Is "old" Spanish language different from contemporary Spanish?

Question

I have difficulty translating texts which are excerpts from letters written in the 1600's. Also, sometimes it is difficult to access the spanishdict website. Is there anybody who can help me with my Spanish by way of chat? Thanks to Dakie, lukaxx and all who answered my questions.

Answer 1

Reina Valera 1602

1. Mat 7:1 NO juzgueys: porque tambien no šeays juzgados.
2. Mat 7:2 Porque con el juyzio que juzgays, šereys juzgados: y con la medida que medis, [con ella] os bolverán à medir.
3. Mat 7:3 Y Porque miras el arišta que eštá en el ojo de tu hermano: y no echas de ver la viga que eštá en tu ojo?

Reina Valera 1960

1. Mat 7:1 NO juzguéis, para que no seáis juzgados.
2. Mat 7:2 Porque con el juicio con que juzgáis, seréis juzgados; y con la medida con que medís, os volverán á medir.
3. Mat 7:3 Y ¿por qué miras la mota que está en el ojo de tu hermano, y no echas de ver la viga que está en tu ojo?

Answer 2

You may find this useful. A little hard to use though.

http://www.archive.org/stream/diccionariodeme00duargoog#page/n17/mode/2up

Answer 3

The Spanish spoken in the book Don Quixote is significantly different than what I hear where I live in the US every day. They even sell special dictionaries for students reading Don Quixote because its so difficult to understand. So yes, there have been some changes in the Spanish language since the 15th century.

Answer 4

Actually, there are some olden words. While the Spanish language has not changed as much as English, you will come across outdated words in any language. Think about Elizabethan English. That's different from what we speak today. it's a more drastic example, but it's true. I probably would not be able to help you, but an extensive Spanish-English dictionary may help you.

Answer 5

No, it is mostly the same. However, there are "Spanglish" words, which are words most commonly used at the border states near Mexico. You will probably not find any of these on SD because they are not official words in the language, but you might run into them if you are speaking with someone who comes from that area.

The Spanglish Dictionary (www.spanglishdictionary.org) will be up and running in 14 days. You should check it out!

Hope that this the answer you were needing!

oops... sorry! I just read the rest of your question! jaja! But hopefully you will find my post interesting anyways! - djames01, Mar 18, 2011