Articles about Spanish

[Marianopolita]

Article: 'Ingl?s de Miami es afectado por el espa?ol'

I was watching Encuentro today on CNN en espa?ol and one of the topics was a linguistic study done by a university professor, Phillip Carter of FIU (Florida International University) on the influence of Spanish on English spoken in Miami. It caught my attention right away and after looking at the segment, I decided to search for info on the topic on Google and there was an article published this week as well in several newspapers - Diario Libre and El Nuevo Herald are two common Spanish newspapers that featured an article.

The segment and article are spot on in my opinion and Phillip Carter, a professor of sociolinguistics touches on several key aspects on how these two languages spoken by many in Miami impact each other and most interesting is the fact that Spanish has an impact on English and the way it is spoken by native English speakers as well because of the high percentage of Spanish speakers in the city. Usually, one hears and reads about the impact of English on Spanish.

The point I found most interesting and glad that it was mentioned is that many native English speakers who have the influence of Spanish spoken around them speak English with a different intonation (nothing to do with accent) compared to those who have no influence of Spanish at all.

This is something I have taken note of a long time ago in language especially with first generation children whose parents speak Spanish but they grow up speaking English but have the influence of Spanish intonation from their parents and others around them when they speak English.

Although the study focuses on Miami, I think a sociolinguistic study of similar cities in North America such as New York, Toronto, Montreal, Boston, Houston and any city in California would reveal similar results regarding the influence on Spanish on English among those who do speak both languages or just English speakers (but are influenced by Spanish speaking family members, peers etc)

Ingl?s de Miami es afectado por el espa?ol - DiarioLibre.com


-MP.

 

[Marianopolita]

Debe vs. debe de

If you thought that the preposition de did not make a difference, think again. It sure does and it changes the meaning of what a speaker intends to convey.

It?s an interesting grammar point and the article explains the differences in meaning and usage.

In general, some people pick up the habit of using de (incorrectly) after many verbs which is known as deque?smo in Spanish but in this case it?s not referring to this concept at all. The point of the article clarifies the meaning and usage of debe and debe de in Spanish.

If you were ever wondering or noticed that there is a difference, the article provides details as well as key examples of usage.


?Es correcto usar debe de??. La Prensa

En muchas ocasiones las personas, cuando quieren demostrar obligaci?n en alguna orientaci?n que ofrecen, acostumbran a decir: ?Debes de hacer la tarea de hoy?. Consideran que la preposici?n ?de? refuerza el ?nfasis del mandato.

Esto es un error, porque entre las per?frasis verbales deber + infinitivo y deber de + infinitivo, hay una significativa diferencia porque deber + infinitivo siempre significa obligaci?n; mientras deber de + infinitivo, se emplea para denotar una posibilidad, conjetura, duda.

Veamos esto con algunos ejemplos: ?Tus alumnos deben estudiar m?s que los m?os?. (Aqu? queremos expresar que ?tus alumnos tienen la obligaci?n de estudiar m?s que los m?os?).

Ahora si decimos: ?Tus alumnos deben de estudiar m?s que los m?os?, lo que estamos diciendo es que ?Tus alumnos quiz?s estudien m?s que los m?os?.

Si ya conocemos esta informaci?n, entonces debemos hacer un esfuerzo para tener siempre presente esta diferencia para evitar posibles ambig?edades, pues ya sabemos que no se justifica, intercalar la preposici?n de en los casos de obligaci?n:

Para terminar les quiero dar exactamente la regla que debemos aprender en este caso: ?DEBER?: este verbo seguido de infinitivo de otro verbo, sin la preposici?n de por medio, significa ?obligaci?n?, ?deber?; pero con la preposici?n ?de?, significa ?probabilidad?, ?conjetura?.



Ah? les dej? unos ejercicios para que indiquen la diferencia:


Se?ale cu?les de estas oraciones significan obligaci?n:



1) Ella debe de venir ma?ana de Cuba.

2) Mi hijo debe llegar hoy de Matagalpa.

3) El jard?n debe de estar marchito por la sequ?a.

4) No debes fumar tan seguido.

5) Debemos de comer antes de irnos.

-MP.

