Diseño del blog
17 mayo 2020
Ana del Río
Do not thank me!
One thing that we Spaniards notice when we travel or emigrate to Anglo-Saxon countries is the diligence with which gratitude is expressed: thank you for this, thank you for that, thank you for everything! As a Spanish teacher, it never ceases to amaze me that my students constantly thank me for correcting their mistakes.
Gratitude
is, of course, part of being polite, which itself is based on conventions and therefore, varies from one society to another.
This is the reason why it is highly recommended to familiarize yourself with the customs of a country before traveling, in order to avoid cultural shocks and uncomfortable situations.
Do we Spaniards never express our gratitude?
Of course we do! But if we compare ourselves with, for example, Great Britain, we fall short.
Jon Nazca
There is an interesting theory that explains this issue, namely that society can be divided into two types: those that embrace nearness and those that tend towards distancing.
We Spaniards lean more towards proximity, thus minimizing the relationship between power and social distance, favouring and reinforcing the interpersonal relationships between people who are talkings. Therefore, the use of compliments and collaborative responses is frequent.
For this reason, expressions of courtesy such as thanks or apology
are secondary and will only appear when they feel necessary and not in routine conversation. In addition, when such courtesy is expressed, the Spanish usually accompany it with some physical contact to intensify its meaning, unlike in Anglo-Saxon cultures.
Spanish students need to be aware of this difference to avoid pragmatic mistakes
such as excessive courtesy which might seem out of place culturally. In the same way, we Spaniards ought to take special care and use gratitude more than usual to avoid appearing rude when we find ourselves in countries with other social norms. Remember that to learn Spanish or any other language, it is not enough to study grammar and vocabulary, you also need to know the culture to which it is linked.
Have you ever noticed this cultural difference? Has it affected you professionally or personally?
Have you made any changes in the way you communicate because of it?
Learn how to say thank you and you're welcome in Spanish!
Are you thinking of certifying your Spanish skills? The DELE (Diplomas de Español como Lengua Extranjera) exams are internationally recognized qualifications that can boost your career, open doors to academic opportunities, or simply prove your Spanish proficiency. At Río Spanish School in Malta, we’re here to make sure you succeed—and we’re proud to say we have a 100% pass rate! Here’s why preparing with us is a great idea.
The use of the prepositions por and para can be tricky for ELE students. That’s why, at Río Spanish School, we’ve created a whole lesson unit dedicated to this topic. Furthermore, since these two prepositions are so commonly used, it’s natural that they appear in many idioms and sayings...
We are approaching the next significant date on the commercial calendar, Halloween, and in Río Spanish School we do not want to miss the opportunity to explain the traditions and customs associated with these dates in Spain to our students...
Barcelona, the vibrant Catalan city, is known for its impressive architecture, sunny beaches, and lively nightlife. However, it's also important to be aware of a problem that affects many residents and visitors: mobile phone theft. In this bustling metropolis, pickpockets -carteristas- lurk in crowded places, ready to take advantage of any lapse in attention...
Welcome to another exciting chapter in your journey to mastering the beautiful Spanish language! In today's blog post, we're diving into a fascinating linguistic phenomenon: false friends. These linguistic traps can bewilder even the most seasoned learners, but fear not! Río Spanish School is here to shed light on this quirky aspect of language learning.
At Río Spanish School, in addition to teaching grammar or vocabulary, we show our students how the real spoken Spanish sound. One of the most practical and used resources in Spanish is the use of diminutives. Its main and best-known function is dimensional, that is, to explain that something has a small size:
Many of our students have decided to study Spanish because they are in love -estar enamorado, or in slang, estar pillado- with a Spanish speaker, and since at Río Spanish School we always try to adapt to the needs of our students, we have designed a didactic unit on street talk in Spanish, which includes a lots of expressions about love. In this way, our students will sound more natural when talking about their relationships, especially if they are young.
As Lorenzo Rubio González explains in Religious Topics in Colloquial Spanish, the familiarity of Spaniards with religion leaves many foreigners dumbfounded. And it is that we Spaniards have grown up surrounded by the Catholic Christian culture and, as is natural, it has impregnated the language with hundreds of expressions that have crystallized in the collective imagination.
Many of my Spanish students end up moving to Spain and working in Spanish companies. For this reason, at Río Spanish School we have designed specific teaching materials for business. As an example of this, we want to share with all of you a series of expressions related to work that will be very useful to you.
There is a great debate on the issue facing those who defend the veracity of the stereotype, with those who defend themselves as Spaniards and punctual. What is clear is that the Spanish language has several expressions related to punctuality and our goal at Río Spanish School - Malta is for our students to know, understand and use them in their daily lives.
