One of the first things that is discovered when beginning to learn Spanish is that There are two ways to refer to someone in the second person.: you y usted. As you will know, you Is the most usual way in the Hispanic world and is used colloquially in all kinds of conversations, while usted is usually reserved for formal contexts or to interact with people who have a certain respect.

But did you know that these are not the only two ways to address someone?

Actually there is a third term, not as well known as the other two and with a particular origin. Do you know her? Is about the word submerged, very popular in the Andean region of Colombia, which has been preserved over the years to become today a cultural and linguistic heritage of the country.

In case you have never heard it, or you want to learn about it, here we will tell you about its origin, its meaning, and the contexts in which you can use it when you visit Colombia.

word history submerged

To talk of submerged We also have to talk about his sister word, usted. Although usted enjoys much greater popularity around Latin America, both terms share the same origin and they are closely related from birth.

Before usted, the term used in Spanish to speak politely was Your Grace (Its equivalent in English would be "His/Her Grace"). However, as the years and generations of speakers passed, the term underwent a linguistic and phonetic process known as "apheresis", which consists of gradual loss of sounds within a word, which results in the word being shortened.

In the case of Your Grace, the phrase was shortened to a single word: your grace. This, in turn, came to be pronounced as Your Excellency, from there to voiced, then you and finally to usted that we all know today.

But then, where does it come from? submerged?

As it happened in Spain, here in Colombia the term Your Grace It also went through a simplification process, just a little differently. Instead of going to your grace, here the expression became his mercy and eventually to the current submerged.

As we said, submerged es a very typical expression of Colombia, which has been preserved especially in the Andean region of the center of the country. During the colonial era, submerged was the favorite word for natives and slaves they went to the Spaniards; was, then, a gesture of respect towards the European authorities, which made clear the existing hierarchy between the different races and denoted their status as submission and inferiority.

Today, however, the submerged has been appropriated and resignified for Colombians, leaving behind that violent and painful burden with which he carried for so long. It is very common to hear it in the departments of Boyacá and Cundinamarca, as well as in our capital: Bogotá.

word grammar submerged

To use the submerged, it is enough that you know how to use the usted correctly:

1. As usted, submerged is a second person personal pronoun:

«You He is very intelligent", «submerged speaks Spanish very well»

2. It is a second person pronoun, but its verbs are conjugated in the third person:

«submerged loves colombian food»

3. Since it comes from two different words, su y mercy, its plural is also double: their + mercedes:

«susmercedes Do you know Bogota?»

For us Colombians, submerged It is still a way of showing respect towards the other, but above all love and affection. Therefore, when you visit Boyacá and Bogotá, do not be afraid to speak to people with a submerged: they will surely answer you with a smile.

Learn Spanish in Colombia

The best way to learn a language is traveling, and to learn Spanish in Colombia, there is no better option than the school Nueva Lengua.

En Nueva Lengua Spanish is learned through immersive cultural experiences. Our courses integrate the study of the Spanish vocabulary and grammar with tourist and cultural activities daily. Every afternoon, after class, our students have the opportunity to explore Colombia with us while perfecting their Spanish and having fun traveling.

Check the activities that we organize daily for our students, or write to us at info@nuevalengua.com for more information about our Spanish courses and cultural immersion In colombia.

All the articles in this blog have been written by the teachers of our school and by students from different countries who traveled to Colombia to learn Spanish.
“You travel too and study Spanish in NUEVA LENGUA"

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