The Spanish Language | language, castilian, Spain | INMSOL The Spanish Language 6 April, 2011 Spanish or Castilian (español or castellano in Spanish) is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia during the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the later Medieval period. Modern Spanish developed with the readjustment of consonants (reajuste de las sibilantes) that began in 15th century. The language continues to adopt foreign words from a variety of other languages, as well as developing new words. Spanish was taken most notably to the Americas as well as to Africa and Asia Pacific with the expansion of the Spanish Empire between the fifteenth and nineteenth centuries, where it became the most important language for government and trade. In 1999, there were according to Ethnologue 358 million people speaking Spanish as a native language and a total of 417 million speakers worldwide. Currently these figures are up to 400 and 500 million people respectively.

Spanish is the second most natively spoken language in the world, after Mandarin Chinese. Mexico contains the largest population of Spanish speakers. Spanish is one of the six official languages of the United Nations, and used as an official language of the European Union, and Mercosur. Spanish is the second most studied language in the world, after English. Castilian evolved from Vulgar Latin (common Latin) that had been introduced to the Iberian Peninsula by Romans during the Second Punic War around 210 BC, with influences from native languages such as Celtiberian, Basque and other paleohispanic languages, and later external influences, most notably Arabic of the Andalusian period. Local versions of Vulgar Latin are thought to have evolved into Castilian in the central-north of the Iberia during the 9th and 10th centuries, in an area defined by the remote crossroad strips of Alava, Cantabria, Burgos, Soria and La Rioja, within the Kingdom of Castile (see Glosas Emilianenses).

In this formative stage, Castilian developed a strongly differing variant from its near cousin, Leonese, with a strong degree of Basque influence, (see Iberian Romance languages). This distinctive dialect progressively spread south with the advance of the Reconquista. Antonio de Nebrija author of the Gramática , the first Grammar of modern European languages. In the fifteenth century, Castilian underwent a dramatic change with the Readjustment of the Consonants (Reajuste de las sibilantes). Typical features of Spanish diachronic phonology include lenition (Latin vita, Spanish vida), palatalisation (Latin annum, Spanish año, and Latin anellum, Spanish anillo) and diphthongisation (stem-changing) of stressed short e and o from Vulgar Latin (Latin terra, Spanish tierra; Latin novus, Spanish nuevo). Similar phenomena can be found in other Romance languages as well. The first Spanish grammar(Gramática de la lengua castellana) — and, incidentally, the first grammar of any modern European language — was written in Salamanca, Spain, in 1492, by Elio Antonio de Nebrija.

When he presented it to Queen Isabella, according to anecdote, she asked him what was the use of such a work, and he answered that language is the instrument of empire. In his introduction to the grammar, dated August 18, 1492, Nebrija wrote that “… language was always the companion of empire.” From the 16th century onwards, the language was taken to the Americas and the Spanish East Indies via Spanish colonization. Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra’s influence on the Spanish language from the 17th century has been so great that Spanish is often called la lengua de Cervantes (“the language of Cervantes”). In the 20th century, Spanish was introduced to Equatorial Guinea and the Western Sahara, and to areas of the United States that had not been part of the Spanish Empire, such as Spanish Harlem in New York City. For details on borrowed words and other external influences upon Spanish, see Influences on the Spanish language. Active learning of Spanish. It is estimated that the combined total number of Spanish speakers is between 470 and 500 million, making it the third most spoken language by total number of speakers (after Chinese, and English).

Spanish is the second most widely spoken language in terms of native speakers. Global internet usage statistics for 2007 show Spanish as the third most commonly used language on the Internet, after English and Chinese. Spanish spoken in the European Union In Europe, Spanish is an official language of Spain, the country after which it is named and from which it originated. It is widely spoken in Gibraltar, though English is the official language. It is the most spoken language in Andorra, though Catalan is the official language. Spanish is spoken in 20 different countries worldwide. It is also spoken by small communities in other European countries, such as the United Kingdom, France, and Germany. Spanish is an official language of the European Union. In Switzerland, Spanish is the native language of 1.7% of the population, representing the largest minority after the 4 official languages of the country. Names given to the Spanish language In Spain and in some parts of the Spanish speaking world, but not all, Spanish is called castellano (Castilian) as well as español (Spanish), that is, the language of the Castile region, contrasting it with other languages spoken in Spain such as Galician, Basque, and Catalan.

In this manner, the Spanish Constitution of 1978 uses the term castellano to define the official language of the whole Spanish State, as opposed to las demás lenguas españolas (lit. the rest of the Spanish languages). Article III reads as follows: El castellano es la lengua española oficial del Estado. (…) Las demás lenguas españolas serán también oficiales en las respectivas Comunidades Autónomas… Castilian is the official Spanish language of the State. (…) The rest of the Spanish languages shall also be official in their respective Autonomous Communities… The Spanish Royal Academy uses the term español (rather than “castellano”) in its publications, due to the fact that “the term derives from the Provenzal word espaignol, which in turn derives from the Medieval Latin word Hispaniolus, which means ‘from — or pertaining to — Hispania'”.

The Diccionario Panhispánico de Dudas (a linguistic guide published by the Spanish Royal Academy) states that, although the Spanish Royal Academy prefers to use the term español in its publications when referring to the Spanish language, both terms (español and castellano) are regarded as synonymous and equally valid. Currently, the name castellano, which refers directly to the historical context in which it was introduced in the Americas, is preferred in Spain[citation needed] due to the existence of regions where other official languages are spoken (Catalonia, Basque Country, Valencia, Balearic Islands and Galicia) as well as in Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, Chile, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela, instead of español, which is more commonly used to refer to the language as a whole when relating to a global context. Hispanic America Most Spanish speakers are in Latin America; of all countries with a majority of Spanish speakers, only Spain and Equatorial Guinea are outside the Americas. Mexico has the most native speakers of any country.

Nationally, Spanish is the official language—either de facto or de jure—of Argentina, Bolivia (co-official with Quechua and Aymara), Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico , Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay (co-official with Guaraní), Peru (co-official with Quechua and, in some regions, Aymara), Uruguay, and Venezuela. Spanish is also the official language (co-official with English) in Puerto Rico. Spanish has no official recognition in the former British colony of Belize; however, per the 2000 census, it is spoken by 43% of the population.Mainly, it is spoken by the descendants of Hispanics who have been in the region since the 17th century; however, English is the official language. Spain colonized Trinidad and Tobago first in 1498, introducing the Spanish language to the Carib people. Also the Cocoa Panyols, laborers from Venezuela, took their culture and language with them; they are accredited with the music of “Parang” (“Parranda”) on the island.

