I have learned a lot so far about the Spanish here in Argentina. The newest part of the Spanish language I am learning here is the accent! When I first arrived everything just sounded like “Jya” or “Shya”, but now I am more accustomed to the accent and can finally understand what the heck people are trying to say to me!  To put this into perspective, the verb “llamar” which is used to say ” my name is” is pronounced as “Jyamar”. So what I was originally taught as “yo me llamo” pronounced as “yo may yamo” is pronounced as “shyo may jyamo” in Argentina. Even my Spanish professor will correct me if I pronounce words with  “ll” with a “y” sound instead of a “Jya” sound! Even though the pronunciation has been kind of difficult to get used to, I think the Argentinian accent is very beautiful and kind of fun. I have even caught myself speaking with it in conversations now!

Besides getting accustomed to the famous Argentinian accent, I have also become more accustomed to specific vocabulary used here.

Some new vocabulary I have learned includes:

“Re”- very

“Genial”- cool

“Vos”-you

“Digamos”-which Tucumános use here similar to the word “like” that we use in the US.

“Encima”- which Tucumános use here similar to the sentence filler “ugh” that we use in the US.

“Dale”- which, here, signifies “arlight” or “got it” or “okay”.

“Chango”-dude/ other way of saying boy

“Changa”-other way of saying girl

“Remis”-taxi/cab

Of course, there are more words, but these words are used in almost every conversation I have had with people. These words also really relate to the culture in Tucumán, because they are all very informal, and the Tucumán culture is very laid back. For example, to greet people in Argentina, you give them a hug and a kiss on the cheek. This at first threw me off, but now I am used to it and even worry that when I come back to the US I will hug and kiss my friends and they will be freaked out! You even hug and kiss your professors here to be polite. So, of course the vocabulary would be another way to express the closeness and familiarity people feel with you.

Even the professors will use the words “digamos” and “encima” over and over in their sentences. Restaurant servers use the word “Dale” after you tell them what you want, professors will say “Dale” in the middle of class after you ask a question, and everyone calls each other either “Chango” or “Changa”. When I first was hearing the word “Re” I had no clue what people were trying to say to me. “Mia, ya pobraste las empanadas Tucumánas?? Son re buenas y re ricas” (Mia have you tried Tucumán’s empanadas, they are really good and very delicious). Now looking back at how the word “Re” is used, it is pretty easy to pick-up on that it means “very” or “really”, but when I first arrived I was perplexed!!

Here is a link that has commonly used Tucumán slang:

https://www.google.com.ar/amp/s/www.taringa.net/%2Binfo/diccionario-tucumano-basico_ht4u3/amp

If someone did not understand these specific vocab’ words, I think that they would definitely miss a huge part of Argentinian culture. That is the warmth, love, and familiarity they offer everyone. If you didn’t understand it, it would just be more words going in one ear and out the other. But, being able to understand their words with a cultural significance, you are able to form relationships that infiltrate far further than just the surface.

Moving to a different part of the world has been challenging, especially when you do not know a language perfectly before arriving and then have to add new ways of speaking this language/ un-do what you already know! But, it is a challenge that is well worth it and I can see my language skills growing day by day :).

As always, I am so excited to keep capturing more instances.