¿Cómo te llamás?

Once again, welcome to my life! In the past week in my classes, we have talked about defining the people of Argentina. Who are they? How do we define an Argentinian family? In addition to our ethnocentric perspectives, I have had the luxury of understanding how the people of Argentina perceive themselves and their culture through talking in my class, with friends, and reading articles. 

Hola, me llamo Kjerstin [Kiss on the cheek]. ¿Cómo andás? Mucho gusto. Hi, my name is Kjerstin. How are you? Nice to meet you. This is a typical way of introducing oneself for the first time. After that, you really have the chance to get to know someone.

(L to R: me, Felipe [Brazil], Liza, Bianca [Brazil])

 You can call me Kjerstin, Kajeerstin, Kajurstin, or KJ (in English or Spanish). When I introduce myself, my name PLUS the majority of my nicknames do not translate well into Spanish. However, using a nickname is very central to the culture here. By using a person's nickname means that you're friends or have a personal relationship with them. The only time you use someone's full name is when the person is in trouble or in business-like interactions. Therefore, I have been called KJ, Kjerst, Kjersti, and Cris. It's been interesting because I am very used to being called just Kjerstin. Only certain people are allowed to use my nickname. I need to really know who someone is and trust them before they can call me by my nickname. I do not correct anyone here because of the culture though, but I wonder if using my nickname is a sign of their trust. However, how well do I really know the people of Argentina?

What comes to mind when you think of Argentina? Before I left, I knew very little about Argentina. I knew that Manu Ginobili is from Argentina and that the people here love to eat meat (which was perfectly fine with me!). The cattle industry is fairly strong, hence the affluence of meat-eating, but there are also leather goods that are (more or less) cheaper here as well. Finally, I knew there were some great wines to be tasted down here in Argentina and that I am actually old enough to try them. Ultimately, everything that Argentina has had to offer me has been a surprise because I had very few expectations.

(L to R: Liza, me, Quique, Hilary, and Juan at lunch in Buenos Aires)

In May, I took a class at Wartburg West (in Denver) that focused on two main themes: immigrants and Hispanic families. With my sociology background, I was more familiar with the concept of the Hispanic (Latino) family. General characteristics are that they are patriarchal because of the influence of machismo (the attitude of male domination), the families are very close, and they respect traditions. When I came here, I expected to have a family where there was a man in the house that the family had to please and there would be a woman who would have to clean, cook, take care of the children, and perhaps work. Additionally, I expected that if there were older children in the family, that they would live in the house unless they were married. The other day in my class, realidades culturales (cultural realities), we were brainstorming characteristics of Argentinian families, words that were used were: patriarchal, respect, proximity, traditional, machismo, communication, passion, and parties. Take in mind, these are all ideas that people have gathered after spending more than a month with their families. Those characteristics define our view of the families of Argentina.

How do the general definitions of family created through my classes compare to my family here in Argentina? Here, come meet my family. First, I would like to introduce you to my host mother, Cristina (Cris). She is a single mother, twice-divorced, with five children. Three children of her children are from one marriage, three are from another. She works full-time as a criminal lawyer and pays people to watch her children and clean the house during the week. Her oldest son is Martín, 20, who does not live in the family's home. Instead, he lives with friends while he studies abogacía (law) at UNC (Universidad Naciónal de Córdoba). He comes over to the house on Wednesdays and Sundays for family dinners. Next, there is Belén (Belú),18, who lives at home most of the time and studies abogacía at UNC as well. She is very independent, strong-minded, and tries to not conform to the stereotypes of a typical Argentine woman. Following Belú is Ignacio (Igna), 16, who lives with his father and is finishing high school still. I know little about him but he, too, comes over twice a week for family dinners. Julía (Julí), 8, is such a jewel. She loves every animal and is so willing to try and teach me Spanish. She is very welcoming and loves to talk and to get to know people. She plays a lot with her younger brother, Gabriel (Gabí), 7, who has so much energy, loves to tell jokes, and always wants to play some sort of computer game. Gabí is very close to his brothers and always cries when he has to leave his papá after spending time with him every other weekend. I believe that my family is NOT the typical family in Argentina. I believe that through the example of Cris and her independence, that the women in the family are very strong and obviously have more influence in the house since there is no "man-of-the-house". The fact that Igna and Martín do not live in the house to me shows their independence and the modernization of the typical family. Of course, my observations are purely off of what I have learned in my classes and are definitely ethnocentric, but I like to learn about how families work in comparison to others and how everything compares to what I have learned in my sociology courses. 

To look at the other side of this issue, how do Argentinians define themselves? By tango, mate, meat, or boots? No. One word: FAMILY. Even though there may be families like mine that are starting to change, overall, the most important aspect of life is family. Each member is there to support one another emotionally and financially. Even my family takes time out of the busy week to be with one another and talk about everything and anything. Other descriptors for the Argentinian people that they use for one another are: passionate, communicative, intolerant, generous, and emotional. Therefore, when you think of Argentinians, don't imagine stereotypes of Mexicans (not going to lie, I feel like that's what we all think of with Latino cultures since we only really know a little bit about Mexico) or people who only watch soccer all the time. I have learned to take my perspectives of Argentinians as well as their descriptions of themselves to better understand the people I spend time with.