 

[Marianopolita]

Phrasal verbs-

Here is an interesting list of phrasal verbs recommended for Spanish speakers who are learning English. In my opinion, phrasal verbs are an essential component in language learning since verb + preposition combination is key and often used incorrectly by many when learning the language. I hear incorrect forms in English and Spanish. I thought it would be interesting to post the list. Surely, there are many more. It's a broad topic but I think it's helpful since it's a newspaper article on language and it can't cover everything. Further independent research can be done on your own.

Los 20 phrasal verbs que no deben faltar al hablar ingl?s ? Educaci?n ? Noticias, ?ltima hora, v?deos y fotos de Educaci?n en lainformacion.com

Los 20 phrasal verbs que no deben faltar al hablar ingl?s
Lola Duarte | Diverbo

domingo, 16/02/14 - 10:29


Son casi una pesadilla a la hora de hablar ingl?s: los phrasal verbs. Hay tantos que es imposible retenerlos todos. Pero ojo, incluso los angloparlantes no conocen todas estas estructuras que combinan verbo y adverbio o preposici?n. Por eso te vamos a echar una mano con estas estructuras malditas, d?ndote las que deber?as manejar porque resultan imprescindibles. Con la ayuda de Colby Price, de Pueblo Ingl?s Diverbo, te contamos cu?les son los 20 phrasal verbs que no deben faltar en tu vocabulario. Ah? van:

-Pick up: recoger

-Drop off: dejar en un sitio. “Ambos son muy comunes, pero tienen alternativa. Recoger tambi?n puede decirse get y dejar, leave”, comenta Price.

-Put on: vestirse

-Take off: quitarte ropa. “Este tambi?n tiene alternativa, remove, pero put on no la tiene”, a?ade.

-Turn on: encender

-Turn off: apagar. “Ambos se refieren a aparatos el?ctricos o m?quinas”.

-Turn up y turn down: subir y bajar el volumen. “Pero tambi?n significan aparecer (turn up) y rechazar (turn down)”, aclara Price.

-Take off: despegar. “Pero su ant?nimo no es un phrasal. Aterrizar se dice to land, muchos alumnos intentan convertirlo en phrasal verb y dicen land on, pero no es correcto. Lo mismo sucede con light, encender con fuego, y con put out (apagar fuego), intentan decir light on, que no existe”, explica.

-Stay away: mantenerse alejado.

-Get over: recuperarse de una enfermedad.

-“Hay otros con muchas posibles traducciones que es importante conocer, como make up que significa inventar, reconciliarse, maquillarse, recuperar (una clase)”.

-Put up: colgar, guardar.

-Fall down: caerse al suelo.

-Bring up: sacar un tema.

-Back up: dar marcha atr?s.

-Fill up: llenar (hasta el borde).

-Get up: levantarse.

-Hurry up: darse prisa.

-MP.

 

[Marianopolita]

We once made a list of 50 up verbs. sit up, shut up, drink up, hurry up, throw up, stand up, just a efw which come tomind. More than once a Spanish speaker has asked me what is up with all the up verbs. Der Fish

What was your response and how did you explain the equivalent in Spanish to them? For example, drink up. How did you explain the equivalent in Spanish? Questions like these from those who are learning are good to test your command of your own language. I am curious to know the response you provided.


-MP.

 

[Xavier_Onassis]

For example, drink up. How did you explain the equivalent in Spanish?

Drink this. Bebe esto.

Drink it up. B?betelo. English often used up and other prepositions when Spanish uses reflexive pronouns.

This is not always the case, however. P?rate is the usual way of saying "stop", but the attached reflexive pronoun -te is not.
translated in English.The same is true for No te nos dejes ~ Don't leave us. But you could include the word "alone" in this case.

 

[Marianopolita]

For example, drink up. How did you explain the equivalent in Spanish?

Drink this. Bebe esto.

Drink it up. B?betelo. English often used up and other prepositions when Spanish uses reflexive pronouns.

This is not always the case, however. P?rate is the usual way of saying "stop", but the attached reflexive pronoun -te is not.
translated in English.The same is true for No te nos dejes ~ Don't leave us. But you could include the word "alone" in this case.

Thanks Xavier.

However, I wanted to hear Derfish's response. I know the difference and can explain it as well. It does not surprise me that you know too from your posts but I wanted to hear what Derfish would say if he had to explain it to someone .

Oh well, I guess I should have been more clear and specific in my question.


-MP.

