When a language can be spoken in different ways, the term macrolanguage is used. In other words, this term refers to all variants of a language. The language is the discipline academic studying languages, both in its structure inside with in its evolution over time.
Contrary to what might appear at first sight, the term macrolanguage does not refer to a language with a large number of speakers or the idea of a vast territory associated with a language. In fact, it is a linguistic category that refers to the set of dialectal variations of the same language. Macrolanguage
Spanish as an example of macro language
It is estimated that 400 million people speak Spanish around the world and it is estimated that by 2030 this number will exceed 500 million. Although it is a language with a solid structure, it is evident that it has multiple variants. In other words, it is a standardized language and, at the same time, it has a great diversity of linguistic forms.
Identifying Spanish Varieties
Linguists say there are three varieties in Spain: Castilian, Andalusian and Canary. One of the variants of the Spanish language, among the most curious, is the Spanish-Jewish or the Sephardic language , a modality that Jews descendants who were expelled from Spain in 1492 still speak.
In relation to Latin America, there are five varieties: Chilean, River Plate, Mexican Central American, Caribbean and Andean. Each with its own peculiarities. Thus, the Rio-platense Spanish is located in the territory of Argentina and Uruguay and stands out for the use of voseo, some particular verbal modes (instead of using the perfect past tense, the simple past is used), an intonation and a particular rhythm, as well as a clear influence of the Italian language and, to a lesser extent, of Portuguese. Macrolanguage
Despite the difference between their dialects, those who speak Spanish can communicate fluently, regardless of their geographical origin.
The Nahuatl language spoken in Mexico is also a macro language.
Although Nahuatl is spoken by 1.5 million people, Spanish has more than 120 million speakers in Mexico. This pre-Hispanic language is in the category of macro-languages. In this sense, there is a classical Náhuatl and a series of dialectal variants, such as the central Náhuatl, Tlaxcala and Durango. Macrolanguage
These variations often make it difficult for speakers who share the same language to communicate.
