1.3 Social Interactions and Relationships (Interacciones y relaciones sociales)

In Spain, friends, relatives and often people being introduced greet with dos besos: a light touch of the cheeks on each side, usually with the kiss sound made in the air. Men in Spain more often shake hands or hug, except within families.

In much of Latin America, one kiss on the cheek is common between women and between a man and a woman, while men usually shake hands or hug (un abrazo). In Argentina and Uruguay, men who are friends or relatives often greet with a kiss too. A handshake is the safe choice in business everywhere. It's also polite to greet each person when you arrive at a gathering and to say goodbye to each one when you leave. All of these are tendencies that vary by region, age and setting.

Tú is informal: friends, family, classmates and children. Usted is formal: strangers, older people, bosses and officials. Usted takes the same verb form as él or ella: ¿Cómo está usted? Tutear means to address someone as tú, and people often ask permission: ¿Puedo tutearte? or say Trátame de tú (Call me tú).

In the plural, Latin America uses ustedes for any group, formal or informal. Most of Spain uses vosotros for friends and ustedes for formal situations. In parts of Colombia and Costa Rica, many people use usted even with close friends and family, where it can sound warm rather than distant (el ustedeo).

Usted comes from vuestra merced (“your grace”), which wore down over centuries of use. Respect also shows in titles: señor and señora, and don or doña with a first name for respected older people, as in don Miguel.

La sobremesa is the time spent talking at the table after a meal. On weekends or holidays it can last longer than the meal itself. It reflects a perspective that values conversation and relationships over hurrying. Social life also happens in public spaces: plazas, cafés and the evening walk (el paseo).

Friendship words vary by country. Friends are colegas in informal Spain, cuates in Mexico, panas in Venezuela, Ecuador and Puerto Rico, and parceros or parces in Colombia. Be careful with la pandilla: in Spain it can mean a group of friends, but in much of Latin America it means a gang. Useful verbs: quedar (in Spain, to arrange to meet: ¿Quedamos a las seis?), juntarse (to get together, common in Latin America), llevarse bien con (to get along with) and caer bien (to like someone as a person: Ana me cae bien).

La convivencia means living together in harmony. Schools talk about la convivencia escolar, and articles use the word for neighborhoods and multicultural cities.

Register is how formal your language is. Formal Spanish letters and emails use a colon after the greeting, not a comma, and keep usted forms throughout.