This document seeks to address 10 common misconceptions about the Spanish language and people who speak it. Each misconception is presented as a true/false statement with an explanation providing context to show why the statement is false. Some key points made include: Spanish is not spoken the same everywhere and has regional variations; the U.S. does not have an official language; New Mexico was once part of Mexico; not all Mexicans speak Spanish as a first language; Cinco de Mayo is not Mexico's independence day; and Taco Bell serves Americanized rather than authentic Mexican food.

1. 10 Common Misconceptions
about the Spanish Language
and the people who speak it:
A Gringo’s Guide to what we think we know
© Spanish Plans

2. In your notebook, answer True or False
1. Spanish is spoken the same everywhere.
2. English is the official language of the U.S.
3. New Mexico was once part of Mexico.
4. Everyone in Mexico speaks Spanish.
5. Cinco de Mayo is Mexico’s Independence Day.
6. U.S. has a larger Spanish speaking population
than Spain.
7. A person who speaks Spanish is Spanish.
8. A Mexican can be blonde, blue eyed.
9. English is more common than Spanish worldwide.
10. Taco Bell is Mexican food.

3. ¿Cierto o Falso?
1. Spanish is spoken the
same everywhere?
FALSO
Different countries have different accents, and even
different words for things. Just like the English
spoken in England is different from the English
spoken in the U.S. What do Americans call a “lift”?
What does it mean to “stand in queue”
In Puerto Rico, you wait for a “guagua” while in
Costa Rica you wait for a “bus”.

4. ¿Cierto o Falso?
2. English is the official
language of the U.S.?
FALSO
So what is? Well, the US doesn’t actually have an
“official” language. Currently, English is the most spoken
language. Always a topic of debate whether we should
declare English the official language, meaning all
business must be conducted in English, US congress
has only gone so far to declare it a “common, binding
language”. Although 27 states have declared English the
official language for the state.

5. ¿Cierto o Falso?
3. The state of New Mexico
was once part of México.
CIERTO
The states of California, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico,
most of Arizona, Colorado, and Texas were all Mexican
territory until the Treaty of Guadalupe was signed in
1848. This was a result of the U.S. Mexican War, or as
Mexico calls it, “The U.S. Invasion.” This territory
accounted for half of Mexican territory at the time,
meaning Mexico was twice the size it is now. In return,
the US paid Mexico $18.25 million, less than half of what
it had offered before the war started, and cleared Mexico
of $3.25m of debt to the US.

6. Belonged to Mexico

7. ¿Cierto o Falso?
4. Everyone’s first language
in Mexico is Spanish.
FALSO
There are still at least 68 indigenous languages alive
in Mexico. The most popular, Nahuatl, is the
language of the Aztecs. Like the U.S., the Mexican
government has not declared Spanish to be an
official language. About 6% of their population speak
only their indigenous language.

8. ¿Cierto o Falso?
5. Cinco de Mayo is Mexico’s
Independence Day?
FALSO
5 de mayo has nothing to do with independence. It is not
even a national holiday in Mexico. It has more relevance
as a commercial holiday in America. In Mexico, it is
essentially only celebrated in the town of Puebla, where it
commemorates the underdog victory of the Mexican
army over the French in 1862… France later went on to
win that war. Mexico’s actual Independence Day is
September 16. The 15th
and 16th
are by far the biggest
national celebrations in Mexico.

9. ¿Cierto o Falso?
6. The U.S. has a larger Spanish
Speaking population than Spain?
CIERTO
1. Mexico 121,005,815
2. United States 52,988,755
3. Colombia 48,014,693
4. Spain 46,771,341
5. Argentina 42,202,935
6. Perú 31,151,643
7. Venezuela 30,620,404
Source: El Dia.ES

10. Currently, 41 million Americans are native
speakers of Spanish.
Worldwide, there are 470 Million people who
speak Spanish as a native language, and a grand
total of 559 million who can speak it.
More than 21 Million students worldwide study
Spanish as a foreign language.
Source: http://eldiae.es/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/espanol_lengua-viva_20151.pdf

11. ¿Cierto o Falso?
7. A person who speaks Spanish
(as a native language) is Spanish?
FALSO
A person from Spain is Spanish. A person who speaks
Spanish is Hispanic, or latino. While this term includes
everyone, the people identify with their own country.
Therefore, a person from Mexico is Mexican and
someone from Colombia is Colombian. Just like
someone who is English is a person who is from
England. An American is not English, unless they were
born in England. Likewise, American is not a language.
Be careful between Nationality and Language. They
often do not match. Also, do not assume someone is
from a particular country because they speak Spanish.

12. ¿Cierto o Falso?
8. A Mexican can be blonde
with blue eyes?
CIERTO
While you may envision a Mexican to look a certain
way, that is simply a stereotype. All latinos, including
Mexicans, come in all colors. There are plenty of
light skinned and black Mexicans. You don’t have to
look a particular way to be Mexican. The lighter
skinned Mexicans likely have more Spanish blood
as opposed to more indigenous blood or descent.

13. We are Mexican
Jorge Ramos
Journalist
Lupita Amondi Nyong'o
Actress
Musicians
Saul Alvarez
Boxer
Indigenous woman
Carlos Slim,
Businessman,
World’s Richest Man

14. ¿Cierto o Falso?
9. More people speak English as a
native language than Spanish
worldwide?
FALSO
Spanish is the second most common language
worldwide, only behind Mandarin Chinese. English
follows in 3rd
place.
1.Mandarin 6. Portuguese 11. German
2.Spanish 7. Bengali 18. French
3.English 8. Russian 23. Italian
4.Hindi 9. Japanese
5.Arabic 10. Punjabji
Source: Nationalencyklopedin

15. ¿Cierto o Falso?
10. Taco Bell is Mexican food.
FALSO
Taco Bell is an American restaurant that serves
American food. There is little to nothing authentic
about the food they serve. A truly authentic Mexican
taco would be on a soft corn tortilla, with steak or
pork, cilantro, onion, and a squeeze of lime. At best,
Taco Bell could be considered Tex-Mex food.
Although it may be inspired by Mexican food, it is
not.

16. In fact, when Taco Bell
opened their
restaurants in Mexico,
they had to change the
name of their “taco”
because Mexicans
would not accept that as
a taco. So instead, they
sell “tacostada” a
combination of the word
taco with tostada.
Source:
http://spanishplans.org/2012/08/13/tac

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