Because of Trinidad’s location on the South American coast, the country is greatly influenced by its Spanish-speaking neighbors. A recent census shows that more than 1 500 inhabitants speak Spanish. In 2004, the government launched the Spanish as a First Foreign Language (SAFFL) initiative in March 2005. Government regulations require Spanish to be taught, beginning in primary school, while thirty percent of public employees are to be linguistically competent within five years. Spanish is important in Brazil because of its proximity to and increased trade with its Spanish-speaking neighbors, and because of its membership in the Mercosur trading bloc and the Union of South American Nations. In 2005, the National Congress of Brazil approved a bill, signed into law by the President, making Spanish language teaching mandatory in both public and private secondary schools in Brazil. In many border towns and villages (especially in the Uruguayan-Brazilian and Paraguayan-Brazilian border areas), a mixed language known as Portuñol is spoken. Spanish spoken in the United States. Darker shades of blue indicate higher percentages of Spanish speakers. According to 2006 census data, 44.3 million people of the U.S.

population were Hispanic or Latino by origin; 34 million people, 12.2 percent, of the population more than five years old speak Spanish at home. Spanish has a long history in the United States because many south-western states were part of Mexico, and Florida was also part of Spain, and it recently has been revitalized by Hispanic immigrants. Spanish is the most widely taught language in the country after English. Although the United States has no formally designated “official languages,” Spanish is formally recognized at the state level in various states in addition to English; in the U.S. state of New Mexico for instance, 40% of the population speaks the language. It also has strong influence in metropolitan areas such as Los Angeles, Miami, San Antonio, New York City, Las Vegas, San Francisco and Chicago and in the last decade, the language has rapidly expanded in Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Charlotte, Cleveland, Dallas, Detroit, Houston, Phoenix, Richmond, Washington, DC, and Missouri. Spanish is the dominant spoken language in Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory. With a total of 33,701,181 Spanish (Castilian) speakers, according to US Census Bureau, the U.S.

has the world’s second-largest Spanish-speaking population. Spanish ranks second, behind English, as the language spoken most widely at home. Africa In Africa, Spanish is official in Equatorial Guinea (co-official with French and Portuguese), as well as an official language of the African Union. In Equatorial Guinea, Spanish is the predominant language when native and non-native speakers (around 500,000 people) are counted, while Fang is the most spoken language by number of native speakers. Today, in Western Sahara, a former spanish colony, an unknown number of Sahrawis are able to read and write in Spanish, and several thousands have received university education in foreign countries as part of aid packages (mainly in Cuba and Spain). It is also spoken in the Spanish cities in continental North Africa (Ceuta and Melilla) and in the autonomous community of Canary Islands (143,000 and 1,995,833 people, respectively). Within Northern Morocco, a former Franco-Spanish protectorate that is also geographically close to Spain, approximately 20,000 people speak Spanish as a second language.

It is spoken by some communities of Angola, because of the Cuban influence from the Cold War, and in Nigeria by the descendants of Afro-Cuban ex-slaves. Asia Spanish was used by the colonial governments and the educated classes in the former Spanish East Indies, namely the Philippines, Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands. From 1565 to 1973 it was an official language of the Philippines. Up to 1899 it was the language of government, trade and education, and spoken as a first language mainly by Spaniards and Filipinos educated in Spanish. In the mid 19th century the colonial government set up a free public school system with Spanish as the medium of instruction. This increased the use of Spanish throughout the islands and led to a class of Spanish-speaking intellectuals called the Ilustrados. Although Spanish never became the language of a majority of the population,[111] Philippine literature and press primarily used Spanish up to the 1940s. It continued as an official language until the change of Constitution in 1973. Following the U.S.

occupation and administration of the islands in 1899, the American government increasingly imposed English, especially after the 1920s. The US authorities conducted a campaign of introducing English as the medium of instruction in schools, universities and public spaces, and prohibited the use of Spanish in media and educational institutions. After the country became independent in 1946, Spanish remained an official language along with English and Tagalog-based Filipino. However, the language lost its official status in 1973 during the Ferdinand Marcos administration. In 2007 the Arroyo administration announced that it would pass legislation to reintroduce Spanish in the Philippine education system. In 2010 a Memorandum was signed between Spanish and Philippine authorities to cooperate in implementing this decree. Today, Radio Manila broadcasts daily in Spanish. Worthy of mention is the Chabacano language spoken by 600,000 people both in the Philippines and Sabah. Chabacano, a Spanish-Philippine pidgin, sounds strange to Spanish speakers but is mutually intelligible.

The local languages of the Philippines retain much Spanish influence, with many words coming from or being derived from Castilian Spanish and Mexican Spanish, due to the control of the islands by Madrid through Mexico City. Oceania Among the countries and territories in Oceania, Spanish is also spoken in Easter Island, a territorial possession of Chile. The U.S. Territories of Guam and Northern Marianas, and the independent states of Palau, Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia all once had majority Spanish speakers, since the Marianas and the Caroline Islands were Spanish colonial possessions until the late 19th century (see Spanish-American War), but Spanish is no longer used by the masses but there are still native and second-language speakers. It also exists as an influence on the local native languages and is spoken by Hispanic American resident populations. Antarctica The Antarctic Treaty regulates international relations with respect to Antarctica. Argentina and Chile, both Spanish speaking countries, claim territories according to this treaty.

The Argentine Antarctica sector had a winter population of 169 in 1999, and in the Chilean Antarctic Territory, according to the national census of 2002, the population was 130 (115 male, 15 female). Spanish dialects and varieties There are important variations spoken among the regions of Spain and throughout Spanish-speaking America. One major phonological difference between Castilian, broadly speaking, the accents spoken in most of Spain, and the accent of much of southern Spain, the Canary Islands and all the Latin American accents of Spanish, is the absence of a voiceless dental fricative (/θ/ as in English thing) in the latter. In Spain, the Castilian accent is commonly regarded as the standard variety used on radio and television, although attitudes towards southern accents have changed significantly in the last 50 years. In addition to variations in pronunciation, minor lexical and grammatical differences exist. For example, loísmo is the use of slightly different pronouns and differs from the standard. The variety with the most speakers is Mexican Spanish.

