Paraguay.

With a very small population of Spanish origin, and a very rapid amalgamation with the native population, would it have been possible for the Spanish language to actually die out there?
 
With a very small population of Spanish origin, and a very rapid amalgamation with the native population, would it have been possible for the Spanish language to actually die out there?

No, not really. The only reason Guarani has lasted so long because some eccentric dictator pretty much forced the Paraguayans (most who are of mestizo descent and not Amerindians) to learn the language. That and because of the Jesuits deciding to evangelize and spread Roman Catholicism using said language.

Interesting topic though.
 
Paraguay

No, not really. The only reason Guarani has lasted so long because some eccentric dictator pretty much forced the Paraguayans (most who are of mestizo descent and not Amerindians) to learn the language. That and because of the Jesuits deciding to evangelize and spread Roman Catholicism using said language.

Interesting topic though.
I only wonder how long this unique linguistic situation in Paraguay will last. The eventual death of Guarani has been predicted for many years, but it simply refuses to die out. A friend in college who had married a Paraguayan and traveled there ended up learning Guarani and had very limited opportunity to use much Spanish, as her husband lived in a remote rural area of the country.
 
Is it really so unique? I suppose that both Quechua and Nahuatl (maybe even Mapuche and Aymara to some extent) are in a broadly similar situation in Bolivia, Peru and Mexico. Or is Guarani even more rooted?
By the way, many of the Jesuit Reducciones among the Guaranis were actually within the present-day borders of Brazil and Argentina. I'm aware that a significant part of that area was in Paraguay before the war of the Triple Alliance, but at least some major sections were Brazilian or Argentinian even before that. However, I think that only Paraguay had a lasting imprinting of that historical experience. (The area involved has experienced a relatively large settlement of Syrian and Lebanese migrants afterwards; I find it interesting).
 
Unlike those four languages, Guarani in Paraguay is widely spoken by white and mixed-race Paraguayans I believe, to the point where if I remember correctly only a few hundred thousand speak Spanish as their first language while the majority are native Guarani speakers. In comparison, Nahuatl in Mexico has around 1.5 million speakers out of the over 100 million Mexicans.
 
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