Amparito

In the Latin American countries of the Caribbean, there is a tradition of celebrating a girl's coming of age. Often a girl would receive an autograph album in which members of her family and special friends would write small remembrances, frequently in the form of verse. Amparo Salinas Mendoza ( 1884-1968) was sixteen years old when this was written to her by her father, my great-grandfather, in the year 1900. Other passages in the album refer to Cuba, the land of her birth, and Key West, Florida, where she spent most of her life.

a like a in English father, e.g., Amparito, cual, amor.
e when stressed, like a in English pay, e.g., te, ofrece, prefiere.
when unstressed, like e in English bet, e.g., el, en.
i like i in English machine or ee in feet, e.g., brillante, hija.
o like o in English obey, e.g., Dios, cariño, adora.
u like u in English rule, e.g., una, un .
Not pronounced when preceded by q, e.g., que, quiere .
d between two vowels like the th sound in English this, e.g., adora .
Not as hard as d in English.
ll The ll consonant in Spanish sounds like the y in English yet, e.g., brillante.
ñ like the n in onion or ny in canyon, e.g., cariño.
q like the k sound in English, e.g., que, quiere.
r A single flap of the tongue, e.g., Amparito, cariño, prefiere.

Michael D. Mendoza
July 16, 1996

Click here to see a sample.

Click here to listen to a recording (MP3).