The Spanish Language Academy could teach the French a thing or two.
In his latest column in Quebec daily Le Devoir, Jean-Benoît Nadeau explains how the 22 countries of the Spanish speaking world work together to regulate the Spanish language.
The contrast with France’s French Academy is striking.
The members of the French Academy are splitting hairs about feminizing titles – should you call a female president Madame LA presidente, or Madame LE president. Since 1635, they have only published 8 editions of their dictionary.
Meanwhile, Spain’s Royal Academy, founded in 1714, just released the 23rd edition of it’s Diccionario. Each of the worlds Spanish-speaking countries has its own language academy and contributes new vocabulary to the dictionary, which is widely respected and widely used.
“Spanish speakers, who are just as purist as French speakers, are demonstrating how to modernize both a language and its culture.”
Read the rest of the article (in French).