Re: Vulgarity

Pablo Flores excribi=F3:
>
>  Like the Spanish verb
> _coger_ which means "to take hold of" in most Sp-speaking
> places, but "to fuck" in Argentina (that I know). (Imagine
> the general burst of laughter when a Spanish journalist
> says _La cogi=F3 por el brazo_ or a similar thing...
> I want *that* for Drasel=E9q! :-)
Those little words... I know _coger_ is also used as "to fuck" in Central
America... but is not in Spain, nor in Colombia.

Anyhow, I've found that the most vulgar or offensive terms in Spanish, an=
d I
guess is in the whole Spanish speaking world, are related to sex, stupidi=
ty
and race/ethnics.  And that give birth to funny euphenism... in Colombias
pacific coast, black people is called _moreno_ (dark, of dark skin) word
that can apply to a suntaned white or a mestizo, instead of _negro_ (blac=
k),
for not insulting.  The word _indio_ (Indian) has also become an insult i=
n
Colombia, so people use _indigena_ (indigenous, native) as a neutral word.
(Observation, the use of "indigenous" is not used to avoid confutiob betw=
een
American Indians and Asian Indians, is used to avoid the bad connotation
_indio_ has.)

I've found out that in Hangkerim, there are some racial/ethnic terms that
have become offensive, mainly _black_ and _foresty_ used respectively to
descendants of African slaves and for members of those native minorities
that hasn't been assimilated into the urban Hangkerim civilization.  Abou=
t
sex, Hangkerimians speak freely in "technical" terms, but there are some
_hiden_ words, related mainly to what they think are aberrations, like
homosexuality, promiscuity or abuse, using those hiden words in a social
enviroment would be considered vulgar and coarse.  What I mean is that th=
ere
is a word meaning "to fuck" which is widely used and is not considered
vulgar at all, but there are a repertory of vulgar sinonyms, and spaciali=
zed
words for homosexual act, child sexual abused, sodomy, etc. that are tabo=
o.

The Christian communities in Hangkerim, both Kizidanos (Xtian
Hangkerimians), Criollos (Spanish descendants) and Newcars (English
descendants), have been a little more reluctant to speak on sexual matter=
s,
except in private enviroments.

-- Carlos Th