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Ecuador is a unique country because of its marvelous beaches, magical volcanoes,

the wonderful Galapagos Islands and overall due to its people’s creativity to enrich the

Spanish lexicon by making up new words. When John 23, an American exchange student,

heard “hagamos vaca y vamos a chupar” for the first time he was confused and did not

know how to answer it even though he had taken Spanish classes before coming to

Ecuador. Later on, he learnt that it was a suggestion to chip in some bucks and go for a

drink.

Most of these colloquial words have been borrowed from other languages and

adapted to refer to certain things that sometimes do not convey with the meaning in

those languages; for instance, the English word man is used by Ecuadorians to refer to all

people no matter their gender, so do not get surprised hearing Ecuadorians say “el man; la

man; los/las manes”; indeed, most foreigners who visit Ecuador have to deal with some

colloquial Spanish words which are understood just by Ecuadorians. Thus, in this article

you will find some of the most common jargons spoken by Ecuadorians in their daily

conversations.

If somebody asks you “¿estas chuchaqui?” do not feel insulted, that person is just

asking you whether you have got a hangover. Moreover, you will hear people calling each

other “loco” it does not mean Ecuadorians are insane, but it is a word to refer to a friend.

Furthermore, when someone asks you “¿ tienes pelada?” he is not talking about baldness,

he is trying to know if you have a girlfriend or not.

 Even President Rafael Correa has made words like “pelucon” or “care tuco” well-

known throughout Ecuador and abroad as well, so, from now on, every time you listen to

Rafael Correa saying “estos pelucones care tucos” you will know that he is talking about

well- off people, who according to him, are shameless.

Sometimes foreigners are curious about the meaning of words they hear on the

streets or buses. Roberto 25, a Fulbright Student, once was asked by an American friend

what “chongo “means, he had heard this word in a conversation between two men while

he was waiting for a bus. The word “chongo” caught his attention because it sounded

funny, Roberto explain to him that they were talking about a brothel.

Besides, there are some words related to religious people; in particular, the word

“curuchupa” describes a person who attends church regularly and tries to show how

religious he is to others; however, once he is out of church, he starts gossiping, lying,

criticizing others, doing the opposite of what he preaches.

Definitely, there are some cultural shocks foreigners have to face when they land

in Ecuador, but the original words spoken and understood just by Ecuadorians will call

their attention right away. Because of its originality, funny pronunciation or just the way

Ecuadorians utter them. It is something else that makes this small but amazing country

special and a paradise for foreigners to stay here forever.