It is spoken by more than the twenty percent of the Spanish speakers (107 million of the total 494 million, according to the table above). One of its main features is the reduction or loss of the unstressed vowels, mainly when they are in contact with the sound /s/. Voseo An examination of the dominance and stress of the voseo dialect in Latin America. Data generated as illustrated by the Association of Spanish Language Academies. The darker the country, the stronger its dominance. Spanish has three second-person singular pronouns: tú, usted, and vos. The use of the pronoun vos and/or its verb forms is called voseo. As the voseo was used during the Franco regime, it has now substituted for it the singular usted and the plural ustedes. Grammar Vos is the subject form (vos decís) [you say] and object of a preposition (a vos digo) [to you I say], while “os” is the direct object form (os vi) [I saw you] and indirect object without express preposition (os digo) [I say to you].

Since vos is historically the 2nd-person plural, verbs are conjugated as such despite the fact the word now refers to a single person: «Han luchado, añadió dirigiéndose a Tarradellas, […] por mantenerse fieles a las instituciones que vos representáis» The possessive form is vuestro: Admiro vuestra valentía, señora. Adjectives, when used in conjunction with vos, do not agree with the pronoun but instead with the real referents in gender and number: Vos, don Pedro, sois caritativo; Vos, bellas damas, sois ingeniosas. Two main types of voseo may be distinguished: reverential and American dialectal. In archaic solemn usage, voseo expressed special reverence and could be used to address both the second person singular and the second person plural. In contrast, the more commonly known American form of voseo is always used to address only one speaker and implies closeness and familiarity. Unlike the first type, the second one need not involve vos and may instead be expressed simply in the use of the plural form of the verb (even in combination with the pronoun tú).

The pronominal voseo employs the use of vos as a pronoun to replace tú and de ti, which are second-person singular informal. As a subject vos employs: «Puede que vos tengás razón» instead of «Puede que tú tengas razón» As a vocative: «¿Por qué vos la tenés contra Álvaro Arzú ?» instead of «¿Por qué tú la tienes contra Álvaro Arzú?» As a term of preposition: «Cada vez que sale con vos, se enferma» instead of «Cada vez que sale contigo, se enferma» And as a term of comparison: «Es por lo menos tan actor como vos» instead of «Es por lo menos tan actor como tú» However, for the pronombre átono (that which uses the pronominal verbs and its complements without preposition) and for the possessive, they employ the forms of tuteo (te, tu, and tuyo), respectively: «Vos te acostaste con el tuerto» (Gené Ulf [Arg.

1988]); «Lugar que odio […] como te odio a vos» (Rossi María [C. Rica 1985]); «No cerrés tus ojos» (Flores Siguamonta [Guat. 1993]). In other words, in the previous examples the authors conjugate the pronoun subject vos with the pronominal verbs and its complements of tú. The verbal voseo consists of the use of the second person plural, more or less modified, for the conjugated forms of the second person singular: vos vivís, vos comés. The verbal paradigm of voseante is characterized by its complexity. On the one hand, it affects, to a distinct extent, each verbal tense. On the other hand, it varies in functions of geographic and social factors and not all the forms are accepted in cultured norms. Extension in Latin America The voseo pronoun is used in Central America’s Nicaragua more frequently than in neighboring countries. Vos is used extensively as the primary spoken form of the second-person singular pronoun, although with wide differences in social consideration.

Generally, it can be said that there are zones of exclusive use of tuteo in the following areas: almost all of Mexico, the West Indies, Panama, most of Peru and Venezuela, Coastal Ecuador and the Andine coast of Colombia. They alternate tuteo as a cultured form and voseo as a popular or rural form in: Bolivia, north and south of Peru, Andean Ecuador, small zones of the Venezuelan Andes, a great part of Colombia, and the oriental border of Cuba. Tuteo exists as an intermediate formality of treatment and voseo as a familiar treatment in: Chile, the Venezuelan Zulia State, the Pacific coast of Colombia, and the Mexican state of Chiapas. Areas of generalized voseo include Argentina, Costa Rica, East of Bolivia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Uruguay and the Colombian region of Valle and Antioquia. Ustedes Spanish forms also differ regarding second-person plural pronouns. “Usted” (Ud.) was initially the written abbreviation of “vuestra merced” (your grace).

The dialects of Latin America have only one form of the second-person plural for daily use, ustedes (formal or familiar, as the case may be, though vosotros non-formal usage can sometimes appear in poetry and rhetorical or literary style). In Spain there are two forms — ustedes (formal) and vosotros (familiar). The pronoun vosotros is the plural form of tú in most of Spain, but in the Americas (and in certain southern Spanish cities such as Cádiz and in the Canary Islands) it is replaced with ustedes. It is notable that the use of ustedes for the informal plural “you” in southern Spain does not follow the usual rule for pronoun–verb agreement; e.g., while the formal form for “you go”, ustedes van, uses the third-person plural form of the verb, in Cádiz or Seville the informal form is constructed as ustedes vais, using the second-person plural of the verb. In the Canary Islands, though, the usual pronoun–verb agreement is preserved in most cases.

The ‘ustedeo’ is mainly used in Costa Rica and Colombia In Honduras especially in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, “usted” is used as a formal pronoun between couples. It is used to portray respect between the romantic couple, while between colleagues and friends “vos” is used. “Usted” is also used to portray respect between someone whom is a generation older or is of higher authority. Vocabulary Some words can be different, even significantly so, in different Hispanophone countries. Most Spanish speakers can recognize other Spanish forms, even in places where they are not commonly used, but Spaniards generally do not recognize specifically American usages. For example, Spanish mantequilla, aguacate and albaricoque (respectively, ‘butter’, ‘avocado’, ‘apricot’) correspond to manteca, palta, and damasco, respectively, in Argentina, Chile (except manteca), Paraguay, Peru (except manteca and damasco), and Uruguay.

The everyday Spanish words coger (‘to take’), pisar (‘to step on’) and concha (‘seashell’) are considered extremely rude in parts of Latin America, where the meaning of coger and pisar is also “to have sex” and concha means “vulva”. The Puerto Rican word for “bobby pin” (pinche) is an obscenity in Mexico, but in Nicaragua it simply means “stingy”, and in Spain refers to a chef’s helper. Other examples include taco, which means “swearword” (among other meanings) in Spain and “traffic jam” in Chile, but is known to the rest of the world as a Mexican dish. Pija in many countries of Latin America and Spain itself is an obscene slang word for “penis”, while in Spain the word also signifies “posh girl” or “snobby”. Coche, which means “car” in Spain, central Mexico and Argentina, for the vast majority of Spanish-speakers actually means “baby-stroller”, while carro means “car” in some Latin American countries and “cart” in others, as well as in Spain.

