| Hola! Soy Brenda, tu profesora de español. |
| Hoy tengo cinco frases argentinas, típicas de Argentina. |
| Today, I would like to share with you 5 typical phrases from Argentina. |
| Número uno |
| ¡Agarrate Catalina! |
| So we use this phrase to... as a warning. When we want to warn someone or when we want to say that there is a situation coming up that is not going to be easy. And we use this phrase in Argentina all the time. |
| Let me tell you where this phrase is coming from. So Catalina was a trapezist, so she used to work in a circus in the ‘40s in Buenos Aires. And her great grandmother, her grandmother and mother, actually, also worked for the circus and they passed away. They actually died during the shows. So, before the show, people that knew the story used to scream at her, ¡Agarrate Catalina! So, “Catalina, please hold on tight!” before every single show as trying to warn her to be extremely careful, so that she doesn’t have the same fate. So every show, before she came out to the stage, someone will scream… |
| ¡Agarrate Catalina! |
| “Catalina, hold on tight!” |
| ¡Agarrate Catalina! |
| So this phrase started to…, to be yelled at every single show as a superstition. It all started as a superstition, but guess what happened the day that someone forgot to say that line to Catalina? Yes, you guessed it! She actually passed away that day. So, ever since that…, I mean, she was 25 years old and she died in a show, in a circus show, in San Telmo. |
| So ever since that day, now in Argentina, we say agarrate Catalina when there is a situation that is about to happen or that we aren’t sure and we think it’s not gonna… gonna be easy. |
| Número dos |
| Hasta que las velas no ardan |
| So, this phrase started being used in Buenos Aires in the brothels when electricity was not around, so electricity didn’t exist at the time and watches were actually a very luxurious item. People couldn’t afford them. So the madam would give their clients one or several candles depending on how much they have paid, to light them up, to get the services, right? And so, until…, the client had to stay in the place until the candles were consumed. So that’s where the phrase is coming, hasta que las velas no ardan. |
| So we use this phrase nowadays to..., instead of talking about the candles itself, but it’s maybe your energy or until the very end. So, for example, I’m going to work, voy a trabajar hasta que las velas no ardan. Significa. It means, I’m going to work so hard until I can’t do it anymore, until it’s over, until I am done, basically. |
| Número tres |
| Más loco o loca que una cabra |
| So, we use this phrase to obviously say that someone is super crazy and we’re just using a comparison here. It’s very common in Argentina. And, this phrase is coming from, just comparing a goat to, for example, a lamb. So the lamb, even when they are not with their mother anymore, when they don’t need their mother anymore, they are still around their mom. Compared to goats, once goats are not with their moms anymore, they start jumping around going crazy and they go, go away and you can see their moms still trying to look for them. That’s why we think they’re a little bit crazy and out of control. So, that’s where the expression is coming from. |
| Número cuatro |
| No quiere más lola |
| Lola was a… a sweet biscuit. It was around in the… in the ‘20s, at the beginning of the 20th century in Argentina. It was part of the meals in the hospitals. So, when someone passes away, they used to say around the hospital… |
| No quiere más lola. |
| “He doesn’t want to eat the cookie anymore.” |
| And now, we use it to express that someone doesn’t want to put the effort anymore or doesn’t want to do something, we say… |
| No quiere más lola. |
| No quiere más lola. |
| Numero cinco |
| A cada chancho le toca su San Martín |
| So this phrase comes from the 11th of November, which is the day that we celebrate the Day of San Martin de Tours who was the patron saint of the city of Buenos Aires. This day was celebrated by eating a piglet. We use this phrase to talk about that each person gets what they deserve, either because of their good deeds or their bad deeds. |
| Muy bien estudiantes. Esa es la clase de hoy. That is the end of today’s lesson. We had a look at some typical phrases that we use all the time in Argentina, what they literally mean, and where they come from. Muchas gracias. Enos vemos la próxima clase. Well see you next class. Adios! |
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