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They already do. The Americans who speak Spanish in Honduras, Colombia, Argentina, etc. recognize the authority of La Real Academia Española (even though their
by leephillips 5y ago
They already do. The Americans who speak Spanish in Honduras, Colombia, Argentina, etc. recognize the authority of La Real Academia Española (even though their own brands of Spanish differ a bit from the kind spoken in Spain).
This is, by the way, not a criticism of your use of “Americans”, which I and all English speakers use the same way.
- AnimalMuppet 5y agoI really doubt that (many) Americans in any Latin American country recognize any "authority" on the language, other than what the locals speak.
- leephillips 5y agoMy two Spanish teachers, who live in two different Latin American countries, use the RAE as a fallback authority in cases where it’s not clear what usage is preferred. So it is kind of a weak authority. And, believe it or not, the concept of correctness in language exists in Latin America, regardless of what the “locals” speak, and it matters to a lot of people, who love their language and treat it with respect.
- Jtsummers 5y agoMy Spanish teachers from Argentina did the same. When coming across words and phrases that they were unfamiliar with (hey, they don't have the dictionary memorized either) they almost always sent me something later (or brought it up in the next session) citing RAE or a source that itself cited RAE.
- leephillips 5y agoAlso, the best online dictionary for Spanish is the excellent one at the RAE site (although it only works once you know enough Spanish to read the definitions!).
- AnimalMuppet 5y agoSure, the Spanish teachers do. The Americans? I still doubt it.
- leephillips 5y agoWell, but the baker and the policeman in Paris are not preoccupied with conforming their speech to the dictates of the French Academy, either. But it is still recognized as a kind of authority for many purposes, although, I’m sure, often begrudgingly.
- Galaxity 5y agoBy Americans he means the locals. The (Latin) Americans.
- AnimalMuppet 5y agoI read his post as explicitly saying that he was not meaning that.