Papaya is the slang term for “vagina” in the parts of Cuba and Venezuela, where the fruit is instead called fruta bomba and “lechosa”, respectively. Writing system Spanish is written in the Latin alphabet, with the addition of the character ‹ñ› (eñe, representing the phoneme /ɲ/, a letter distinct from ‹n›, although typographically composed of an ‹n› with a tilde) and the digraphs ‹ch› (che, representing the phoneme /t͡ʃ/) and ‹ll› (elle, representing the phoneme /ʎ/). However, the digraph ‹rr› (erre fuerte, ‘strong r”, erre doble, ‘double r’, or simply erre), which also represents a distinct phoneme /r/, is not similarly regarded as a single letter. Since 1994 ‹ch› and ‹ll› have been treated as letter pairs for collation purposes, though they remain a part of the alphabet. Words with ‹ch› are now alphabetically sorted between those with ‹ce› and ‹ci› , instead of following ‹cz› as they used to.

The situation is similar for ‹ll›. Thus, the Spanish alphabet has the following 27 letters and 2 digraphs: a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, k, l, m, n, ñ, o, p, q, r, s, t, u, v, w, x, y, z. ch, ll. The letters “k” and “w” are used only in words and names coming from foreign languages (kilo, folklore, whiskey, William, etc.). With the exclusion of a very small number of regional terms such as México (see Toponymy of Mexico), pronunciation can be entirely determined from spelling. Under the orthographic conventions, a typical Spanish word is stressed on the syllable before the last if it ends with a vowel (not including ‹y›) or with a vowel followed by ‹n› or ‹s›; it is stressed on the last syllable otherwise. Exceptions to this rule are indicated by placing an acute accent on the stressed vowel.

The acute accent is used, in addition, to distinguish between certain homophones, especially when one of them is a stressed word and the other one is a clitic: compare el (‘the’, masculine singular definite article) with él (‘he’ or ‘it’), or te (‘you’, object pronoun), de (preposition ‘of’), and se (reflexive pronoun) with té (‘tea’), dé (‘give’ [formal imperative/third-person present subjunctive]) and sé (‘I know’ or imperative ‘be’). The interrogative pronouns (qué, cuál, dónde, quién, etc.) also receive accents in direct or indirect questions, and some demonstratives (ése, éste, aquél, etc.) can be accented when used as pronouns. The conjunction o (‘or’) is written with an accent between numerals so as not to be confused with a zero: e.g., 10 ó 20 should be read as diez o veinte rather than diez mil veinte (‘10,020’).

Accent marks are frequently omitted in capital letters (a widespread practice in the days of typewriters and the early days of computers when only lowercase vowels were available with accents), although the Real Academia Española advises against this. When ‹u› is written between ‹g› and a front vowel (‹e i›), it indicates a “hard g” pronunciation. A diaeresis (‹ü›) indicates that it is not silent as it normally would be (e.g., cigüeña, ‘stork’, is pronounced [θiˈɣweɲa]; if it were written ‹cigueña›, it would be pronounced [θiˈɣeɲa]). Interrogative and exclamatory clauses are introduced with inverted question and exclamation marks (‹¿› and ‹¡›, respectively). Phonology The phonemic inventory listed in the following table includes phonemes that are preserved only in some accents, other accents having merged them (such as yeísmo); these are marked with an asterisk (*). Sounds in parentheses are allophones. Where symbols appear in pairs, the symbol to the right represents a voiced consonant.

Spanish is a syllable-timed language, so each syllable has the same duration regardless of stress. Stress most often occurs on any of the last three syllables of a word, with some rare exceptions at the fourth last or earlier syllables. The tendencies of stress assignment are as follows: In words ending in vowels and /s/, stress most often falls on the penultimate syllable. In words ending in all other consonants, the stress more often falls on the last syllable. Preantepenultimate stress (stress on the syllable that comes three before the last in a word) occurs rarely and only in words like guardándoselos (‘saving them for him/her/them’) where clitics follow certain verbal forms. In addition to the many exceptions to these tendencies, there are numerous minimal pairs which contrast solely on stress such as sábana (‘sheet’) and sabana (‘savannah’), as well as límite (‘boundary’), limite (‘[that] he/she limits’) and limité (‘I limited’), or also “líquido”, “liquido” and “liquidó”.

An amusing example of the significance of intonation in Spanish is the phrase ¿Cómo “¿cómo como?”? ¡Como como como! (What do you mean, how do I eat? I eat the way I eat!). V and B The letters V and B are both normally pronounced identically as /b/ or similar, and academic authorities now state that this is the only correct pronunciation. The Royal Spanish Academy considers the /v/ pronunciation for the letter V to be incorrect and affected. However some Spanish speakers maintain the pronunciation of the /v/ sound as it is in other western European languages. The sound /v/ is used for the letter V, in the Spanish language, by a few second-language speakers in Spain whose native language is Catalan, in the Valencian Community, Mallorca, and southern Catalonia. In the USA it is also common due to the proximity and influence of English phonology, and the /v/ is also occasionally used in Mexico. Some parts of Central America also use /v/ which the Royal Academy attributes to the interference of local indigenous languages. Historically, the /v/ pronunciation was uncommon but considered correct well into the 20th century.

Spanish schools taught a /v/ pronunciation for most of the 20th century. Some Spaniards consider the pronunciation of /v/ for the letter V to be more poetic, and it is used by many singers such as Julio Iglesias, Juan Pardo, Paloma San Basilio, Amaia Montero and Alejandro Sanz. Spanish grammar Spanish is a relatively inflected language, with a two-gender system and about fifty conjugated forms per verb, but limited inflection of nouns, adjectives, and determiners. (For a detailed overview of verbs, see Spanish verbs and Spanish irregular verbs.) It is right-branching, uses prepositions, and usually, though not always, places adjectives after nouns, as do most other Romance languages. Its syntax is generally Subject Verb Object, though variations are common. It is a pro-drop language (or null subject language) (that is, it allows the deletion of pronouns which are pragmatically unnecessary) and is verb-framed. Instituto Cervantes The Instituto Cervantes (Cervantes Institute) is a worldwide non-profit organization created by the Spanish government in 1991.

This organization has branched out in over 20 different countries with 54 centres devoted to the Spanish and Hispanic American culture and Spanish Language. The ultimate goals of the Institute are to promote the education, the study and the use of Spanish universally as a second language, to support the methods and activities that would help the process of Spanish language education, and to contribute to the advancement of the Spanish and Hispanic American cultures throughout non-Spanish-speaking countries. Opinions Course feedback – Spanish school in Granada – Michael Barrett "The school was very good. I have met a lot of sympathic people again, teachers and students, in a nice... 2014-06-05T11:51:47+00:00 "The school was very good. I have met a lot of sympathic people again, teachers and students, in a nice environment. I also worked a lot and I think that I made a lot of progress. I started with speaking a little bit of Spanish for the first time. I have to continue study Spanish in France. I will come back another day to finish where I started. I loved Granada. The city was very well with a lot of history and culture.

