Just like any other language, Spanish has adopted many words from different languages and cultures. These words are known in Spanish as extranjerismos, a term that comes from the word extranjero (foreign). That said, let's take a look at some of the most common words in Spanish that come from other languages.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the Spanish language adopted several Arabic words. Let's see some of them:
Soy Miguel Ángel Herrera, alcalde de Genalguacil,
I'm Miguel Angel Herrera, mayor of Genalguacil,
Captions 2-3, Viajando con Fermín Genalguacil - Part 2
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el álgebra, que estudia las estructuras abstractas,
algebra, which studies abstract structures,
Captions 48-49, Carlos explica Vocabulario de las matemáticas - Part 1
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con media taza de azúcar
with half a cup of sugar,
Caption 25, Ana Carolina Ponche navideño
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aprendí a tocar la guitarra de una manera diferente
I learned to play the guitar in a different manner
Caption 55, Luis Guitarra Influencias musicales - Part 1
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saben a naranja.
taste like orange.
Caption 34, Ariana Cita médica
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If you hear the way Ariana pronounces the word naranja, you can notice the strong sound of the letter "j," which is a sound that the Spanish language took from the Arabic language.
Just like in the English language, Spanish has also adopted many words derived from French. Let's see some of the most popular ones:
hasta lo que hoy es conocido como el Bulevar donostiarra,
to what is known today as the "Bulevar donostiarra" [Donostiarra Boulevard]
Caption 28, Días festivos La Tamborrada de San Sebastián
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que Amalia se quedó con él y con el chofer, ¿sí?
because Amalia stayed with him and with the driver, right?
Caption 28, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa Capítulo 2 - Part 9
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unas estructuras de poder muy basadas en la élite, en la exclusión.
some power structures [that were] very based on the elite, on exclusion.
Caption 12, Los Tiempos de Pablo Escobar Capítulo 1 - Part 1
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Many words from various indigenous Latin American cultures were incorporated into the Spanish language after the arrival of the Spaniards to the Americas. The following are some of the most popular words:
Ellos jugaban con una pelota de caucho
They played with a rubber ball
Caption 85, Guillermo el chamán La cosmología de los mayas
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guitarra, cuatro, güiro, maraca, bongo,
guitar, cuatro, güiro, maraca, bongo [drum],
Caption 32, Sonido Babel La plena de Puerto Rico
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En los Andes se usa mucha papa y muchas cremas.
In the Andes, many potatoes are used and many creams.
Captions 75-76, Recetas de cocina Papa a la Huancaína
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¿Qué es realmente el tomate?
What really is the tomato?
Caption 30, Fermín Ensalada de tomate
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Many Italian words made their way into the Spanish language during the Renaissance. Let's check out two of them:
Tomo unos mates en el balcón
I have some servings of mate on the balcony
Caption 7, GoSpanish La rutina diaria de Sol
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basada en una novela de Paul van Loon
based on a novel by Paul van Loon
Caption 4, Europa Abierta Fucsia la pequeña bruja
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And last but not least, we have extranjerismos that come from the English language. Here a few:
que hagan un perímetro por dentro y por fuera del club, vaya.
that they should surround us inside and outside the club, come on.
Caption 13, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa Capítulo 5 - Part 12
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El fútbol es un deporte que fue inventado en Inglaterra
Soccer is a sport that was invented in England
Caption 8, Sergio El fútbol en España
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In this translation, we used the word "soccer" instead of "football." However, the Spanish word comes from the original British term "football."
La India Catalina era la líder de la tribu indígena que habitó en la ciudad, anteriormente llamada la Isla Calamarí.
India Catalina was the leader of the indigenous tribe who inhabited the city, previously called Calamari Island.
Captions 26-27, Viajando en Colombia Cartagena en coche - Part 3
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una ciudad cosmopolita, luminosa y que pone al servicio del turista una amplia variedad de infraestructuras.
a cosmopolitan, luminous city that puts at the service of the tourist a wide variety of infrastructures.
Captions 10-11, Málaga Semana Santa
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That's all for this lesson. We hope you enjoyed this list of foreign-influenced words in Spanish. Can you think of any additional extranjerismos in Spanish? Don't forget to let us know with your comments and suggestions. ¡Hasta la próxima!