It is surprising that, being Cuban, there are such marked differences in the way people speak between those who live in the western and eastern parts of the island.
That is precisely the source of inspiration for a video shared on Instagram, where two young people list some concepts and the way they are known in Havana and Santiago de Cuba.
Key and pen, banana and plantain, flip-flop and spoon, sapote and mamey, are the pairs of words mentioned by two users on that social media platform who go by the names @kmyqva and @m_momito.
But the list could also include others such as hallaca or tamale, money and silver, pig and pork, among other pairs.
Although both focus only on Havana and Santiago de Cuba, the reality is that some of these words are also used in other provinces and cities.
Furthermore, in some cases, they are more common in certain areas than in others, even within the same city.
Finally, there are also examples, like "col" and "repollo," which are used interchangeably at least in Santiago de Cuba. Therefore, these cases, along with others, do not represent a general rule.
Another interesting aspect of the language is Cubanismo, which refers to the unique usage, expressions, or words specific to the Spanish spoken by Cubans.
In some cases, there will be new forms that do not exist in other variants of Spanish, while in others, it will involve a new meaning or a different interpretation compared to what is found in other variants.
The list is quite extensive, and we find terms such as: cederista, federada, cuentapropista, camilito, bicitaxi, camello, cocotaxi, almendrón, seguroso, fiana, comuñanga, gusano, among many others.
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