I visited the Alhambra en Albaícin and both were magnificent. I also went to Sierra Nevada, I skied a little but, but the weather was bad. I have to return another time to see the mountaint with the sun and the blue sky. I also went to Malaga and Marbella in the weekends with my car and it was a marvelous weekend. I visited the old town of Marbella and the old town of Mijas aswell. Those two are very beautiful. I especially loved the nightlife and Tapasbars of Granada. Every night I went to the bars. I drank Spanish beer and eated tapas, ham, cheese, tortillas, pealles etc. The environment in the bars was perfect. Course feedback – Spanish school in Granada – Laura Mozota "After I finished my degree in Hispanish Philology in Barcelona, I decided to specialize myself in teaching Spanish as a... 2014-06-05T10:48:06+00:00 "After I finished my degree in Hispanish Philology in Barcelona, I decided to specialize myself in teaching Spanish as a foreign language.

I got information from different Institutes who provided courses for teachers and I chose to study at Imsol, because it´s an accredited centre for Instituto Cervantes, also satisfying high level standards. The guarantee that the training would be profesional convinced me to move from Barcelona to Granada. Also, Imsol is located in the heart of the city centre that captured me from the first moment; Granada is a magical enclave, where the study becomes pleasent, the whole city is surrounded by culture and history, of art and bohemian. My experience with Inmsol was unbeatable, And It will keep one of the best memories of my life in Andalusia. The course that I carried out also opened me doors to work as a teacher. In fact I was able to work as a teacher in one of the most presticious school in Andalusia with this diploma. Thanks a lot for your professionality and humanity, a big hug for everyone who makes Imsol such a great school. Laura Mozota Martínez" Course feedback – Spanish school in Granada – Ozan Ergun "When I went to the course, I couldn´t speak Spanish, but during the course I started to speak Spanish and...

2014-06-05T07:51:08+00:00 "When I went to the course, I couldn´t speak Spanish, but during the course I started to speak Spanish and I felt better. The classes were very funny. During the course, we learned Spanish through games, excursions etc. The teachers are very profesional, they are very good with students and helped us a lot. The school has a central location and is close to the beach. It´s better to learn Spanish in Spain, because you have to speak Spanish here, no one can speak your language, this is the reason why you advance your level very fast. I like Spain very much and I like to come here another year again". Course feedback – Spanish school in Granada – Gabriel Spinelli Salaro "Be in Granada and know the Alhambre were realizations of my dream, but not as important as the fact of...

2014-06-05T10:11:18+00:00 "Be in Granada and know the Alhambre were realizations of my dream, but not as important as the fact of passing 2 offical exams (one about business and one about tourism). I will never forget the kindness of many Granadians and the Imsol team, they were always friendly and thouhtfull. I could share many information about my city (Santos) and my country (Brazil). Everyone at Inmsol is wonderfully professional. One more time "Muchos Gracias". Greetings from Brazil, Gabriel". Course feedback – Spanish school in Granada – Betül Ünsever "I stayed in Granada for 4 months. I admire the city and the school. The teachers are very good and... 2014-06-09T09:41:41+00:00 "I stayed in Granada for 4 months. I admire the city and the school. The teachers are very good and are good trained. When I went to the school, I couldnñt speak Spanish, after 4 months of training I learned very well.

I didn´t think I could learn a language in 4 months, but it´s possible in the school, thank you for everything teachers. The classes are playful and fun. The books that you need can be obtain at the school. There are a lot of films and books, which you can bring to your home and watch. They also organise trips to other cities. There are lessons with free additional. One time a week there are lessons about art, cinema, historie. The teachers helps us with every subject. I met people from different countries. I did not need to visit other cities, because the world seems to be Granada, people can find the world in Granada. I would go back there again. They welcomed me very well the first day and, although i did not know Spanish, I didn´t had any problems. I could say so much more, but in generel everything was perfect. My advise is to stay longer to get to know the Spanish culture" Guarani | About World Languages By Irene Thompson | Updated December 11, 2015 by Irene Thompson Tapeguahê porãite – Welcome Guaraní (avañe’ẽ) belongs to the Tupi-Guaraní family of South America.

It is spoken by 4.6 million people in Paraguay, Argentina, Bolivia, and Brazil ( Ethnologue ). These languages are spoken by people who inhabit a vast area in the Amazon forest in Brazilian states and Paraguay in the south, and from the Atlantic coast in the east to the Andes of Bolivia and Peru in the west. Despite their geographical spread, the differences between the languages is relatively small, making it possible for the Portuguese Jesuits to develop a língua geral ‘common language’ which could be understood by everyone. The history and meaning of the name Guarani is a subject of dispute due to lack of historical records. Prior to the arrival of Spanish conquistadors, the Guarani people referred to themselves as Aba ‘men’. The term Guaraní was originally applied by early Jesuit missionaries to refer to natives who had accepted conversion to Christianity. Status Guaraní enjoys official status in several South American countries: Bolivia. Guarani shares official status along with Spanish, Aymara , and 34 other indigenous languages. Paraguay. Guarani shares official status with Spanish. Around two-thirds of the Paraguayan population speak Guaraní.

Paraguay’s constitution is bilingual, and school textbooks are typically half in Spanish and half in Guaraní. The two languages are considered equal.The linguistic situation in Paraguay, however, is quite complicated because almost nobody in Paraguay speaks ‘pure Spanish’ or ‘pure Guaraní’. Rather most people code-switch between Spanish and Guaraní. At one extreme, better educated and more urbanized people tend to speak Spanish with a small amount of Guaraní. At the other extreme, less educated and more rural indigenous people tend to speak Guaraní with many Spanish words. This latter mix is called Jopará . It is estimated that over half of Paraguay’s rural population speaks Jopará . Speakers of Guaraní who are not fluent in Spanish have restricted opportunities for education and employment. Argentina. Guaraní is the second official language, along with Spanish, of the Argentine province of Corrientes .

Ethnologue identifies several mutually intelligible varieties of Guaraní: Eastern Bolivian Guaraní spoken by 33,700 in Bolivia Western Bolivian Guaraní spoken by 7,000 in Bolivia Guarani Ava spoken by 15,900 people in Brazil, and Paraguay Guaraní Mbiyá spoken by 15,000 in Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay Paraguayan Guaraní spoken by 4.6 million in Paraguay Structure Top Sound System All syllables in Guaraní consist either of a vowel or a consonant plus a vowel. Guaraní words are either oral or nasal — a phenomenon called nasal harmony. A Guaraní word is nasal if it has at least one of the nasal vowels or consonants /ĩ, ẽ, ɨ᷀, ã, ũ, õ, ᵐb, ⁿt, ⁿd, ᵑg, m, n, ɲ, ŋ/ in its stem. Nasal harmony influences the choice of prefixes , and to a certain extent, enclitics .

