal). Dropping the s at the end of words (in most cases), dropping the d in words ending in -ado, complete change of r to l (street Puerto Rican can sound like that, I hate it)… All of those are considered improper by the Academies, in no way formal, and in fact, when you’re speaking to the public (or officials, or superiors, or in an interview) you should not do that. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2008, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-american-spanish-vs-castillian-spanish/442983/16 "2008-03-28T22:28:14Z")
[QUOTE=Mighty\_Girl] Say what? I think I need a new map. [/QUOTE] Well, there’s an old saying that Argentinians think they’re more European than the Europeans. But I think what she was saying is that Argentina has more of a mixture of different European countries than most other S.A. nations. And not much of an indigenous population left. From the wikipedia article on Argentina: > [@](#): > > Argentina is a melting pot of different peoples, both autochthonous and immigrants. Citizens of European descent make up the great majority of the population, with estimates varying from white 89.7%[45] to 97%[46] of the total population. The last national census, based on self-ascription, indicated a similar figure.[47]. > > A study conducted by Argentine, Swedish and North American institutions, established that the genetic average structure of the Argentine population, contains 79,9% of European contribution[48], whereas the Amerindian admixture, though not fully visible in physical appearance, was estimated to be present in a high percentage of the population, close to 56% on either paternal or maternal lineages, of which just 10% were shown to have Amerindian ancestors on both lineages[49]. There is a large % of the population that is European, but not Spanish, in origin (especially Italian). ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2008, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-american-spanish-vs-castillian-spanish/442983/17 "2008-03-29T04:04:07Z")
[QUOTE=John Mace] Well, there’s an old saying that Argentinians think they’re more European than the Europeans. [/QUOTE] There’s another saying that an Argentinian is an Italian who speaks Spanish, wishes he were English, and acts like he’s French. 🙂 (Apologies to our Argentinian friends.)