Amazonic Spanish


Amazonic Spanish, also known as Loreto-Ucayali Spanish or Jungle Spanish, is a variety of Spanish spoken in the Amazon, especially in Ecuador, parts of Colombia, Southern Venezuela and the Peruvian provinces of Loreto and Ucayali. Amazonic Spanish is also spoken in areas of Brazil adjoining Loreto and Ucayali and in the Amazonas Department of Colombia.

Distinctive features

Morphosyntax

One of the distinguishing features of Amazonic Spanish is the method of constructing the possessive form: speakers say "de la X su Y", instead of standard Spanish "la Y de X". Another distinctive grammatical feature is the use of possessive forms in place of certain genitive forms; compare standard Spanish "Le preguntó a la yaminahua delante de mí" with the Loreto-Ucayali "Le preguntó a la yaminahua en mi delante".
Personal names are prefixed with a definite article.

Phonology

and especially the sequence are frequently realized as .
Amazonic Spanish also incorporates words and expressions borrowed from local indigenous languages.

Status

Amazonic Spanish is sometimes classified as a separate language from standard Spanish, as for example by the Ethnologue; Amazonic Spanish even has its own ISO 639-3 code: spq.