For example, the postpositions pe, ta turn into me, nda after nasal words. Vowels Guaraní has six oral vowels. All vowels have nasal counterparts. In the table below, nasal vowels are marked with a tilde . Approximant ʋ /ᵐb, ⁿt, ⁿd, ᵑg/ are prenasalized stops , a combination of nasal plus stop , that behave phonologically like single consonants /ɟ/ has no equivalent in English /ʔ/ = sound between vowels in uh-oh /ɣ/ has no equivalent in English /ɲ/ = first n in canyon /ŋ/ = ng in song /ɾ/ is produced with a single tap of the tip of the tongue against the alveolar ridge , e.g., in the Spanish word pero ‘but.’. /r/ is produced with the tip of tongue vibrating vibrating against the alveolar ridge , e.g., in the Spanish word perro ‘dog.’ /ʋ/ has no equivalent in English Grammar Guarani is an agglutinative polysynthetic language. The term polysynthetic refers to languages that have a high ratio of morphemes per word and which typically permit noun incorporation .

A word in a polysynthetic language can express a meaning which would require a sentence in many other languages. Guaraní uses postpositions instead of prepositions, e.g., Paraguay pe ‘in Paraguay’. Nouns and pronouns Guarani nouns are not marked for gender, number or case. There is no definite article in Guaraní, but the colloquial variety uses of two Spanish articles la for singular, e.g., la ava ‘the man’ and lo for plural, e.g.,’lo mitã ‘the boys.’ The plural marker kuéra is used for some pronouns, e.g., ha’e ‘he/she,’ ha’ekuéra ‘they.’ Postpositions precede the plural marker, e.g., hendive ‘ with him/her,’ hendivekuéra ‘with them.’ Guaraní distinguishes between inclusive (including hearer) and exclusive (excluding hearer) first person plural pronouns, as shown in the table below ( Wikipedia ). Top Guaraní became a written language relatively recently. Prior to the Spanish conquest of the Americas, the language did not have a writing system. The first written texts in Guaraní were written by Jesuit missionaries who used the Latin alphabet to represent the language.

The first Guaraní-Spanish dictionary was printed in 1639, and the first grammar in 1722. The script was standardized in 1950, although some disagreement about some of the letters still persist. The modern Guaraní alphabet is an adapted version of the Roman alphabet. Its orthography is largely phonemic (i.e., each letter represents a phoneme, a sound capable of differentiating word meaning). Tilde is used to mark nasalization of vowels, while ‘ represents a glottal stop . A a Spanish Document Translation Spanish Document Translation Home » Translation Services » Document Translation Service » Spanish Document Translation Spanish Document Translation We translate thousands of documents from Spanish each year, covering a huge variety of industry fields and file formats . Excellence is built into our Spanish document translation service at every step including customer service, account set-up, different methods of file transfer (where appropriate), having a large pool of highly talented Spanish translators, selecting the right translators, efficiency at payments and collections etc. The first step is a free consultation with one of the team so we can properly understand your needs. Call us today for more information.

Spanish is one of the most widely spoken languages in the world and in translation circles is often referred to as one of the “big 5” languages, along with English, French, Italian, and German. There are a great many agencies and translators offering Spanish. However, it is important to work with an agency, such as TranslateMedia, that has a track record of working with the best Spanish translators and consistently producing high quality translations . Although many of our Spanish linguists are located in Spain we also have a large number of mother tongue Spanish translators and interpreters dispersed all around the world. Our global Project Management presence and dispersed teams of Spanish translators means that we can offer you real advantages where you have tight turnaround requirements . Spanish, also known as Castilian, is part of the Romance language family and originated in Castile, a region of Spain. An approximate estimate is that 406 million people speak Spanish as a native language, meaning it is second to Mandarin in terms of its total number of people who speak it natively worldwide. Spanish also has 60 million people who speak it as their second language, and 20 million people who study it as a foreign language.

Spanish is used as one of the six languages in the United Nations, and is used as an official language by Mercosur and the EU. Spanish belongs to the Ibero-Romance language group, which has evolved from a number of dialects of common Latin situated in Iberia straight after the Western Roman Empire collapsed in the fifth century. The first instance of documentation was in central-northern Iberia in the 9th century and this meant that it gradually spread at the same time as the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into southern and central Iberia. From the start, the Spanish vocabulary was influenced by contact with languages such as Basque and other interrelated Ibero-Romance languages and then felt the presence of the moors when it absorbed many Arabic words during the Muslim presence along the Iberian Peninsula. The language also took words from non-Iberian languages, including some of the other Romance languages such as Italian, Occitan, French and Sardinian and often from English in more modern eras. The Spanish language found itself in the Americas as well as territories in Oceania, Africa and the Philippines thanks to the expansion of the Spanish empire.

The most popular second language that is learned by native speakers of American English is Spanish. From the late 20th century, studying Spanish as a foreign language has become much more popular, probably because the increased potential of the countries that speak it, which have growing populations and economies, and growing tourism. Spanish has become the most widely acknowledged and understood language in the Western Hemisphere, with populations of native Spanish speakers in-between the tip of Patagonia and New York City and Chicago. Spanish has arguably overtaken French in being the second most studied and the second language in international communication, second only to English. The evolution of the language from Vulgar Latin that was brought to the Iberian Peninsula by the Romans during the Second Punic War, began in 210 BC. Several pre-Roman languages—not related to Latin, and some not related even to Indo-European—were spoken in the Peninsula. These languages include Basque, a language still spoken today, Celtiberian and Iberian. Traces of these languages can be found in the modern iteration of the Spanish vocabulary.

Local sociolects of the Vulgar Latin variety changed into Spanish in the north of Iberia, in an area defined by Cantabria, Álava, Soria, Burgos and La Rioja. The development of the Spanish sound system from that of Vulgar Latin exhibits most of the changes that are typical of Western Romance languages, including the obvious lenition of intervocalic consonants. The version of Spanish that is used in South America can vary within different countries and different regions of the continent. South American Spanish or to call it by its Spanish pronunciation: español sudamericano or suramericano, is occasionally used as a broad term for the dialects of the Spanish language spoken on the continent, use of this term is purely a geographical one and it has very little or no relevance to linguistics The range of Spanish dialects used in South America and Latin America have no uniting feature that make them different from non-South American varieties. The Spanish spoke in the Andean highland areas is historically conservative, with it having some qualities in common with the Spanish that is used in central Mexico, while some varieties spoken in Venezuela and Argentina share some innovations in phonology with the Spanish spoken on various islands of the Caribbean.

