Standard Spanish - Introduction

Introduction

Standard Spanish is not simply Spanish without idioms and regional mannerisms, that is, the lowest common denominator of all varieties of Spanish; it is a different lect on its own, and it has the richest verbal forms which are not found in other linguistic varieties. For example, certain tenses (e.g., the future perfect) have virtually disappeared from most of the spoken dialects and survive only in Standard Spanish. The difficulty of perceiving the distinction is in part due to the strong centralized and prescriptive tradition of the Real Academia Española, whose normative rules relating to grammar and style have historically dominated written, legal and academic language, but also to the fact that Standard Spanish is not a geographically or regionally defined dialect, but a variant that many speakers use more or less regularly along with their own dialects, in formal situations or in the written language. Mastery of written Standard Spanish is frequently an important requirement to correctly perform some prestigious professions and activities, such as liberal arts, teaching or media.