Spanish Royal Academy rejects suggestion to change language’s name to ‘Ñamericano’

The director of the Spanish-speaking world’s top linguistic institution on Monday rejected an Argentinian author’s suggestion to rename the Spanish language “Ñamericano” so it would reflect the continent where the majority of its speakers now live. At a conference held in March, Buenos Aires-born journalist Martín Caparrós proposed calling the language “Ñamericano” to remove its colonial origins. Caparrós published a 2021 book about Spanish speakers in the Americas titled “Ñamérica.” The head of the 46-member Spanish Royal Academy was asked Monday to consider the writer’s proposal. He flatly rejected the idea as “witticism.”