Episode 59: Animals, Baby Animals, and More, Part 1

I'm sure this comes as no surprise, but we read a LOT of books to our little one. Which means that I have read a TON of children's books that focus on animals and their babies. So I asked myself, "Do we talk a lot about the different animal names in Spanish?" While I originally thought that all you had to do in Spanish was add "ito" or "ita" to make an animal a baby (such as perrito for perro and gatito for gato), after doing some research I've found that there are, in fact, different, more specific animal names in Spanish. Hence this new three-part series on animal names, with the first two episodes focusing on the specific terms for animals and their babies, followed by the final episode focusing on collective names (group names, like herd or flock). I hope you enjoy it! Or at the very least, that it equips you to help teach the little ones in your life the different animal names in Spanish. :)

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One thing to note: in Spanish, you can say "cría" to refer to an animal baby (which, as I understand it, is more common than saying "bebé"). So if you don't know if there is a specific term for a baby animal, you can just say cría, like cría de ave (baby bird or chick) or cría de tortuga (baby turtle or hatchling).

Pets!

Let's start with our favorite animals, our pets. :)

El Animal	Animal	La Cría	Baby Animal
El Perro	Dog	Perrito, Cachorro	Pup, Puppy
El Gato	Cat	Gatito, Cachorro	Kitten, Kitty
El Pez, Pez Dorado*	Fish, Goldfish	Alevín	Fry or Fingerling
El Conejo	​Rabbit	Gazapo**	Bunny, Kitten, or Kit​
La Tortuga	Turtle	Cría de Tortuga	Hatchling
La Serpiente	Snake	Cría de Serpiente	Snakelet, Neonate, or Hatchling

*Remember, in Spanish, you use el pescado when you're referring to fish as food. So your pet goldfish would be un pez, but the salmon you're eating for dinner is un pescado.

**Gazapo also means blooper, slip of the tongue, lie, and even a man with hidden cleverness. Who knew?

Animals at the Park

The following list highlights animals that you might run into in your daily life, especially during your walk to the park or on a hike through the mountains.

*I messed up in this blog/podcast. I said a duckling in Spanish was pavipollo or pavezno, but those are actually terms for baby turkey, or poult. I don't know why, but I have been struggling with mixing those two animals. They are completely different, I know! But there it is. Duckling is el patito or anadón, since ánade means duck as well.*

El Animal	Animal	La Cría	Baby Animal
El Ganso	Goose	El Ansarino	Gosling
El Zorro	Fox	El Cachorro	Kit
​La Puma	Mountain Lion	El Cachorro	Cub
El Pato	Duck	El Patito o El Anadón	Duckling
El Coyote	Coyote	Cachorro	Cub, Pup, or Whelp
El Ciervo	Deer	El Cervato o Cervatillo	​Calf or Fawn
El Alce	Moose	La Cría de Alce	Calf
El Lobo	Wolf	El Lobezno	​Pup or Whelp
El Oso	Bear	Osezno	​Cub
El Saltamontes* o Chapulín (in Latinoamérica)	Grasshopper	La Ninfa	Nymph
La Mariquita**	Lady Bug	La Larva	Larva
La Araña	Spider	La Cría de Araña	​Spiderling
La Abeja	Bee	La Larva	Larva
La Mariposa	Butterfly	La ​Larva, Oruga, Crisálida, o Pupa	Larva, Caterpillar, Chrysalis, or Pupa***

*Saltamontes looks like the combination of the verb saltar, to jump, and the plural noun montes, which means hills, forest, or vegetation. So while I don't know the official history of this word, it looks like it could mean "hill jumper" or "forest jumper", which would be so cool!

**According to Wordreference.com, ladybug is la catarina in Mexico, la vaquita de san Antonio in Argentina (it almost sounds like little cow; if anyone knows the history behind that, please let me know!), and la chinita in Columbia.

***Which name you use depends on which phase of the butterfly's life cycle you are referring to.

That's all for today! We'll finish up the next episode with wild animals, such as lions, tigers, and gorillas, followed by the final episode on collective animal nouns! While this episode is based on my research, it is by no means definitive! So please, if you know of more specific names, or if I missed any for these particular list, please send them my way!

Remember, learning a language is a lifelong journey.

¡Aprovéchalo, Disfrútalo y Compártelo!

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Cultural Tip: Peru

Country Facts

Name: Republic of Peru, or Republica del Peru

Size: While it is smaller than Alaska, it is almost twice as big as Texas. Total area is more than 1.285 million sq. km.

Location: It is located in South America, south and east of Ecuador, south of Colombia, north of Chile, and west of Bolivia and Brazil. To the west of Peru is the Pacific Ocean.

Government Type: Presidential Republic. This means they have a President, President Jose Pedro Castillo Terrones, and they have a Prime Minister, but he doesn't have executive power; only the President has that. Legislative power rests with the Congreso de la Republica del Peru, or the unicameral Congress of the Republic of Peru. It has 130 seats that are, and I quote the World Factbook, "directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by closed party-list proportional representation vote to serve single 5-year terms." Clear as mud? The judicial power rests with the Supreme Court, made up of 16 judges. It is divided into three sectors: civil, criminal, and constitutional. The National Board of Justice, made up of 7 members, propose a justice, who is then nominated by the President and confirmed by Congress. Interestingly enough, justices must retire at 70.

Capital City: Lima

Religion: As of 2017, about 60% are Roman Catholic, 14.6% are Christian, and the rest are either not religious or unspecified.

Official Language: Peru has 3 official languages: Spanish (82.9%, as of 2017), Quechua (13.6), and Aymara (1.6%). Both Quechua and Aymara are indigenous languages.

Currency: Nuevo Sol (PEN)