Association of Spanish Language Academies

Association of Spanish Language Academies

Countries where Spanish-language academies exist.
Abbreviation	ASALE
Motto	"Una estirpe, una lengua y un destino" ("One lineage, one language, and one destiny")
Formation	1951 (1951)
Headquarters	Madrid, Spain
Official language	Spanish
President	José Manuel Blecua
Main organ	International Congress
Website	www.asale.org

The Association of Spanish Language Academies (Spanish: Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española) is the entity which regulates the Spanish language. It was created in Mexico in 1951 and represents the union of all the separate academies in the Spanish-speaking world.

Through the initiative of then-president of Mexico Miguel Alemán Valdés, the First Congress of Academies convened with the purpose of maintaining the integrity of and fostering the further growth of Spanish. The meeting was held from April 23 to May 6, 1951 and resulted in the creation of the association and its permanent commission. The Real Academia Española (RAE) was not present at the initial meeting but participated in the Permanent Commission. Ever since the Second Congress convened in 1956, the RAE has been a regular participant.

The collaboration between RAE and the other academies was expressed in the coauthorship of the Diccionario de la RAE (starting from the 22nd edition, published in 2001), and the 1999 edition of the Ortografía was considered a true pan-Hispanic work. Joint projects include the editing of the Gramática and the compilation of the Diccionario de americanismos. In 2000 the Association organized the School of Hispanic Lexicography and the Carolina Foundation to promote Spanish lexicography.

Together with the RAE, the Association earned the Prince of Asturias Award for Peace in 2000.

An academy for Equatorial Guinea is planned for 2015, while an academy for the Judaeo-Spanish language is planned to be created in Israel in the future. There are no plans for Belize, Gibraltar, or Andorra to have their own academies, despite each having a majority Spanish-speaking population either as a first or second language.

Organization

The Association convenes every four years, led by a permanent commission composed of a president, secretary general, the RAE treasurer, and four board members drawn from the associated academies and which rotate annually. During the Third Congress of Academies, held in Bogotá, Colombia, in 1960, an agreement was reached whereby the governments of countries with a member in the Association would be obliged to provide financial support to their respective academies and the greater Association.

Academies

Country	Name in Spanish	Name in English	Year of foundation
Spain	Real Academia Española	Royal Spanish Academy	1713
Colombia	Academia Colombiana de la Lengua	Colombian Academy of the Language	1871
Ecuador	Academia Ecuatoriana de la Lengua	Ecuadorian Academy of the Language	1874
Mexico	Academia Mexicana de la Lengua	Mexican Academy of the Language	1875
El Salvador	Academia Salvadoreña de la Lengua	Salvadoran Academy of the Language	1876
Venezuela	Academia Venezolana de la Lengua	Venezuelan Academy of the Language	1883
Chile	Academia Chilena de la Lengua	Chilean Academy of the Language	1885
Peru	Academia Peruana de la Lengua	Peruvian Academy of the Language	1887
Guatemala	Academia Guatemalteca de la Lengua	Guatemalan Academy of the Language	1887
Costa Rica	Academia Costarricense de la Lengua	Costa Rican Academy of the Language	1923
Philippines	Academia Filipina de la Lengua Española	Philippine Academy of the Spanish Language	1924
Panama	Academia Panameña de la Lengua	Panamanian Academy of the Language	1926
Cuba	Academia Cubana de la Lengua	Cuban Academy of the Language	1926
Paraguay	Academia Paraguaya de la Lengua Española	Paraguayan Academy of the Spanish Language	1927
Bolivia	Academia Boliviana de la Lengua	Bolivian Academy of the Language	1927
Dominican Republic	Academia Dominicana de la Lengua	Dominican Academy of the Language	1927
Nicaragua	Academia Nicaragüense de la Lengua	Nicaraguan Academy of the Language	1928
Argentina	Academia Argentina de Letras	Argentine Academy of Letters	1931
Uruguay	Academia Nacional de Letras	National Academy of Letters	1943
Honduras	Academia Hondureña de la Lengua	Honduran Academy of the Language	1949
Puerto Rico	Academia Puertorriqueña de la Lengua Española	Puerto Rican Academy of the Spanish Language	1955
United States	Academia Norteamericana de la Lengua Española	North American Academy of the Spanish Language	1973

See also

• Cervantes Institute
• Panhispanism
• List of language regulators

External links

• Official website