Language
| Languages of Nicaragua | |
| Language | Speakers |
|---|---|
| Arabic | 400 |
| Chinese | 7,000 |
| English | 20,334 |
| Garífuna | 1,500 |
| Miskito | 154,400 |
| Sign language | 3,000 |
| Spanish | 4,347,000 |
| Sumo | 6,700 |
| Rama | 24 |
| Creole English | 30,000 |
| Source: Ethnologue | |
The official language of Nicaragua is Spanish, or Nicañol as Nicaraguan Spanish is sometimes referred to, and is spoken by the country's population. In Nicaragua the Voseo form is common, just as in other countries in Central and South America like Honduras, Argentina, and Uruguay. Spanish has many different dialects spoken throughout Latin America, Central American Spanish is the dialect spoken in Nicaragua.
- Phonology
Some other characteristics of Nicaraguan phonology include:
- /s/ at the end of a syllable or before a consonant is pronounced like .
- j (/x/), is aspirated; it is soft as the /h/ in English (e.g.: Yahoo).
- Intervocalic /b/, /d/, and /g/ show no sign of reduction, and are much more pronounced than in most dialects.
- In some regions the double /l/ is pronounced with a ( "Shhh") sound, Argentina has a similar accent.
- There is no confusion between /l/ and /r/, as in the Caribbean.
- /s/, /z/ and in some cases /c/ (as in cerrar) are pronounced as
- /m/ at the end of a word tends to be pronounced as
Nicaraguans on the Caribbean coast speak their indigenous languages and also English. The indigenous peoples of the east who use their original language tend to also speak Spanish and/or English, the main languages being Miskito language, Sumo language, and Rama language. Creole languages are also present in the Caribbean coast, Nicaragua Creole English has 30,000 speakers.
Nicaragua has many minority groups. Many ethnic groups in Nicaragua, such as the Chinese Nicaraguans and Palestinian Nicaraguans, have maintained their ancestral languages while also speaking Spanish and/or English. Minority languages include Chinese, Arabic, German, Italian among others. Nicaragua also has a total of 3 extinct languages.
Nicaraguan Sign Language is also of particular interest to linguists.
Read more about this topic: Demographics Of Nicaragua
Famous quotes containing the word language:
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—Louis B. Lundborg (1906–1981)
“There is no such thing as an ugly language. Today I hear every language as if it were the only one, and when I hear of one that is dying, it overwhelms me as though it were the death of the earth.”
—Elias Canetti (b. 1905)
“Public speaking is done in the public tongue, the national or tribal language; and the language of our tribe is the men’s language. Of course women learn it. We’re not dumb. If you can tell Margaret Thatcher from Ronald Reagan, or Indira Gandhi from General Somoza, by anything they say, tell me how. This is a man’s world, so it talks a man’s language.”
—Ursula K. Le Guin (b. 1929)