For Tai

[colman]

Hello Tai, it's been a while since I posted. I do agree that Coastal Colombian Spanish is not at the same level as Spanish from Spain but as to carving up the Spanish language, I don't think so. This may confuse you so I will elaborate. Coastal Spanish from Colombia is a style, a coastal style if you will. What my prior point of Colombian Spanish being the "purest" outside of Spain still remains. You see Tai, whether the Colombian is from Rioacha, Cartagena, Leticia, Pereira, Cali, Dos Quebradas, Belen de Umbria, this typical Colombian's vernacular IS the purest outside of Spain. The typical Colombian will say bus or autobus not camion(Mexico)or Gua Gua sp?(Puerto Rico) Bombillo/a not Foco(Mexico), boligrafo not pluma(everybody except Spain), bandeja not charolla sp?(Mexico) abrigo not chamarra(Mexico)---the list is endless--and yes Tai, I know, I know Colombians have also spawn its share of slang words (cachaco(well dress/sunday's best clothes) enguayabao (hangover), china/o (guy/girl) pollera,(originally a costume to dance cumbia but also means an older lady who prefers younger men) bacano (great/cool). So, Tai, I hope have made my point more clearly. Mayate according to what have been told to me is a very demeaning word to describe blacks by Mexicans. A friend told me it means a type of insect that is so dark it is blue-black, hence the reference--Colman

[Tai]

... in response to For Tai, posted by colman on Feb 13, 2002

Colman,

Thanks for the reply. I had forgotten about that post/question.

I wasn't sure what you had meant previously.

I was referring to the Coastal style/dialect as opposed to what you'd likely encounter in Spain(or Mexico either), whereas you were referring to the vernacular(overall) remaining intact moreso in Colombia as opposed to Mexico, Puerto Rico, etc.

Along the coast, cachaco/a - also refers to a person from the interior of the country.

I've known that mayate was a demeaning word, but everyone that I'd asked couldn't tell me what/where it came from. -It's amazing how a word can float around from one generation to the next with people using it without question. -The few that possibly knew where so shocked that I knew about the word that they "shut down" and were too embarrassed to tell me.

If a "mayate" is just the name for a type of insect with a specific color, then I can understand it as a transference/connotative term.

I was leaning towards something like that...because by strict definitions it didn't make any sense to me. -mayate, te maya, mallate, mayar, mallar, etc...couldn't find the connection.

Interesting. I can finally file that one away.

-Tai