 

[Norma Rosa]

The same is true for No te nos dejes ~ Don't leave us. But you could include the word "alone" in this case.

No nos dejes.

 

[Marianopolita]

Phrasal verbs- links-

I found these two links that would be helpful and a quick online resource:


1/ This is one is quite thorough and all you have to do is learn them whether it's in English or Spanish.

Phrasal verbs

2/ This link is not as extensive but it's a good quick reference. It's geared towards Spanish speakers who are learning English.

English Lesson: Phrasal Verb List - Lecci?n de Ingl?s: Lista verbos frasales-


-MP.

 

[ROLLOUT]

No, Mariano. It's much more than lack of "accessibility and resources". There's something approaching a generalized disdain for reading. And spelling isn't given a second thought.

Can the church say, Amen.

 

[Marianopolita]

Like "Nunca me dejas papi!!!"?

Careful. There is a difference between nunca me dejas and nunca me dejes. I think you mean nunca me dejes in the phrase you are using. You do know this right?

call back volver a llamar PlayHe was busy when I called, but he said he would call me back tonight.

Llamar para atras? Isn't that how it is said here and in Cuba? But the Colombians laugh at this construction.
Der Fish

Llamar para atr?s is used in Miami and other bilingual cities in the USA where English and Spanish are spoken by the population. I doubt it's used in Cuba (maybe only by Miami Cubans) However, it's a literal translation from English to Spanish which makes no sense in Spanish. However, a Spanish speaker that speaks English will understand the meaning.

Not only Colombians but any Spanish speaker that speaks properly will mock and critique the usage. People who speak Spanish well do not adopt forms like llamar pa'tras. Puerto Ricans too use that construction.

Volver a llamar is the proper way.


-MP.

 

[Marianopolita]

Well, I will leave that with you then. Here's an opportunity for you to do some grammatical research in Spanish.

Nunca me dejas and nunca me dejes don't have the same meaning.


-MP.

 

[Marianopolita]

I debated where I should add this article but it's a good topic that was brought up in a thread on DR1.

I decided to add it to this thread since it's a sticky. However, have a look a thread started recently enough raising the same question.

http://dr1.com/forums/spanish-101/129532-membrec-membres.html

I am glad I am consistent even without looking at my response in the thread first. When I read this article I thought to myself membres?a is the most common way as confirmed by the very last line of the article and I am sticking with it too just like the author of the article.

In?s Izquierdo


Hace unos d?as, un lector me mand? una carta donde aparec?a membrec?a con C.

Mi compa?ero de labores Luis Sandoval me dijo que hab?a visto en un diccionario que estaba bien escribir membres?a con c. De inmediato fui al Diccionario de la Real Academia Espa?ola (DRAE), y le?: “membrec?a no est? registrada. La que se muestra a continuaci?n tiene formas con una escritura cercana” y al lado estaba membres?a con estas acepciones: “1. f. Ec., El Salv., Guat., Hond., M?x. y Pan. Condici?n de miembro de una entidad. 2. f. Cuba, Guat., Hond., M?x. y Pan. Conjunto de miembros”.

No qued? conforme y segu? investigando, busco el Diccionario Panhisp?nico de Dudas (DPD) y ?qu? me encuentro? “La palabra membres?a no est? registrada. La que se muestra a continuaci?n tiene formas con una escritura cercana. Membrec?a. En muchos pa?ses americanos, ‘condici?n de miembro’ y ‘conjunto de miembros’. Aunque, debido al seseo est? muy extendido el uso de membres?a, la graf?a correcta es membrec?a, pues el sufijo espa?ol para este derivado es -c?a (de abogado, abogac?a); la terminaci?n -s?a es propia de sustantivos derivados de nombres o adjetivos que terminan en -s: burgues?a (de burgu?s).

?C?mo lo ven? La Academia se contradice y no toma una postura definitiva, entonces c?mo haremos. Esta palabra viene del sustantivo miembro, y es la traducci?n del ingl?s membership.

El Diccionario de la lengua espa?ola de 2001 la incluye con s, pero, cuatro a?os despu?s, el DPD, 2005, alega que el sufijo es -c?a, con c, como abogac?a (de abogado), por lo que debe escribirse membrec?a. Pero en el 2009 la Nueva Gram?tica de la lengua espa?ola dice que el sufijo no es –c?a, sino –?a, y establece que las dos formas son correctas. El Diccionario de americanismos, 2010, recoge las dos formas.

