The Spanish of Equatorial Guinea, Ceuta, and Melilla
When thinking of the Spanish language, Africa probably doesn’t pop up in your mind. Well, that may change after reading this article!
Read on to learn about the Spanish spoken in different parts of Africa!
Equatorial Guinea: The Only Spanish-Speaking African Country
Equatorial Guinea, formerly called Spanish Guinea, gained independence from Spain in 1968. Under Spanish rule, the Spanish language was imposed as the official language. Today, Spanish is spoken by the majority of the population; however, there are a variety of ethnic groups, each speaking its own language. In more remote areas of Equatorial Guinea, it is possible to find people who speak little or no Spanish.
Grammatically, Guinean Spanish (español guineano) shows some interesting characteristics that are uncommon in other Spanish-speaking areas.
- There is generally no distinction between r and rr.
- Frustrated with the subjunctive? Go to Equatorial Guinea! Guineans tend to avoid the subjunctive and prefer to use the indicative.
- Guineans often use ustedwith the túverb form (for example, usted tienes), which would be considered incorrect in other Spanish-speaking countries.
- Prepositions are often used interchangeably. Enis frequently used instead of awith verbs of motion. For example, Voy en la biblioteca.(I’m going to the library.)
Ceuta and Melilla: Where Spain and Africa Meet
Did you sleep through your high school geography class? We’ve got your back if you did! Ceuta and Melilla are located on the northern shores of Morocco's Mediterranean coast. They are Spanish enclaves, which means the people there have a different culture from the people living in the rest of Morocco.
Being autonomous cities of Spain, Spanish is the official language of both Ceuta and Melilla. More specifically, the majority of the residents of these cities speak Andalusian (andaluz). Many words in the Andalusian dialect are Arabic, which is the official language of the rest of Morocco.
If you want to learn more about the influence of Arabic on the Spanish language, click here.
Learn how to sound like a local all over the Spanish-speaking world with these articles:
