The Spanish Word "ya" In The Southern Cone.

[Noesdeayer]

I just retuened from a short visit to Chile.No matter how many times I have been there I am still intrigued by the use of "ya" in Chilean Spanish.
"Ya" in Spanish means "already " or "yet" depending on its location in a sentence .In Argentina you would usually hear,"Ya comiste?" --Have you eaten already?"
In Spain this would be given as."Has comido ya'" ".We haven't eaten yet" --"No hemos comido todavia (o aun).".
In Chile aside from the above mentioned uses, "Ya" many times also means "Yes". "Si" is rarely used in everyday conversation.A lot of of the time it means "Got it" or "I understand".
Or even as the utilitarian "U.S.ism" "O.K:".I have never heard O.K. used in Chile only "ya".I often wonder what German speakers think when they first hear it used.Maybe they get the impression that all Chileans speak German.Laguages and cultures never cease to amaze me.
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[joeschmoe1920]

And let's not even get started on Huevon!

 

[RichardP]

..or po.'

 

[Crema Americana]

I use "ya" in the affirmative in Spanish and my Spanish family do as well, but not sure if just rubbed off on them from me or the other way around.
I just asked my husband and he says here in Argentina they don't use it, but seems to recall that in Spain yes.

I've always used it as a Spanish version of "yea"... but could also be a shortened way to say "ya se", a form of agreement.

If you google "ya, es verdad" there's examples of non Chile use of 'ya'. It's colloquial and not grammatically correct, but it's used in Spain at least.

 

[Gringoboy]

In England my Dad used to use ya as a posh way of saying yes and this then rubbed off on my mum who also used it, but it also depended on the company they were in.
I'm pretty sure it was a fad, as being a Royal Navy officer, there was a certain snobbery around about the way you spoke.

 

[r2d2]

Ya! There was significant immigration from Germany and Austria to Chile in the past. For example most of the area somewhere between Valdivia and Puerto Montt was originally colonized by German and Austrian settlers. There are other German words in Chilean language like the "Kuchen" for cake.

 

[Rich One]

Ya! There was significant immigration from Germany and Austria to Chile in the past. For example most of the area somewhere between Valdivia and Puerto Montt was originally colonized by German and Austrian settlers. There are other German words in Chilean language like the "Kuchen" for cake.

Add the words Strudel in Chile... for Apple Pie...
The Equivalent in argentina to the Ya en Chile is Dale....