As? que ya sabe, pueden usar las dos formas, membrec?a o membres?a, pero esta ?ltima es la m?s usual. Yo seguir? escribi?ndola con s, lo siento por el DPD.

http://www.laprensa.com.ni/2014/02/11/cultura/181956


-MP.

 

[Marianopolita]

'?frica con ?'

Here is an interesting article that I came across today in a newspaper I read on a regular basis- La Informaci?n.es

It's about the presence of the Spanish language in Africa and the interest in developing it and it becoming more widespread in the continent as its presence today is limited. Since I am fully interested and committed to all things Spanish, I found the article inspiring to read and become familiar with the objectives of la Fundaci?n Mujeres por ?frica which involves a cultural aspect as well. The initiative by this group is to boost teaching and the usage of Spanish in African countries- '?frica con ?'.

Estos expertos junto a 700 participantes, en su mayor?a estudiantes universitarios de espa?ol, debatieron situaci?n actual del espa?ol en ?frica y c?mo promover su uso como instrumento de desarrollo en ?frica, especialmente a trav?s de sus mujeres.

The article states the objectives of the congress:

El debate del congreso se centr? en tres temas: el espa?ol como lengua de oportunidades; las escritoras africanas y su posible repercusi?n en el ?mbito de la lengua espa?ola, y el papel de las mujeres afrodescendientes en Am?rica Latina y la ampliaci?n de su relaci?n con las africanas.

A language of the future

This part of the article I found extremely interesting and on point and it reiterates my opinion of those who want to learn a second or third language, Spanish should be a consideration. In my opinion, to debate the value of knowing how to speak Spanish is pointless. Of course, depending on where one lives, it may be a factor but the fact that it's the second most spoken language in the world, the official language of twenty countries, ranks number two in second languages learned and it's the second most used language on the internet gives one an idea of its value and importance. Where's the debate especially if one lives in the Americas. It's never too late to get on board with Spanish.

UN IDIOMA DE FUTURO

En la actualidad, el espa?ol ocupa el segundo lugar del ranking internacional de las lenguas en cuanto a n?mero de habitantes que lo hablan, m?s de 500 millones, por detr?s ?nicamente del chino y superando por primera vez al ingl?s, y los 20 millones de alumnos que aprenden nuestro idioma en 100 pa?ses lo convierten en el segundo m?s estudiado, solo aventajado por la lengua de Shakespeare.

Adem?s, el espa?ol se perfila como un idioma de futuro. Seg?n las previsiones de los expertos, en 2030, en torno a 535 millones de personas, el 7,5% de la poblaci?n mundial, ser? hispanohablante y dentro de tres o cuatro generaciones, el 10% de los habitantes del planeta se entender? en espa?ol. Una tendencia que ya se ve reflejada en el continuo ascenso de los alumnos matriculados en los cursos de espa?ol que imparte el Instituto Cervantes en sus centros de todo el mundo, que se multiplic? por 14 entre 1993 y 2012, una demanda que sigue creciendo.

Desde el punto de vista econ?mico, compartir el espa?ol aumenta un 290% el comercio bilateral entre los pa?ses hispanohablantes, mientras que en Espa?a ya supone un 15% del PIB nacional. Por eso, la Fundaci?n Mujeres por ?frica considera que puede ser una valiosa herramienta de conocimiento y desarrollo para las mujeres africanas.

Para contribuir a que ?frica hable espa?ol, la fundaci?n que lidera Fern?ndez de la Vega contempla otras actuaciones, como la creaci?n de un premio literario para impulsar la escritura en espa?ol de autoras africanas o la publicaci?n de aquellas ya reconocidas que, sin embargo no han sido traducidas a nuestra lengua.

http://noticias.lainformacion.com/e...-africa-habla-espanol_cxwalTOIr4cTKQhb3mCnY6/

-MP.

 

[Xavier_Onassis]

No me dejes is a command: "Don't leave me."

No me dejas is a declarative statement: "You aren't leaving me./ You don't leave me."

 

[Marianopolita]

'El lenguaje en medios digitales puede fragmentar el idioma'

The article is about the digital age and the impact that it has had on Spanish from a written and grammatical perspective. I found it interesting because the way people communicate in written from will slowly (and it already has started) impact the way people communicate verbally. What I find striking and this is long before texting became so popular and a prime form of communication for some people is how they have no clue about the rules of accentuation and where the accents go in Spanish.

