orgulloso de ser dominicano

[virgilio dolores-perez]

A, todos los dominicano ausentes le quiero pedir que por favor nos unamos, y enseñemoles anuestros hijos que han nacido el norte las costumbres nuestra.y mas que todos seamos maestro y enseñemoles,aserca de la historia Dominicana, como tambièn, nuetra bella geografia.me he decidido, a escribir esto porque me ha llamado la atencion de que aqui en Canada(toronto) donde yo resido en la escuela no le hablan ami hija, dela hermoza y bella,REPUBLICA DOMINICANA. QUE VIVA QUISQUELLA LA VELLA! VIRGILIO D.PEREZ (EL HAINERO28)

[John]

[ECH, MD.]

Thank you for making a point.
Dominicans use "b" and "v" interchangably as if there is not a difference. And they also interchange a couple of other letters but I have forgotten. POINT I AM MAKING is that it is extremely difficult for dumb gringos like me to learn Spanish. I go look up vella in the dictionary of my good friend "Bictor" and there is no such word. But guess this all harkens back to the long thread we had on the deficiencies of the educational system.

[Natasha]

Hi Ernest,

I would have to disagree with this assessment. Actually, it is quite the contrary. We learn early on which words are spelled with a "v" and which ones are spelled with a "b". To interchange these two letters would plainly constitute a spelling error...an embarrassing one too. In school we used to distinguish the "v" from the "b" by associating "v" with the word "vaca" (cow) and "b" with "burro" (donkey). As grown ups we don't use this anology anymore but refer to "v" as "v corta" and "b" as "b larga". I think the confusion (for English speakers) is in the pronunciation beacuse Dominicans, and all Spanish speaking people for that matter, do not pronounce these letters the way they are pronounced in the English language. Think about how in English you pronounce the words "basement" and "vacation". In Latin America there is no difference in the way you pronounce the "v" and the "b". Hope this clarifies things.

Warmest regards, Natasha

[marykohn]

They share the same pronunciation, same in Japanese for the v/b and l/r.
You can always ask "?v de vaca, o b de burro?" or "?b grande o v chiquita?"
The original poster's point is important.
Parents, grandparents, please share your heritage with your children, and grandchildren.
MK

["The Tourist Watcher"]

It is unfortunate that it has taken Sammy Sosa's, Alex Rodriguez's and Pedro Martinez's achievements in baseball, in addition to the hundreds of other Dominican baseball players to bring our country upfront in the world, when there are so many other valuable Dominicans at home and abroad doing great things.

Yes, it is true, that even in the United States, the Dominican Republic is little known except for baseball. And that in their schools, no mention is made of our tiny island. Jamaica is better known, in spite of being a one dimentional tourist island. Yet, we are one of the largest migrations in New York and a considerable amount of our compatriots are spread all over the east coast of the United States, specially in Boston, Hartford, Jersey areas and Philadelphia. We have made an impact on the defense of the United States of America, as our Dominican nationals and sons have fought many wars to protect the American homeland. And our boys are not just desk boys, they are the front line of defense. They proved their worth in Iraq and are ready to defend their new homeland against terrorism.

Dominicans went to the front lines in Kosovo hand in hand with NATO troops and played an important role. We have famous designers,important physicians,teachers,professionals and a crop of young politicians ready to win elections, besides our laborers. There is no reason to maintain the silence in American and Canadian schools about our country. But time will take care of that, as we will become a little giant in trade and a juicy catch for North American investors. So do not despair.

[ECH, M.D.]

Point well taken.....
but what can you expect from a gringo........
How about.....while on the subject.......when they stay 'ta ki
but actually mean esta aqui.
tell me that is not a plan to drive gringos crazy wondering what the meaning is.
But not to worry.......when I am elected caudillo...my first decree will be ENGLISH ONLY.........as Fidel forbade all English about 20 years or so ago.........LOL
thanx for letting us know you are alive!!!

[criss colon]

I disagree,most dominicans are poorly educated and do use "b" and "v" interchangeably.I have seen signs: Deli-Veli,Deli-Beli,Villar,Billar,barniz,varniz,and the list goes on!Blame your government,gobernment,not the people.Criss

[linamia]

Hola,

Yo emigre a los estados unidos aun siendo muy joven (5 años) me crié con padres dominicanos que jamás me dejaron olvidar de donde vine. Tengo tres hijas y ella nacieron en los estados unidos, me da mucha pena que ellas no hablen español correctamente y que no conozcan la vida simple que se puede vivir en la Republica Dominicana.

Una de las cosas que más me toco del libro de Julia Alvarez How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accent fue cuando ella describe que al criarse en los Estados Unidos uno nunca pertenece a esa cultura pero cuando regresa a su patria natal tampoco lo aceptan como parte de esa cultura, así que uno siempre se siente que esta afuera mirando para dentro. Esto me hizo analizar que era mi trabajo enseñarle mi cultura natal a mis hijas y reinformar que si no la dejan entrar que rompan las puertas claro usando sus mentes (estudiando) Mi hijas se han convertido en unas dominicanos pura leen todo lo que pueden de su historia han llegado a enseñarme una cosa o dos.

Otro punto que quiero tocar, es que cuando uno tiene falta de ortografía es simplemente descuido, también nosotros los Dominicanos queremos escribir tal y como hablamos y eso no es correcto si uno se acostumbra a leer uno mejora su ortografía y también su vocabulario. Yo aprendí a escribir español de esa forma, claro no lo escribo perfecto pero trato de no cometer errores comunes, también trato de hablar castellano no dominicano puesto que el ultimo no es un idioma.

[Natasha]

It is your right to disagree. I still disagree with you. So you have seen mispelled signs, so have I. If you have received an education in the DR, even with all of its deficiencies and at least through high school, you will not interchange these letters. Those with less education will mispell words with these letters though. It is easy to do that because like I said, the PRONUNCIATION IS THE SAME.

Regards, Natasha