- Origin
- Meaning
- Guaraní main characteristics
- Guarani words
- Indigenous languages on the continent
- Because of this, some important features can be highlighted
- References
Añamengui, also known as “añá membí”, is a Guaraní word that literally translates as “son of the devil”, although apparently it is used as a derogatory qualifier and on certain occasions it can be interpreted as rudeness.
This expression is part of a long list of Guaraní words that continue to be present in common speech in some areas of the Southern Cone, specifically north of Argentina and Bolivia, but to a greater extent in Paraguay. In fact, it is the second official language in that country.
Source: Google Images
According to some experts, Guaraní is a respected and much loved language among Paraguayans, since it is believed to have much stronger expressions than Spanish. In this way, it is not surprising to find the presence of the fusion of both languages.
The influence of Guaraní is such that at present there are a variety of websites that are responsible for translating and showing the different uses and meanings of some words for the familiarization of users.
Origin
“Añamengui” is an expression that comes from Guaraní, an indigenous language spoken by the Tupí-Guaraní family, settled in the Southern Cone, especially in the north of Argentina, Bolivia, part of Brazil and Paraguay.
For many Guaraní-speakers, this language is a legacy that they received from the peoples who settled in the area, which is why they have made efforts to preserve it and transmit it to future generations.
This work has allowed Guaraní to be named as the official language in Paraguay and Bolivia, which is why it is common to find the mixture of this and Spanish so frequently.
Meaning
Two main meanings can be pointed out:
-The literal translation of the expression: "Son of the devil."
-The interpretation of the word according to the context in which it is used: "Bad" and on certain occasions: "Son of pxxx".
In any case, the meaning may vary slightly depending on the intonation of the word and the context in which it is applied.
Guaraní main characteristics
In view of the above, some essential features of this language can be pointed out:
-It is estimated that this language is spoken by approximately 12 million people.
-It is the official language in Paraguay and Bolivia, although it is spoken in other regions of the Southern Cone, such as northern Argentina.
-The use and evolution of Guaraní have allowed the emergence of two dialects that combine Spanish and other idioms: Paraguayan Guaraní and current Guaraní. In both cases, the mentioned ones are spoken by mestizo inhabitants of the two regions.
-According to some specialists, Guaraní was spoken by indigenous people who were located in the Río de la Plata, along the Cordillera de los Andes.
-In the urban centers of Paraguay a type of dialect called “Jopará” is spoken, which combines Spanish but applied to the structure and grammatical rules of Guaraní.
-One of the data that surprises linguists is that despite having almost no indigenous population, Paraguayan Guaraní is spoken by more than 90% of the population, of which a little more than 20% are only Guaraní-speakers.
-It became the first indigenous language on the continent to become an official language.
-Nowadays there is a significant number of web pages translated into Guaraní. There are even various media that use this language to preserve its use among the population.
-Thanks to the colonization process, some words in Guaraní come from Spanish.
Guarani words
You can name some words that are part of this language:
-Kaigue: used to express decay or reluctance. There is even a variant of the word called "kaiguetismo" to describe the symptoms of a disease.
-Ka'úre: expresses a state of drunkenness.
-Terokei: it is a state of leisure, where the person does nothing. It should be noted that it does not necessarily mean "lazy" or "lazy."
-Pirevai: qualifier for the person who has a bad mood, it is also used to describe someone who has a very intense character.
-Karuvai: it is a word that expresses bad eating. That is, its meaning includes people who do not have good eating habits, such as those who do not eat with good judgment.
-Ndéra: used to express complaint, disagreement and even surprise in any situation.
-Na: it is understood as a particle that is used instead of "please". In fact, it can be included as a suffix to certain words in order not to sound too direct when spoken.
-Vyrorei: figure that indicates "waste of time" or "foolishness". It can be incorporated into sentences as a way of saying that a person is just wasting time.
-Nambré: it has a couple of meanings. The first indicates satiety: "leave me alone", while the other means "etcetera." Nambré is used to indicate that there are more elements that are not named since there are too many.
Indigenous languages on the continent
They are understood as the set of original languages of the first settlers until the arrival of the Spanish, Portuguese and English, during colonization. The diversity of these languages indicates that even some currently have not been able to be classified by the scientific community.
Because of this, some important features can be highlighted
-Despite the variety of languages and dialects, the vast majority have disappeared in part due to the colonization process.
-On the other hand, the few that exist lack prestige and their use is limited, since the languages of Indo-European origin predominate (English, Spanish and Portuguese).
-Records have been found that indicate that Quechua, Nahuatl and Guaraní could have been languages that allowed the connection of various peoples and ethnic groups on the continent.
-The most widely spoken indigenous language in America is Quechua, followed by Quichua and in third place, Guaraní.
-It is estimated that there are approximately 1000 indigenous languages distributed in the region, mainly in South America.
-It is more likely to find indigenous languages spoken in remote places with very little access.
-Indigenous languages are very varied, in fact, it has been concluded that they do not have common features in their structure or pronunciation.
References
- 11 exceptional Guaraní words that will make you proud to be Paraguayan (and help you survive as a foreigner). (2017). In Factory of Words. Retrieved: October 9, 2018. In the Words Factory of lafabricadelaspalabras.
- Guarani language. (sf). On Wikipedia. Retrieved: October 9, 2018. In Wikipedia at es.wikipedia.org.
- Indigenous languages of America. (sf). On Wikipedia. Retrieved: October 9, 2018. In Wikipedia at es.wikipedia.org.
- Translation of some words in Guaraní used. (sf). In Doña Gastona and the axis of the earth. Retrieved: October 9, 2018. In Doña Gastona and the axis of the land of gastonaglobal.com.
- Spanish-Guaraní vocabulary. (sf). In Brazilian indigenous languages. Retrieved: October 9, 2018. In Brazilian Indigenous Languages from geocites.ws.