Lunfardo
What is Lunfardo?
Lunfardo is a unique linguistic phenomenon. The technical term from a linguistic point of view is argot, a popular speech created outside the official vocabulary.
Lunfardo is a true key to entering and integrating into Argentine daily life. With a little practice and a lot of attention, you'll be able to start mastering it. Because understanding it means deeply grasping Argentine culture, its origins, and its contradictions.
Origin of Lunfardo
According to some scholars, the origin of Lunfardo is related to the world of criminals who needed to develop a code to communicate without prison guards understanding them. In reality, it should be understood as a mode of popular expression.
It's a lexical repertoire integrated by words and expressions of diverse origin, fed by hundreds of dialects from all immigrants who arrived in this country in the late 19th century. Lunfardo is a true collective heritage. Although its origin can be located in Buenos Aires, this vocabulary has already spread throughout the country.
Examples of Lunfardo
bondi
Bus, public transport
tacho
Taxi
tachero
Taxi driver
trucho
Fake, poor quality
parlar
To talk a lot
"Lunfardo is basically a repertoire of immigrated terms, a particularity that distinguishes it from other popular speech in the world, which generally consists of words that belong to the same language in which they are inserted."