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Rio Platense Spanish

Rioplatense Spanish (Spanish: español rioplatense, although locally known as castellano rioplatense) is a dialectal variant (or simply, "a dialect, of the Spanish language which is mainly spoken in the areas in and around the Río de la Plata basin (or River Plate region), between Argentina and Uruguay. The usual word employed to name the Spanish language in this region is castellano (Castilian) and seldom español (Spanish) as in other parts of Latin America. Note that, while the article refers to Rioplatense Spanish as a single dialect, there are distinguishable differences among the varieties spoken in Argentina and in Uruguay, as described below.

Location
Rioplatense is mainly based in the cities of Buenos Aires, La Plata, Rosario (Argentina),Las Piedras, Punta del Este and Montevideo (Uruguay), the six most populated cities in the dialectal area, along with their respective suburbs and the areas in between. This regional form of Spanish is also found in other areas, not geographically close but culturally influenced by those population centers (e.g., in parts of Paraguay and in the entire patagonia). Rioplatense is the standard in audiovisual media in Argentina and Uruguay. To the northeast exists the hybrid Riverense Portuñol.

Influences on the language
The Spaniards brought their language to the area during the Spanish colonization in the region. Originally part of the Viceroyalty of Peru, the Río de la Plata basin had its status lifted to Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata in 1776.

Until the massive immigration to the region started in the 1870s, the language of the Río de la Plata had virtually no influence from other languages and varied mainly by the means of localisms. Argentines and Uruguayans often state that their populations, like those of the United States and Canada, comprise people of relatively recent European descent, the largest immigrant groups being those who came from Spain and Italy.

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