Nicaraguan Anselmo Fletes Bolaños's Nationalism: an Analysis of «Regionales» (1992)

Abstract

This work aims to contribute to the studies of Nicaraguan historical lexicography through an analysis of Anselmo Fletes Bolaños’s Regionales (1922). Its author was a nationalist who defended the value of the Nicaraguan language, confronting the purist and conservative trends of the 19^th and 20^th centuries. To expose his patriotism and his links to folklore, he used phraseological units and Nicaraguanisms. After presenting the author’s biography and historical context, these units are analyzed to show how the extralinguistic elements noticeably affect the linguistic ones. Eventually, the reasons why Fletes Bolaños published this text can be better understood.