Amazonic Spanish
Encyclopedia
Amazonic Spanish also known as Loreto-Ucayali Spanish or Jungle Spanish (español de la selva), is a variety of Spanish
spoken in the Amazon, especially in the Peruvian Amazon provinces of Loreto
and Ucayali
. Amazonic Spanish is also spoken in areas of Brazil adjoining Loreto and Ucayali and in the Amazonas Department
of Colombia.
One of the distinguishing features of Amazonic Spanish is the method of constructing the possessive form: speakers say "de la X su Y" (of the X its Y), instead of standard Spanish "la Y de X" (the Y of X). Another dinstinctive grammatical feature is the use of possessive forms in place of certain genitive forms; compare standard Spanish "Le preguntó a la yaminahua delante de mi" (He asked the Yaminahua woman in front of me) with the Loreto-Ucayali "Le preguntó a la yaminahua en mi delante" (He asked the Yaminahua woman in my front).
As in other dialects of Spanish, personal names are prefixed with a definite article (el or la, depending on the gender).
In the initial position, [f] and [x] are allophones, e.g., Juana is pronouned /fana/.
Amazonic Spanish also incorporates words and expressions borrowed from local indigenous languages.
; Amazonic Spanish even has its own ISO 639-3 code. However, Ethnologue's reasons for doing this are poorly documented.
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
spoken in the Amazon, especially in the Peruvian Amazon provinces of Loreto
Loreto Region
Loreto is Peru's northernmost region. Covering almost one-third of Peru's territory, Loreto is by far the nation's largest region and also one of the most sparsely populated ones, due to its remote location in the Amazon Rainforest...
and Ucayali
Ucayali Region
Ucayali is an inland region in Peru. Located in the Amazon rainforest, its name is derived from the Ucayali River. The regional capital is the city of Pucallpa.-Boundaries:...
. Amazonic Spanish is also spoken in areas of Brazil adjoining Loreto and Ucayali and in the Amazonas Department
Amazonas Department
Amazonas is a department of Colombia in the south of the country. Its capital is Leticia. Its name comes from the Amazon River that drains much in the department and the rainforest that covers a large part of the department....
of Colombia.
Distinctive Featues
- Morphosyntax
One of the distinguishing features of Amazonic Spanish is the method of constructing the possessive form: speakers say "de la X su Y" (of the X its Y), instead of standard Spanish "la Y de X" (the Y of X). Another dinstinctive grammatical feature is the use of possessive forms in place of certain genitive forms; compare standard Spanish "Le preguntó a la yaminahua delante de mi" (He asked the Yaminahua woman in front of me) with the Loreto-Ucayali "Le preguntó a la yaminahua en mi delante" (He asked the Yaminahua woman in my front).
As in other dialects of Spanish, personal names are prefixed with a definite article (el or la, depending on the gender).
- Phonology
In the initial position, [f] and [x] are allophones, e.g., Juana is pronouned /fana/.
Amazonic Spanish also incorporates words and expressions borrowed from local indigenous languages.
Status
Amazonic Spanish is sometimes classified as a separate language from standard Spanish, as for example by the EthnologueEthnologue
Ethnologue: Languages of the World is a web and print publication of SIL International , a Christian linguistic service organization, which studies lesser-known languages, to provide the speakers with Bibles in their native language and support their efforts in language development.The Ethnologue...
; Amazonic Spanish even has its own ISO 639-3 code. However, Ethnologue's reasons for doing this are poorly documented.