Re: Ganas

----- Original Message -----
From: "Glenn M Wilson" <triphibious@juno.com>
> >From: "Glenn M Wilson" <triphibious@juno.com>
> <snip>
> >'ganas' ?
>
> An interesting term a delightfully bright and idealistic  young GA
> (Geospatial Analyst) who sits on the Hispanic Emphasis Program Council
> used to describe me after one of my group e-mail messages about a
Council
> meeting agenda issue.
>
> It means, essentially, with Gusto or Panache apparently.  When she
> apologized in person the way she said the word clearly indicated it
was
> G-rated.  It is a trip to watch her change from 'professional
controlled'
> to 'enthusiastic and spirited' when the subject changes from data
> collection issues to diversity issues.
>
> Since my background was Californian "Spanish" (differs from
Californian
> "Mexican," too) and not her New Mexico Hispanic my  "Excuse me?"
e-mail
> made her realize that the term was unknown to me.
>
> And for those wondering, yes, there are significant differences
between
> Hispanic sub groups.

Indeed. My background is Canary Islands Spanish, which is distinct from
mainland Spanish, but fairly close to Cuban and Dominican Rapublican
dialects. There 'tener ganas de..' is a stock phrase meaning 'to want
to'
(do something). No special emphasis, hidden meaning or innuendo, just a
plain phrase. I never had heard the word  'ganas' used separately or in
a
different context.

Just like English (UK,US,Oz...) Spanish has developed a lot of variants.

Greetings
Karl Heinz