• PhobosAnomaly
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    4 months ago

    It appears to be the question of using a language’s formal or informal way of addressing the second person.

    Formal forms are generally used for those senior in age, rank, social standing etc - whereas the informal is used for colleagues, friends, family etc.

    The question revolves around whether to use the formal conjugations based on the elder nature of the date, or the informal verb endings based on the more intimate nature of being a date.

    In short, not a joke, but a headspinning social minefield for non-native speakers.

    At least I think that’s the jist of it, always happy for a correction.

    • teft@lemmy.world
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      4 months ago

      It gets even weirder. Depending on where you are the forms can flip. Like you might use usted for your family instead of tu. Also there is vos which is used in some countries like here in colombia.

      • PhobosAnomaly
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        4 months ago

        Awesome, thank you. I know very little about Spanish (some may argue I know very little French too!) but I believe the general formal/informal rules are the same across most Latin languages.

        Some of the quirks are cool though, like using the informal when praying to a God because apparently God knows everyone very well 🤔

        • Mouselemming@sh.itjust.works
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          4 months ago

          Iirc from children’s Bible school, Jesus set the mode by praying to Daddy. And since we’re all God’s children (not like Jesus but still) we start with “Our Father” and go on to “thy” which was the Medieval informal you