Rioplatense Spanish

Rioplatense Spanish (castellano rioplatense) is a dialect of the Spanish language which is mainly spoken in the areas in and around the Río de la Plata basin, in Argentina and Uruguay.

Influences on the language

The adoption of the Spanish language in the area was caused by the Spanish colonization in the region. Part of the Viceroyalty of Peru, the Rio de la Plata basin had its status lifted to Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata in 1776.

Related Topics:
Spanish colonization - Viceroyalty of Peru - Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata - 1776

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Until immigration to Argentina, the language of the region had virtually no influence of other languages and varied mainly by the means of localisms.

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Middle Eastern and Asian Immigration

Although relatively recent immigrants, people from Asia and the Middle East could influence the region in the future, if not already doing so.

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• Immigration in the 1830s by Syrians and Lebanese, mainly Muslims
• Japanese immigration after World War II, mainly from Okinawa
• Korean, mainly in the 1970s
• Chinese immigration, which also started in the 1970s, began increasing in the 1990s

Native American languages' influence

Native American languages have been largely influenced or even wiped out by Spanish language in the area, but some Native American words have also entered into the Spanish of the region, and even reached English.

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• mate (an infusion, from Quechua's mati, "pumpkin")
• pampa (form Quechua's panpa, "plains, flat terrain")
• che (Origin disputed. Usually considered a Guaraní influence meaning "I" or "my", originally used as che amigo, my friend. Other hypotheses include Mapuche, Valencian and Italian language).

:See Influences on the Spanish language for a more comprehensive review of borrowings into all dialects of Spanish.

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European immigration

Several languages influenced the criollo Spanish of the time, because of the diversity of immigrants to Argentina:

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• 1870-1890: mainly Spanish, Basque, Galician and Italian speakers and some from Germany, Yugoslavia and other European countries
• 1910-1945: Again from Spain, Italy and in smaller numbers from across Europe; Jewish immigration, mainly from Russia and Poland from the 1910s until after World War II was also large.
• English speakers, from Britain, and Ireland were not great in numbers but were an influential set in industry, business, education and agriculture, figuring importantly in high society. This influenced a respect for English customs and language.

Latin American immigration

Argentina has also seen immigration from neighboring countries, notably Bolivia, Peru and Uruguay and in smaller numbers from Brazil, Chile and Paraguay.

Related Topics:
Bolivia - Peru - Uruguay - Brazil - Chile - Paraguay

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They have provided slang words like bondi (meaning bus in Argentina, from Brazilian Portuguese "bonde", meaning trolley), as well as other Native American- and criollo-derived words.

Related Topics:
Slang - Portuguese

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