In some cases one country in South America, Colombia for example, can present a wide range of innovative and conservative dialects. In Latin America there are many Spanish speakers. Taking into account all the countries which have a majority of Spanish speakers, only Equatorial Guinea and Spain lie outside of the Americas. Mexico has the most people who speak Spanish natively. Nationally, Spanish is the official language of Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Costa Rica, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Bolivia where it is co-official with Aymara, Quechua, Guarani and 34 different languages, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, El Salvador (co-official with Guaraní), Peru (co-official with Aymara, Quechua and other indigenous languages,Uruguay, Paraguay and Venezuela. Spanish is also the unquestioned official language in Puerto Rico. Spanish is not officially recognized in the former British colony of Belize; although when consider the number per the 2000 census, around 43% of the population speak the language. In the main, it is spoken by the people who have descended from Hispanics who have lived in the region since the 17th century.

English still remains the official language of the country. The proximity to the Spanish-speaking countries of Brazil and Trinidad and Tobago means they have applied Spanish language teaching into their countries education systems. The Trinidadian government launched the ‘SAFFL’ or the Spanish as a First Foreign Language initiative in early 2005. The National Congress of Brazil approved a bill in 2005 that signed into law by the President that made Spanish language teaching obligatory in both private secondary and public schools in Brazil. In many villages and border towns especially the ones that reside in the Paraguayan-Brazilian and Uruguayan-Brazilian border areas, a hybrid language known as Portuñol is spoken. Meet some of our professional Spanish translators: Antonio – I am a qualified Spanish translator with more than 9 years experience. I completed my degree in Translation and Interpreting in 2000. My working languages are English, German, French, Greek, Catalan and Spanish. My areas of expertise are legal, finance, marketing and technical translation. I love travelling, practising my languages and learning new ones.Antonio has translated 546735 words for TranslateMedia since 06/02/2006.

Virginia – Certified English-Spanish translator appointed by the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2003). Bachelor’s degree in Translation and Interpreting (English, French and Japanese) by Pontificia Comillas University of Madrid (2002) 7 years of experience in English/French into Spanish translation and in proofreading. Areas of expertise: general, marketing, legal-financial. Types of documents translated: websites, marketing documentation, academic texts, annual reports (balance sheets, profit and loss statements). Certified translations include birth/death/marriage certificates, contracts, deeds, affidavits, an any other documentation requiring the certification of a sworn translator.Virginia has translated 122478 words for TranslateMedia since 14/06/2007. Laura – I have more than 9 years experience in translating medical texts (clinical assays, package leaflets, oncology abstracts, scientific articles, doctors & patients questionnaires, patient’s informed consent, etc.). Experience in audiovisual, technical and tourism translation.Laura has translated 406649 words for TranslateMedia since 26/04/2008.

Related Pages Bolivia | BrahmanBreeder.Net i /bÉËlÉªviÉ/ ; Spanish: [boËliβja] ; Quechua : Buliwya [bÊlÉªwja] ; Aymara : Wuliwya [wÊlÉªwja] ; Guarani : Mborivia [áµboËÉ¾iÊja] ), officially known as the Plurinational State of Bolivia ( Spanish : Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia), [7] [8] is a landlocked country located in western-central South America . It is bordered to the north and east by Brazil , to the southeast by Paraguay , to the south by Argentina , to the southwest by Chile , and to the northwest by Peru . One-third of the country is the Andean mountain range, with its largest city and principal economic centers located in the Altiplano . Before Spanish colonization, the Andean region of Bolivia was part of the Inca Empire , while the northern and eastern lowlands were inhabited by independent tribes.

Spanish conquistadors arriving from Cuzco and Asunción took control of the region in the 16th century. During most of the Spanish colonial period , Bolivia was known as Upper Peru and administered by the Royal Court of Charcas . Spain built its empire in great part upon the silver that was extracted from Bolivia's mines . After the first call for independence in 1809, 16 years of war followed before the establishment of the Republic, named for Simón Bolívar , on 6 August 1825. Since independence, Bolivia has endured periods of political and economic instability, including the loss of various peripheral territories to its neighbors, such as Acre and parts of the Gran Chaco . It has been landlocked since the annexation of its Pacific coast territory by Chile following the War of the Pacific (1879–84), but agreements with neighbouring countries have granted it indirect access to the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. The country's population, estimated at 10 million, is multiethnic , including Amerindians , Mestizos , Europeans , Asians and Africans . The racial and social segregation that arose from Spanish colonialism has continued to the modern era.

Spanish is the official and predominant language, although 36 indigenous languages also have official status, of which the most commonly spoken are Guarani , Aymara and Quechua languages . Modern Bolivia is constitutionally a democratic republic , divided into nine departments . Its geography varies from the peaks of the Andes in the West, to the Eastern Lowlands, situated within the Amazon Basin . It is a developing country , with a medium ranking in the Human Development Index and a poverty level of 53 percent. [9] Its main economic activities include agriculture , forestry , fishing , mining , and manufacturing goods such as textiles, clothing, refined metals, and refined petroleum . Bolivia is very wealthy in minerals , especially tin . BrahmanBreeder.net © 2017. All rights reserved. Bolivia, Primary: On Location | UC Davis Study Abroad Bolivia, Primary: On Location Info Session: 1/17/17, 2:10pm, International Center 3119 ( Facebook Event ) Bolivia — Primary Care and Rural Medicine On Location Bolivia is a geographically diverse country home to both the Amazon jungle and Andes mountain range.

This land-locked country in the heart of South America was formerly part of the Inca Empire and borders Brazil, Peru, Chile, Paraguay and Argentina. It is one of the poorest and most underdeveloped countries in Latin America. This program is based in Tarija, a modern city in southern Bolivia known for its wineries, pleasant climate, and relaxed atmosphere. Residents identify more with the State of Tarija itself than the rest of Bolivia.Tarijeños have their own unique customs and way of life, influenced by Spanish and various indigenous cultures. Students will be in Tarija during a couple of well-known festivals, including the Virgen of Chaguaya and Festival of San Roque. Tarija offers universal health insurance, which can create high demand for services and strains on the system due to lack of personnel and equipment. Understand cultural and socioeconomic barriers patients face in accessing healthcare services and witness treatments for pathologies not commonly seen in North America, including parasitosis, tuberculosis, and Chagas. In addition to clinical rotations, participants can choose to volunteer at a local children’s shelter providing vocational training and social services for underserved youth. Accommodations Participants in Bolivia will be housed in a homestay with a local family.

