Why do the Mexicans pronounce chicken as "shicken", but a shovel, is a "chuvel"?

Question

This question is not meant to demean anyone. I am part Hispanic myself.

My mother is Castillian Spanish.

Answer 1

There are several accents in Mexico depending on region, class, education, etc. just like everywhere.

Some of these accents are due to the fact that different people from Spain settled in different parts of Mexico or different native languages influenced Spanish.

For example, in the coast of the Gulf of Mexico you have the silent "s" just like in parts of Andalucia. In Mexico City, educated people tend to speak with an accent directly descending from Castillian Spanish (because Mexico City was the cultural center of New Spain). In the North you observe the "ch" pronounced like "sh".

As you know, the "sh" sound doesn't really exist in Spanish, so my guess is that it was borrowed from Galician or some other Spanish language.

Answer 2

The sound "sh" doesn't exist in Mexican-Spanish. So Mexicans tend to pronounce words like sushi as suchi. Conversely once they learn how to make the sound "sh" sometimes they fall into what is called hyper-correction, so instead of forcing themselves to pronounce just "sh" as "sh" they also pronounce "ch" as "sh."

It should be noted that exception to this rule is in the North of Mexico (particularly in Sonora) where the "sh" sound does exist. Unlike the rest of their countrymen they tend to pronounce both "ch" and "sh" as "sh." So a Norther-Mexican would be inclined to see the word "chicken" and say "shicken."

Answer 3

The same reason English speakers pronounce them "Sh" and "Ch".

Not meant to sound like a wise remark but you need to ask about why they pronounce the same letter combinations differently.

Answer 4

It actually a pre-meditated cinspiration that all Mexicans agree on before when they turn 10,000 hrs old... they must make everyone's life miserable by saying words like these wrong...WHAT KIND OF QUESTION IS THIS???

Answer 5

Not only do i do that sometimes, but for the life of me i can't find or force my lips to make the different English sounds for the letters "B" and "V"!!! It drives me crazy!! 12 yrs in this place and you'd think it was enough to master those little sounds

Answer 6

Accent

Answer 7

Hispanic?- Are you Mexican? Puerto Rican? What? It's Kind of interesting that you use a generic term to discribe your so called heritage.

Answer 8

Because America lets them. Not meant to be racist. Anybody who knows Guy knows he loves spicy senoritas. America's a free country: you can say chuvel or rubble - I still gotcha.

Answer 9

Stop the stereotyping. Mexicans are not the only ones who can't pronounce correctly.

Answer 10

que, que???????? we don't have accent..........just kidding I believe the answer isssssssssssssssssssss "accent"
the older you get to this biutifull contry the more accent you get.
and it's hard to get better, I'm in sales and some times I think they don't understand me but some of my clients tell me " when I met you I did not understood what the ^%$%$ you were saying" I guess now they got used to my accent.