Next I will teach you a little bit about how to speak correctly with an Argentine accent😀
1) Pronounce the ‘ll’ and ‘y’ as ‘sh’
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This is the most prominent feature of the Argentine Spanish spoken in Buenos Aires: we always pronounce the ll and the y as sh.
So if I say a phrase like “Yo me llamo Kevin”, you will hear “Sho me shamo Kevin”
Other examples:
lluvia = shuvia (rain)
pollo = posho (chicken)
playa = plasha (beach)
This pronunciation of ll and y as sh is actually a linguistic phenomenon called yeismo rehilado, which is also common in Uruguay.
(Sh, ¡el sonido favorito de los porteños! 🤫🤭)
2) Imitate an Italian – but don’t exaggerate!
The porteño accent has been highly influenced by the successive waves of Italian immigrants that arrived in the country between the mid-19th and the mid-20th centuries.
So although it might sound a little bit stereotypical, it’s true that there’s some Italian in our intonation and cadence when we speak.
And by Italian, again I should clarify, I mean from Southern Italy, since that’s the region where most of the immigrants came from.
Now one more example of a typical rioplatense accent!
Do you know Andy Muschietti? He’s a successful Argentine filmmaker recognized for directing the two film adaptations of the famous Stephen King novel It.
In the interview below you can hear him talking about his experience directing It: Chapter Two.
UN RATO CON ANDY MUSCHIETTI! | La técnica secreta del director de IT 2 | Entrevista
3) Want to speak with an Argentine accent? Aspirate your s’s!
When I’m teaching, it’s usual for my students to think that sometimes I don’t pronounce the s.
For example, I teach the word bosque (forest) and no matter how many times I repeat it, they keep hearing “boque”.
In phonetics, ‘to aspirate’ means to pronounce something with a breath that can be heard. That’s what we do with the s not only in Buenos Aires, but in half of the Hispanic world!
An aspirated s sounds very similar to an h in English. But be careful! There are some rules, which also apply for the z, because it’s pronounced as an s.
Let ‘s take a look at this phrase: “no quiero soñar mil veces las mismas cosas”.
When a word starts or ends with an s or when it is before a vowel, it ‘s pronounced normally: soñar, veces, las, cosas.
4) Let’s listen to a native Spanish speaker once again!
In the video below, Abel Pintos, one of the most popular singers in Argentina (and among the popular ones, the most talented in my opinion), answers 11 random questions.
11 Preguntas Random con Abel Pintos
The video has subtitles, so pay attention to those times when the s is before a consonant sound.
Keep practicing, but don’t get obsessed! It will take some time until you are able to aspire your s’s naturally.
Do you want to learn more Spanish accent?
Come to our school and learn Spanish with us! 😊
We will be very happy to receive you! 🥰
