Shawty

I learned a new word today.

Shawty: term of endearment originating from Atlanta, formerly meaning "Shorty", but now referring to any male or female friend or associate: "Wassup Shawty!" Also can be used as a 3rd person pronoun: "That shawty over there is hot."

Vos in Guatemala

While on a recent trip to Guatemala, I stumbled on an interesting dialectal Spanish variation: the pronoun vos.

As in many other languages, it is one of the multiple forms of 2nd person (you), but in this case, it's a step in familiarity above tú. For those unfamiliar (no pun intended) with Spanish, here's a quick overview of the standard:

• Tú. Familiar 2nd person singular, used between family and friends.
  
• Usted. Formal 2nd person singular, used to politely address strangers, acquaintances. Also used in power/age difference situations.
  
• Vosotros. Familiar 2nd person plural, the plural counterpart to tú. Generally not used in Latin America.
  
• Ustedes. Formal 2nd person plural. In the absense of vosotros, it is used for both formal and familiar situations.
  

I asked the locals to describe how vos is used in Guatemala, and here are my exciting findings:

• It is more familiar than tú - for very close friends and family. In Guatemala, it does not replace tú. It does in other dialects, such as in Argentina.
• The verb is conjugated differently from any other pronoun. The stress is generally on the last syllable, and when irregular, it usually follows the infinitive form.
  
  "you have" tu tienes / vos tenés
  "you can" tu puedes / vos podés
  "you eat" tu comes / vos comés
  
  
• According to one Guatemalan guy (in his mid to late 20s), the connotation is a bit more forceful. This explains the necessity for familiarity before using vos, or you're definitely going to offend people.
• Some interesting gender usages:
  Between guys: vos. Apparently it would be weird between close buddies to use tú. "It would be too... flowery," said one guy.
  Between girls: vos.
  Between genders: tú. It is weird or inappropriate - I'm not sure which - to use vos to address someone of the other gender, even if you are close friends. However, this doesn't apply between siblings.
• This is not a generational difference. People of all ages use vos.
  

Of course, a big disclaimer is that personal preference or type of relationship overrides general guidelines:
One guy said that with one particular friend he always uses usted. "I don't know why - it's just something about her."
Another girl told me she knows a family where one guy (about 25) uses vos with his brothers, but usted for his little sister. "Que feo!" (how horrible!) she remarked.