Homestay families live in middle class neighborhoods in close proximity to one another in the center of town. There are many shops, restaurants and cafes in the area. There will be two to three students per homestay (own room), depending on number of students at program site. Specific details about accommodations will be provided approximately 3 weeks prior to departure. Homestays provide a unique opportunity to learn about local culture and practice Spanish skills on a daily basis in an informal setting. UC Davis reserves the right to change the accommodation location. Should this be necessary, we will arrange comparable lodging. Please note that elevators, air conditioners and other modern conveniences may not be available in all locations. Meals Two meals a day are included in the program: breakfast and a late lunch (2 PM). Clinical Rotations Sample schedule Clinical rotations will start on Monday of the second week and usually take place in the mornings for 4 to 6 hours usually Monday through Friday for the remaining four weeks with Spanish language classes held in the afternoon (total 30 hours). Once a week students will meet with the Medical Director to discuss experiences at the clinics and hospitals. A lecture on a health related topics will also be provided.

Students can use this time to discuss particular issues of interest, review their progress in clinic or bring up any concerns they may have. Clinical rotation sites include: Regional Teaching Hospital Offers services to the entire state, including people with limited resources and indigenous groups. Students will rotate with local physicians through specialties including pediatrics, surgery, cardiology, and internal medicine. There is high prevalence of Chagas in this region and cases are treated at this facility. Primary Healthcare Centers These clinics accept all patients regardless of ability to pay. Physicians and Nurses provide health education, family planning, disease detection, and basic primary care services including vaccinations and well child checkups. Students will learn about common diseases, seeing firsthand how poverty affects families’ access to health care, and rotate at one of two clinics or travel to a rural facility and conduct outreach and home visits within surrounding communities. Chagas Clinic Participants will rotate through three areas over the course of four days or more and learn the symptoms and progression of Chagas disease, observe the diagnosis and treatment, and identify the parasite under a microscope. The facility also conducts research on new medications and treatments. Tertiary Government Hospital Participants will rotate in internal medicine, OB/GYN, surgery, pediatrics, and oncology.

The facility provides high quality care to working, middle class, and retired populations with government health insurance. Center for Children & Adolescents (Optional) This NGO provides underserved youth with meals, counseling, and job training in cooking, gardening, and electrical repair. Participants can volunteer teaching English, tutoring in reading and writing, and organizing art, music or sport classes depending on interests and personal skills. Excursions and Day Trips Short excursions and day trips will be included during orientation week. Orientation Week Sample Schedule 15 hours of Spanish classes Walking tour of La Paz Welcome dinner and cultural show in La Paz and Tarija City tour of Tarija and site visit of main clinical sites Lecture about Bolivian culture and history, including overview of Tarija’s unique cultural identity Full day tour of wine region, including lunch at regional winery Study Abroad Advisory of Student Risk Participation in this UC Davis Study Abroad program requires travel to and extended living in a foreign location(s) abroad. UC Davis Study Abroad endeavors to reduce and mitigate risk wherever possible. However, the environments and risks associated with living in these locations are substantially different than those found during a regular course of study at UC Davis. All participants must download and review the following information prior to departure.

Any questions should be directed to the Program Coordinator. Program Specific Risk Advisories (PDF) About Tarija, Bolivia Tarija's biggest drawcard is the vineyards on its doorstep and the city makes a great base for visiting the surrounding wineries in El Valle de la Concepción, home to the world´s highest wines and the throat-tingling singani (distilled grape spirit). Tarija has some interesting colonial architecture and grows on those who stay a while to enjoy the pleasantly mild climate and take in the chilled atmosphere; the little city is as laid-back as they get, with palm-lined squares, sizzling Argentine barbecues, sprawling bar and cafe terraces, and tight streets with narrow pavements. Travel Advice, Vaccines, Medications, Safety Tips for Bolivia - Sitata 800-14-0081 Tourist police toll-free number Operators may not speak English. Personal Safety Be alert to your surroundings at all times when travelling around Bolivia. Petty theft, including pick pocketing, purse snatching, assaults following ATM withdrawals, back pack theft, vehicle theft, kidnapping and hijacking are common in tourist areas, commercial areas and residential districts of large cities. Do not leave personal property unattended.

Minimize your risk of theft by avoiding signs of affluence such as expensive clothing or jewelry. Do not carry large sums of money. Keep valuables, such as cameras and electronic equipment, out of sight as much as possible. Secure your valuables in a hotel safe. Public transportation is not safe, including buses, trains, and some taxis. Use only tour buses from reputable companies. To avoid becoming a victim of theft by taxi scam, use only well-known radio taxis, which are called in advance. Avoid hailing a taxi on the street. Exercise extreme care when trekking or climbing in Bolivia since many popular trekking routes cross passes as high as 16,000 feet. Hikers have been assaulted and robbed in Rurrenabaque and on the Inca trails. Employing a reputable guide for hiking the trails will help prevent robberies. Do not accept any type of medication or drugs from unreliable sources. Areas To Avoid Be vigilant in La Paz bus terminals, especially the one near the La Paz cemetery and the main bus terminal, located on Peru Avenue in Zona Norte.

In the Chapare area between Santa Cruz and Cochabamba and in the Yungas region, northeast of La Paz, violence and civil unrest, mainly associated with drug trafficking, may cause delays and risks to travellers. Avoid the Coronilla Hill, adjacent to the main bus terminal and near several markets, hostels, and restaurants. This area has become a very dangerous place for tourists as well as local citizens. If travelling by bus between Copacabana and La Paz, try to travel during daylight hours. There have been reports of robberies during evening hours. Buy tickets at the bus terminal only and not from third parties. Political Unrest Demonstrations, strikes and other civil unrest is common in Bolivia. Transportation is often disrupted by these events. Some protests have become violent and police have responded with tear gas. If you encounter a road block, do not attempt to cross, even if it appears unattended, and consider a different route. Do not approach areas with cameras and communications devices where a demonstration is being held. Get A Free Account! Sitata uses advanced software algorithms to monitor the world for disease outbreaks and safety hazards. Each travel alert published by Sitata is reviewed by staff to ensure it meets the concerns of a traveller.

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Question: Which land-locked country has the most official languages in the world at 34 including Spanish, Aymara and Quechua?
Answer: Bolivia