Argentine V. Argentinian

[internationalguy]

Funny thing, a couple of days ago I was with a group of people, mostly Argentines, except for an Ecuadorian, Chinese man, and myself. Of course I got called the word I don't like. It always happens. What was really amusing was that at one point someone called the Ecuadorian a Colombian. He didn't say a word, but one of the Argentines corrected him and asked him what he would feel if they would call him Paraguayan. The response? Instead of admitting his mistake he just stated that it was clearly not the same thing.

All foreigners in Argentina should stand together. Let's all start calling everyone Tucumano. I'd love to see how they react.

 

[PhilipDT]

There is a difference though: When an Argentines call Spanish " gallegos " they know they hate it and continue to do so jokingly, however when they refer to Americans as " yankis " it has a clearly negative connotation.

I've been called a Yankee more times than I can count, and I could count on one hand (with fingers to spare) the number of times it's been said with a negative connotation.

What does happen frequently is someone will say Yankee in a conversation and then look abashed before apologizing to me. I always tell them not to be ridiculous, that it's not an offensive term and ergo I wasn't offended in the slightest.

 

[Crema Americana]

So Argentine is pronounced Argen-teen or Argen-tine? I've always used the latter.

At this point Spanish seems less complicated than English.

 

[nlaruccia]

I have an Argentine friend who always refers to North Americans as yankees, but she doesn't say it in a derogatory way so I don't get offended. She also calls her own people Argentos, but as a joke. It's nice to lighten up a bit and not be so serious and politically correct all the time. There was a famous milonguero from the 1940's who was African Argentine and his nickname in the barrio was Lavandina. He probably just laughed it off.

 

[ajoknoblauch]

So Argentine is pronounced Argen-teen or Argen-tine? I've always used the latter.

At this point Spanish seems less complicated than English.

I prefer the former, as it's closer to the original Spanish, but neither is "wrong." Many English-language words have alternate pronunciations and even spellings, or can vary from country to country. Test yourself:

1) What is the schedule for the aluminum delivery?

2) What is the schedule for the aluminium delivery?

 

[Crema Americana]

I dislike the term "gallego" more than "yankee"... but neither sees particularly offensive to me. I've always chalked it up to a mix of ignorance and jealousy.

The funny thing about "gallego" is that in Spain this is the group that is usually the butt of jokes - like "Poles" in the US. So to hear that in Argentina they refer to all Spanish people as gallegos is kind of funny. Most don't even know where Galicia is or who the gallegos are, so it's of little significance really. Same as Yankee.

I don't think the terms themselves are offensive, but it's not rare to hear disparaging things about the US or Spain. My own in-laws do it, although not as a personal attack. Argentines just have this natural "anti-colonialism" chip in them. (Whatever that means...) However, at the same time they also use random English or even Spanish words to show class - it's a strange love/hate relationship.

 

[internationalguy]

Anti colonialism yes. It's an eerie love and hate relationship. Has anyone read the lyrics to the Argentine national anthem? There's something very telling in it.

 

[glasgowjohn]

I wonder if this is an old person thing? how old is your friend?

I am Scottish and take no negative connotations from being called Scottish. Maybe you mean "Scotch"?

Scotch is a drink, i'm Scottish.

Totally agree with Ejcot

I am Scottish and I drink Scotch as well as a few other things.

Scots is a language , spoken in the lowlands.....as opposed to gaelic , which is spoken by a few people in the Highlands

 

[ajoknoblauch]

Totally agree with Ejcot

I am Scottish and I drink Scotch as well as a few other things.

Scots is a language , spoken in the lowlands.....as opposed to gaelic , which is spoken by a few people in the Highlands

And Glaswegian is a language incomprehensible to anybody who grew up beyond the city limits.

 

[Redpossum]

And Glaswegian is a language incomprehensible to anybody who grew up beyond the city limits.

True!