Explanation:
We can do another country like Spain and Mexico
Take what you need ok?
The Spanish language extends far beyond Spain and Mexico. One of the top five languages spoken worldwide, there are twenty official Spanish-speaking countries. Within each country or region, however, there are different dialects and varieties, making Spanish one of the most diverse languages in the world. With this great diversity comes a valid business question: Is there a “universal” or “proper” Spanish that I can use for my global business?
Linguistically speaking, the short answer: no. There is no such thing as a “better” Spanish since every dialect is unique and correct in its uniqueness. However, from a marketing point of view, the question now becomes: Is it really necessary to translate and localize for every single Spanish dialect?
Again, the answer is (generally) no. But it all depends on your target Spanish-speaking markets. If you want to reach customers in places like Peru, Argentina, or Puerto Rico, you’ll likely need to translate your content with these variations in mind.
The key is to find variations in vocabulary and grammar where Spanish is spoken and think about how they might influence your particular content. One obvious difference between Spanish in Spain and in Latin America is with the pronouns for “you.” In Latin American Spanish you don’t use the informal pronouns Tú (singular) and Vosotros (plural) as you would in Spain. Instead, the pronouns Usted and Ustedes are used for all situations. In Spain, these pronouns are only used to address somebody formally.
Of course, many people think that there are only distinctions between European Spanish and Latin American Spanish. But because every Spanish-speaking country has developed differently, this simply isn’t true. You have to take into consideration each country’s individual culture, politics, technology, and economy. These factors have great impact on the language and can make the same words mean something quite different when crossing a border.
The Influence of History
For example, some countries in South America, like Argentina or Chile, might see themselves as more European than Latin since they have primarily Spanish and Italian ancestry. The Spanish there reflects this difference: the word bunga (pickpocket) used in Chile and Argentina originated from the Italian word pungia (pocket). Argentina’s word for gun, bufoso, also originated from the Italian word buffare. But then there are some local dialects inside Peru where many Japanese and Chinese words have been Hispanicized, such as: ocha (a hot infusion), matchi (a match), and Chifa (the Peruvian name for Chinese restaurants that comes from the Chinese term 饎飯, “chi faan”, meaning “to eat rice.”) These words reflect the influence of Asia on the local culture there.
You also need to be careful when using political, ideological, and legal terminology because not all Spanish-speaking countries are ruled by the same type of government. Spain, for instance, has a constitutional monarchy while Cuba is communist. Differences in power structures make for differences in terms in Spanish, some of which don’t even have a rough equivalent in another Spanish-speaking country.
What’s in a Name?
You also need to consider that products can have completely different names depending on the country. Just think of ‘truck” and “lorry” with British and American English. Take the word “computer.” In Spain “computer” translates to ordenador, but in most Latin American countries the word is computadora.
Thinking about spreading your business through multiple Spanish-speaking countries? Be sure to go beyond translation and localize the content. Localization along with translation allows you to address the right audience from the beginning. Customers buying a coche in Spain want to come home with a car, but in Mexico, they’re in the market for baby strollers, not a family vehicle. Catching these differences before launching a campaign will save you and your Spanish-speaking customer’s confusion, no matter where your company ends up.
