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Spotlight On Paraguay

May 15, 2007 by Greg 

guanaco.jpg

Well, if you know me in real life, you may be singing praises in private for I’ve finally stopped talking about sexual evolution and moved on to new topics, mainly my new favorite country, Paraguay. Since those of you out in the internet don’t get to enjoy my juicy tidbits of trivia on a regular basis, here are a few fun facts I’ve learned.

  • The whole country is practically the same race. 95% of inhabitants are classified as Mestizo, a term which means a mix of European and native indigenous races.
  • The capital is a city called Asuncion (the surrounding area is Gran Asuncion). Asuncion translates to assumption, referring to the Catholic doctrine of the virgin mary ascending to heaven body and soul united.
  • There are two official languages, Spanish and the indigenous language Guarani. Most Paraguayans speak a mix of the two called Jopara. Think “Spanglish.”
  • Much of Paraguay is covered by a sparsly populated area called The Gran Chaco. Most of this area is uninhabitable, but that doesn’t stop the neighboring countries who share this land from fighting over it. Also home to the endangered Guanaco (pictured above.)

Anyone ever been to Paraguay?

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Comments

8 Responses to “Spotlight On Paraguay”

  1. cash on May 15th, 2007 4:06 pm

    All praise Greg’s newfound interest in Paraguay; alleluia, alleluia.

  2. clair on May 15th, 2007 6:36 pm

    whooah

  3. liz on May 16th, 2007 9:32 pm

    used to live there. more fun facts: Paraguay’s flag is two-sided; that is it has a different design on each side. Also, Frederick Nietzche’s sister married this Aryan-supremacist guy and they moved to Paraguay during the late 9th century to found a “racially pure” German colony. Several Guarani words have made it into English. One is “jaguar” which literally comes from the Guarani words meaning “big dog.” The other is piranha, which comes from the words meaning “mean fish.”

  4. Greg on May 17th, 2007 9:44 am

    Liz,

    Nice! I love it!

    After a little bit of googling, I see that cougar is a Guarani word too. Rawr!

  5. Susi on May 29th, 2007 8:33 am

    Thanks for writing about it! I love it!!!!

  6. verena on May 30th, 2007 9:59 am

    hey is nice of you to write about my country!! thanks..if someday you want to drink a tipical drink from Paraguay just ask susana she’s my best friend! and i bet you know her!! haha

  7. Greg on May 31st, 2007 4:45 pm

    Paraguayan drinks? Mmmmmm

  8. Susi on June 1st, 2007 2:01 pm

    Vere was talking about terere…just yerba mate and water…not strong enough for you! besos!!!

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