Chilote Spanish
Encyclopedia
Chilote is a dialect
of Spanish language
spoken on the southern Chilean islands of Chiloé Archipelago
(Spanish: Archipiélago de Chiloé or simply, Chiloé). It has distinct differences from standard Chilean Spanish
in accent, pronunciation, grammar and vocabulary, especially by influences from huilliche
(also called veliche), a variant of Mapudungun
.
After the battle of Curalaba and the Destruction of the Seven Cities Chiloé was further isolated from the rest of Chile
and developed a culture with little influences from Spain or mainland Chile. During the 17th and 18th century most of the archipelagoes population was bilingual and according to John Byron
many Spaniards preferred to use the huilliche
language by considering it more beautiful. Around the same time governor Narciso de Santa María complained that Spanish settlers in the islands could not speak Spanish properly but did well on veliche and that this second language was more used.
Dialect
The term dialect is used in two distinct ways, even by linguists. One usage refers to a variety of a language that is a characteristic of a particular group of the language's speakers. The term is applied most often to regional speech patterns, but a dialect may also be defined by other factors,...
of Spanish language
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
spoken on the southern Chilean islands of Chiloé Archipelago
Chiloé Archipelago
Chiloé Archipelago consists of several islands lying off the coast of Chile. It is separated from mainland Chile by Chacao Channel in the north, the Sea of Chiloé in the east and Gulf of Corcovado to the southeast. All of the archipelago except Desertores Islands, which are part of Palena...
(Spanish: Archipiélago de Chiloé or simply, Chiloé). It has distinct differences from standard Chilean Spanish
Chilean Spanish
Chilean Spanish is the variety of Spanish spoken in most of Chile. Though still entirely mutually intelligible with standard Spanish, Chilean Spanish has distinctive pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary, and slang usage...
in accent, pronunciation, grammar and vocabulary, especially by influences from huilliche
Huilliche
The Huilliche is an ethnic group of Chile, belonging to the Mapuche culture. They live in mountain valleys in an area south of Toltén River and on Chiloé Archipelago...
(also called veliche), a variant of Mapudungun
Mapudungun
The Mapuche language, Mapudungun is a language isolate spoken in south-central Chile and west central Argentina by the Mapuche people. It is also spelled Mapuzugun and sometimes called Mapudungu or Araucanian...
.
After the battle of Curalaba and the Destruction of the Seven Cities Chiloé was further isolated from the rest of Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
and developed a culture with little influences from Spain or mainland Chile. During the 17th and 18th century most of the archipelagoes population was bilingual and according to John Byron
John Byron
Vice Admiral The Hon. John Byron, RN was a Royal Navy officer. He was known as Foul-weather Jack because of his frequent bad luck with weather.-Early career:...
many Spaniards preferred to use the huilliche
Huilliche
The Huilliche is an ethnic group of Chile, belonging to the Mapuche culture. They live in mountain valleys in an area south of Toltén River and on Chiloé Archipelago...
language by considering it more beautiful. Around the same time governor Narciso de Santa María complained that Spanish settlers in the islands could not speak Spanish properly but did well on veliche and that this second language was more used.