Word order in Spanish

Question

For most of the Spanish that I read and hear, the word order is subject->verb->object.

Sometimes I see sentences in ver->subject->object order, like in this webcomic:

Dragon Mail English Version

The last panel has someone looking at a girl in a chicken outfit and saying "¿Sabe tu madre que te vistes de pollo?" Is that mainly a Castilian thing?

Answer 1

No, when you ask a question the subject/subject pronoun usually comes after the verb.

¿Tienes tú más preguntas?

Answer 2

I just found a new one that isn't a question. In lesson 3.1, Paralee gives this example.

"Ojalá que venga el padre Noel."

Which she translate as "I hope Santa Claus comes."

Venir isn't a verb like 'gustar' and this sentence isn't a question. So why is 'padre Noel' after 'venga'?

Answer 3

Spanish is much more flexible than English when it comes to word order. Even in declarations it is quite common to not use the SVO word order that one usually sees in English.

Me gusta mucho comer pollo. (OVS)

Notice that it translates to SVO in English:

I very much like eating chicken .

Paralee had a lesson on words like gustar acting that way, so I know to look out for them. This seemed different is why I asked. - Jason_Bryant, Oct 12, 2009