30 blogs in Spanish to follow in 2007

January 4, 2007 7:36 AM

30 blogs a seguir en 2007 A selection of original and creative blogs in Spanish besides rankings and A-lists.
posted by jlori (15 comments total)

I can't think of a better opportunity to hype Ediciones Efímeras, a microfiction site run by Santiago Eximeno. We've both contributed stories to each other's archives.
posted by Faint of Butt at 8:02 AM on January 4, 2007 [1 favorite]

Thanks! Can you tell me what "bitácora" means in the context of blogging? I see it in some of the descriptions.
posted by gubo at 8:10 AM on January 4, 2007

Thank you, thank you, thank you! I've been stuck reading the bbcmundo blogs for my Spanish practice, and they get pretty boring after a while. This is a great resource, and will allow me to waste even more time in 2007! Yay!
posted by math at 8:45 AM on January 4, 2007

Thanks! Can you tell me what "bitácora" means in the context of blogging? I see it in some of the descriptions.

Well, "bitácora" is translated literally as "log" so I guess there's no other special meaning beside it in the context of blogging.
posted by Zemat at 9:17 AM on January 4, 2007

Can you tell me what "bitácora" means in the context of blogging?

It's the Spanish equivalent of blog; it was apparently chosen for this purpose by one of the earliest Spanish-language bloggers, Carlos Tirado of Bitácora Tremendo. Literally, it means 'binnacle' (the box in which a ship's compass is kept; the Spanish word is from Latin habitaculum '[little] dwelling place,' and the English word, originally bitakle, is from Old Spanish or Old Portuguese). A captain's log is a cuaderno de bitácora in Spanish, so it seemed like a good native term to use for 'weblog.' I must say I like it much better than the borrowed blog, but the latter is apparently more commonly used. See this post on the subject (in Spanish) and this discussion (in English) from 2002.

Oh, and great post!
posted by languagehat at 9:17 AM on January 4, 2007

"bitácora" is translated literally as "log"

No, actually it's literally 'binnacle.'
posted by languagehat at 9:18 AM on January 4, 2007

First of all, awesome post, can't wait to read these.

Second, even though the RAE only gives 'binnacle' as a translation for 'bitácora', it is definitely already in common modern use as just 'log' and as short for 'cuaderno de bitácora'. For instance, Captain Kirk says 'bitácora del capitán' and 'bitácora de vuelo' in Viaje a las estrellas. As discussed right here on Bitácora Tremendo itself about the use of the term. Or here as 'logbook' in the translation of Hazardous Waste Creation and Storage Logbook.

I would say 'log' is definitely a correct literal translation in this context.
posted by comadreja at 11:35 AM on January 4, 2007

Some more.
posted by adamvasco at 12:34 PM on January 4, 2007

I would say 'log' is definitely a correct literal translation in this context.

Thanks for the explanation; I'll update my dictionaries. It's been a while since I lived in a Spanish-speaking environment.
posted by languagehat at 12:48 PM on January 4, 2007

Thanks for all your great feedback.

The word "bitácora" is the short form of "cuaderno de bitácora", the book where ship captains used to take notes about the trip.

For a more global view on the Spanish speaking blogosphere, see: 10 Steps into the Spanish Speaking Blogosphere.
posted by jlori at 2:24 PM on January 4, 2007

Gracias to all for their translation help (sorry I made this into an AskMe thread).
posted by gubo at 3:55 PM on January 4, 2007

A plug for Mira y Calla, another spanish link blog that I visit everyday.
posted by dhruva at 5:43 PM on January 4, 2007

oops, I forgot to add that Mira y Calla may be sometimes NSFW.
posted by dhruva at 6:46 PM on January 4, 2007

¡Gracias! : >
posted by amberglow at 8:07 PM on January 4, 2007

Looks to me like it's often NSFW. Which is fine with me!
posted by languagehat at 5:57 AM on January 5, 2007