It is a verifiable reality that Canarian speech is different from the rest of Spanish speakers. Starting from a common base, Spanish has a multitude of variants, many more than countries or regions that speak it. Without going too far, In the Canary Islands we have different words to designate the same thing depending on which island we are on. Thus, many times when we travel between islands, we would need a special dictionary to understand each other. Here we expose you a Chicharrero-canarión basic dictionary, to facilitate communication between Tenerife and Gran Canaria.
This basic dictionary contains 15 concepts that have two different words, one in common use in Tenerife and the other in Gran Canaria. Here are the 30 words.
Bubango – zucchini
If you order bubangos in the market in Gran Canaria, the shopkeeper will correct you by saying: “he means zucchini”. However, the Canarian Language Academy ensures that the bubango is something else. Cylindrical zucchini with green rind and white flesh, similar to zucchini, but more appreciated than this. Bubango is distinguished from zucchini by shape and size.
Cotufas – threads
The popcorn is from Tenerife and the roscas from Gran Canaria. Even Canarias Radio uses this double designation for popcorn as the name of one of its programs. ‘Threads and popcorn’.
Dog chorizo - chorizo de Teror
Some argue that it is not the same thing, but it is difficult to find the seven differences.
Sponge Cake – Cake
If we talk about pastries, whether homemade or industrial, in Tenerife we will order sponge cake and cake in Gran Canaria. In the Peninsula they would say cake, but as in Gran Canaria the cake is something else, it was preferred to throw the Anglicism Cake.
Sponge cake – sponge cake
The bizcochado bread is more from Tenerife and the bizcocho from Gran Canaria. That which in the Peninsula they would call toast bread.
Tin bread – sliced bread
On the two islands it is clear that it is bread and shaped bread, whether it is a square tin or a square mold.
Fig pico – tuno
The fruit of the prickly pears or tuneras is for the people of Tenerife the peak fig and for the people of Gran Canaria the tuno.
Guachinche – bochinche
Everyone knows that in Tenerife you can eat fantastically and cheaply in the guachinches, accompanying the meal with wine from the own winery or water. In Gran Canaria, the bochinches also offer food for little money. We are not talking about quality. What is not found is their own wine, even if they offer you house wine.
Fisco – pisco
A little bit is called a treasury in Tenerife and it is a pisco in Gran Canaria. And with this word we close the chapter on food, although the treasury or pisco are not necessarily linked to what enters our mouths.
Balloon – blower
In this case, it does not enter through the mouth, but results from the air that comes out of it. According to the basic dictionary of Canarianisms, the Gran Canaria blower is a round, oval or fusiform bag made of a flexible and waterproof material, which is filled with air and serves as a toy. Come on, what comes to be a balloon in Tenerife and in the rest of Spain.
Sweater – pullover
The influence and loan of another language comes in this case from the same side, but in Tenerife they stayed with the sweater and in Gran Canaria they preferred the pullover to refer to what in the Peninsula they would call a sweater.
Tennis – T-shirts
The sports shoes are tennis in Tenerife and t-shirts in Gran Canaria.
Drawer – drawer
If we want to keep our sweater or our tennis shoes well, we will do it in a drawer in Tenerife and in a drawer in Gran Canaria.
Wardrobe
Of course, the drawer can only be from our closet in Tenerife, while in Gran Canaria the drawer is from the closet.
Trunk – luggage rack
And we come to the end of this journey. If you store your luggage in the trunk of the car in Tenerife and you ride the Armas or the Fred. Olsen to go to Gran Canaria, you will take it out of the rack when you arrive at the destination.