In social media and emails it is common that the accents are omitted but it's also because people don't no where they go on the words or the rules behind them. As well, some people have very poor spelling in Spanish therefore accents do not exist. I could understand why they are omitted when texting but when sending an email especially in a professional environment the accents are part of the written language.

I agree with the author of the article and his suggestion that some kind of standardization of language communication in the digital age is necessary so that Spanish does not become fragmented.

El lenguaje en medios digitales puede fragmentar el idioma :: El Informador


-MP.

 

[Marianopolita]

?Konducta o conducta? ?Ksa o Casa?

For those of us who are interested in the impact of technology on language, Spanish in particular, here is an article on how spelling in Spanish has been affected by texting, the internet, social media etc. As well, there is mention of common spelling errors that people make in Spanish such as not knowing when to use 'b' or 'v' or 's', 'z' and 'c' etc.

Besides the technology issue of texting and short forms etc, I always find these types of articles interesting because I think spelling in Spanish is easy compared to English. Once one understands the rules of accentuation, spelling in Spanish is completely phonetic. 'H' is the only silent letter.

.: El Sol de Margarita :.


-MP.

 

[Xavier_Onassis]

There seems to be a subtle difference in English between "burn down" and "burn up".

Houses and buildings burn down. This can be intentional or not.
His house burned down. (Su casa se le quem?.)
He burned down his house. (?l quem? su casa.)
To stress that he did it intentionally, Spanish. might say. ?l prendi? fuego a su casa, y se quem?.


Burn up generally refers to smaller things:
He burned up the documents. (?l quem? los documentos.)

 

[Marianopolita]

?En Chile se habla un p?simo espa?ol?....

I stumbled across this article while researching some information. I find it interesting to read what a nation or group of speakers think about the way they speak. In this case, it's Chileans who were asked about Spanish spoken in Chile. The sample size is not that big. Four hundred people were asked what they think about the way Chileans speak. To my surprise 29.3% believe that they speak the worst Spanish followed by 19.5% believe the worst Spanish is spoken in Argentina.

In my opinion, these worst and best Spanish type of questions will always render a variety of responses. If you ask ten or hundred people you will get ten or hundred different responses and of course some similarities. Spanish is a language with a lot of regional variety although there is a standard per se and that is what keeps the language unified among over four hundred million speakers. However, needless to say there are regional differences in speech and vocabulary.

When asked this question so many factors can influence a person's response. For example, bias, personal preference, exposure, nationalism etc just to name a few factors. According to the article, Chileans thought the best Spanish is spoken in Peru followed by Spain and Colombia.


“En Chile se habla un pésimo español”


-MP.

 

[Marianopolita]

Article: Diez consejos para hablar y escribir bien en espa?ol

I stumbled across this article today while researching some information and what a gem it is about recommendations on how to speak and write well in Spanish. It’s perfect for all speakers and especially those who have a high level understanding of Spanish grammar. In any language, one can be challenged by certain grammatical concepts. Spanish being a language rich in grammatical foundation, if one wishes to speak well, a very good command of proper grammar is a must.

I agree with all the ten concepts listed by the author but I definitely would rank some more critical or prominent than others as I continue to observe the spoken and written language today. It’s a great article for those who enjoy grammatical aspects about Spanish.

Here is the list of the top ten recommendations (or areas of focus) as per the article however, for a full understanding of the author’s point of view, it’s best to read it in full.


1. Ambig?edad
2. Pobreza l?xica
3. Tender a utilizar palabras muy largas
4. Errores de puntuaci?n
5. Errores de entonaci?n
6. Errores de sintaxis
7. Impropiedades del lenguaje
8. Extranjerismos inapropiados
9. Errores verbales
10. Redundancias

In my experience and observations of the spoken and written language today, the critical recommendations are #2, #6, #8 and #9.


Diez consejos para hablar y escribir bien en espa?ol. Noticias de Cultura


-MP.

 

[Chirimoya]

There's been some commentary on the forums about the low standard of journalism in DR newspapers, the subject of this article by Patricia Garc?a.

Patricia Garc?a Bid?: Verificaci?n