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  • Essay / Reasons for the popularity of Voseo in Argentina

    The name “vos” is disproportionately applied in Hispanic America. While in Central America and Argentina the name "vos" has become widespread, in other regions such as the Spanish Caribbean and in countries like Mexico, its use is very limited, if not non-existent... these are the reasons for which the name “yours” has become widespread. covered its current scope controlled by historical, socio-cultural, economic and geographical factors. The title vos or “voseo/voceo” is the linguistic system that uses the form vos in verb tenses. This term is equivalent to “you” in the formal context, distinguishing a superior from his subordinates. Many linguists have attempted to decipher the phenomenon of Voseo's popularity among the Argentine masses, the conclusions of which are linked to socio-economic, historical and geographical factors. From the time of the conquerors in the 15th century, Spain exported its linguistic system with all its complexities and ambiguities. It is the responsibility of the Spanish speaker, before traveling, to research the culture thoroughly in order to reduce grammatical missteps and, better yet, avoid them altogether. Regardless, unlike many other Latin American countries, Argentines prefer “el Voseo” to “el tuteo”. Although globalization has begun to undermine the authority of Voseo, by introducing Tuteo, Argentines have used systems such as politics, media, and education to ensure that Voseo remains inherent to Argentine vocabulary and remains a source of national pride. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the original essayColonialism and immigration in the late 1800s had an important role to play in the linguistic authority of Voseo in Argentina when it comes under the viceroyalty system. “So many virreinatos fundados por los Españoles en Hispanoamerica como el nivel y la dinámica social de los conquistadores et colonizadores fueron elementos critiques que…han determinado la presente” (Benavides). Voceo's address system promotes Argentine patriotism. It is one of the few countries in the world that actively employs voceo on such a large scale and in all its institutions, regardless of class, region or race. Historians report that it was in the Rio de la Plata region that the vos form originated and gained popularity. The Spanish inhabitants of the peninsula (those who emigrated from Spain or those of full Spanish blood) popularized and laid the foundation for the strong Voseo language system. When the first explorers set foot in Argentina, Spain was already torn between the tuteo and the voseo. Beginning with the courtly and regal designation of the crown and nobles in high position, the voseo was considered deferential and respectful. However, over time, Voseo began to lose popularity and prestige in Spanish. Documents dating from the colonial period testify to the mixture of these two verbal forms. Geography has a powerful influence on the predominance of Voseo as a linguistic form. The distance between Madrid, Spain and Buenos Aires, Argentina is approximately 6,200 miles. During Spain's "golden age", travel consisted of a journey lasting several months between the motherland and the colony. Due to limited interaction between the countries, Voseo remains almost oblivious to Spain's disavowal of it. Newall also agrees that "in areas where communication and contact with Peninsular Spanish was less constant, or where colonization (if by Voseo users) began at a later date, the use ofvoseo became extensive and the influence of tuteo was not present until later. “It’s an explanation of why voseo still exists today in places like…Argentina” (Newall). Peninsular Spaniards, recently extracted from Spain, were disconnected from the gradual change and gradual elimination of the vos in Spain. As a result, the isolation and total adoption of the voseo, once a colonial mark representative of Spain's ownership, became a testament to Argentina's nationalist distinctiveness. “Argentina’s stable voseo is not a recent phenomenon; its roots must be sought in the colonial period and archival research has revealed that it was well established in Buenos Aires usage by the early 19th century…and preserves 15th century peninsular usage which may have been the main model if not the uniform model throughout Latin. America (Harris 97). In Andean countries such as Chile, Ecuador and Bolivia, it is not uncommon for vos to be conjugated with the familiar second person singular, for example Vos tienes, Vos eres. These differences pose a problem since Argentina shares borders with Chile and Bolivia and eventually some merger will be expected. Socio-ethnic distinctions lead to the wide diffusion of voceo in Argentina when examining the origins and usage of voseo. Since the entry of the Spanish conquistadors onto Argentine soil, vos was used to distinguish commoners and aristocrats. The Argentine social class was more rigidized and hierarchical, so that a nobleman's address had to contain the form vos. The sistema-casta, the Spanish caste system, was a racial and segregationist system composed of españoles, peninsulares, criollos, castizos, mestizos, mulatos, indios, negros, etc. In regular social interaction, vos is preferred when a lower caste person holds a speech with a person occupying a higher complexion or socio-economic position. Outside of Argentina and other Andean countries, “voseo…is identified with uneducated speech. In others, it coexists with tu where tu is characteristic of upper-class usage” (Cotton 148). Voseo's social prestige declined in Spain until inferiority attached itself to the address. Another sociolinguistic study concluded that the social and prestige link with Voseo is almost erased. Those who live in rural and urban areas use voseo, on the other hand, the upper middle classes would prefer tuteo (Moyna). Further analysis of the age of voseo users led to the discovery that older people in Argentina would use tuteo while younger age groups would more readily adopt and apply voseo. The competition and confusion between Tu and Vos results from the mixture of cultural identity, history, and location. "According to Lipski, while the use of vos in place of tu is widespread and practically the norm in spontaneous speech in countries, notably in Argentina, the coexistence of the prestige norm tu and its predominance in all literature except regional leads to a certain degree of linguistic insecurity” (Stewart 123). The blurring of boundaries between the two forms of you-singular is understandable in the face of globalization, generational linguistic changes, immigration, education and standards of living. Due to the overwhelming influence of American imperialism and the American media's preference for informality, confusion sets in as new approaches are adopted and adapted. Once a stronghold in Argentina for several centuries, the winds of change have shaken the linguistic foundations of your language. However, amidst the influences..