Equatorial Guinea

Question

Hi All,

Would someone be able to tell me what the Equatorial Guinea Spanish accent is like? Also, is this country good for travel and learning Spanish?

Regards,

I see that you are in Australia. I would suggest Costa Rica. It is wonderful for travel and they have some great schools there. - Echoline, Aug 9, 2017

Answer 1

I briefly spoke to a few people from there.

I was standing around waiting for some friends and overhead someone speaking Spanish. The accent was clear, I could understand them quite well, but it didn't sound "hispanic" and I couldn't begin to place the accent. So, I went over and introduced myself and asked them where were they from, and lo and behold, Equatorial Guinea. I had heard of Equatorial Guinea before and I was like wow! Being of Arfican descent this fascinated me.

We chatted for just a few minutes and I invited them to my Spanish Meet Up group hoping to get to know them a little better. They never came, but oh well.

I thought it was an awesome thing, for the 3 minute conversation that it was, but they probably thought I was loco, LOL.

From VeinteMundos:

Guinea Ecuatorial a través de Donato Ndongo

You can find some more info on this page: The Spanish Language in Equatorial Guinea

I liked the link to VeinteMundos. Donato speaks Spanish very well and with an accent that sounds quite peninsular to me, although with very slight differences. - polenta1, Aug 9, 2017

Answer 2

Hello!

Here are three links relating to Equatorial Guinea.

1. Culture in Pictures: Equatorial Guinea
2. Equatoguinean Spanish
3. Travel guide from the US State Department

Hope this helps.

Regards!

Answer 3

As for travel there, research the specific area(s) you want to visit.

The following, taken from Wikipedia would seem to indicate that it is not a very nice place. The government has the worst human rights record.

Often times the State Department will issue travel warnings that make it sound like an entire country is unsafe, when in reality the danger isn't as significant as they make it to be, and very often not even in the part of country you plan to visit. Do your homework.

With the internet the world has become a very small place and lots of information is readily available. Look for travel forums where people who have already visited the places you want to go to share their experiences. That will be more useful than reading the State Department web page or Wikipedia alone.

Also search YouTube for videos people have made about their travels there. Getting your info from real people is always best.

Suerte!

Answer 4

Hope this helps. Welcome to Spanish Dict. You will hear several examples of the accent in this video.

info in English and Spanish on Equatorial Guinea

Vi el video. Es muy fácil entender su español. - DonBigoteDeLaLancha, Aug 9, 2017

Answer 5

The following, taken from Wikipedia would seem to indicate that it is not a very nice place. The government has the worst human rights record.

Equatorial Guinea (Spanish: Guinea Ecuatorial,[a] French: Guinée équatoriale, Portuguese: Guiné Equatorial), officially the Republic of Equatorial Guinea (Spanish: República de Guinea Ecuatorial, French: République de Guinée équatoriale, Portuguese: República da Guiné Equatorial),[b] is a country located in Central Africa, with an area of 28,000 square kilometres (11,000 sq mi). Formerly the colony of Spanish Guinea, its post-independence name evokes its location near both the Equator and the Gulf of Guinea. Equatorial Guinea is the only sovereign African state in which Spanish is an official language. As of 2015, the country had an estimated population of 1,222,245.[12]

Equatorial Guinea consists of two parts, an insular and a mainland region. The insular region consists of the islands of Bioko (formerly Fernando Pó) in the Gulf of Guinea and Annobón, a small volcanic island south of the equator. Bioko Island is the northernmost part of Equatorial Guinea and is the site of the country's capital, Malabo. The island nation of São Tomé and Príncipe is located between Bioko and Annobón. The mainland region, Río Muni, is bordered by Cameroon on the north and Gabon on the south and east. It is the location of Bata, Equatorial Guinea's largest city, and Oyala, the country's planned future capital. Rio Muni also includes several small offshore islands, such as Corisco, Elobey Grande, and Elobey Chico. The country is a member of the African Union, Francophonie, OPEC and the CPLP.

Since the mid-1990s, Equatorial Guinea has become one of sub-Saharan Africa's largest oil producers. It is the richest country per capita in Africa,[13] and its gross domestic product (GDP) adjusted for purchasing power parity (PPP) per capita ranks 43rd in the world;[14] However, the wealth is distributed very unevenly and few people have benefited from the oil riches. The country ranks 144th on the UN's 2014 Human Development Index. The UN says that less than half of the population has access to clean drinking water and that 20% of children die before reaching the age of five.

The country's authoritarian government has one of the worst human rights records in the world, consistently ranking among the "worst of the worst" in Freedom House's annual survey of political and civil rights.[15] Reporters Without Borders ranks President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo among its "predators" of press freedom.[16] Human trafficking is a significant problem, with the U.S.Trafficking in Persons Report, 2012, stating that "Equatorial Guinea is a source and destination for women and children subjected to forced labor and sex trafficking." The report rates Equatorial Guinea as a "Tier 3" country, the lowest (worst) ranking: "Countries whose governments do not fully comply with the minimum standards and are not making significant efforts to do so."[17]