Last week Mexican singer Thalía announced that she will publish her first children’s book this year. The book –available in November 2013- is called Chupi: El binky que regresó a su hogar (Chupi: The Binky That Returned Home).
The story and the character Chupi were created to help parents take away the pacifier from their kids. The name of the character comes from the Spanish word for pacifier chupón or chupete. Here is the official book description on Amazon where it is available for pre-order:
Internationally known singer, songwriter, business woman, and actress Thalía shares this fun and fanciful story about something every parent can relate to–persuading your child to give up the pacifier. Thalía dreamed up Binkyland, the magical place where the Binkies live and would one day return home, as a bedtime story for her own children.
Vibrant, colorful, and campy, this is the perfect story for kids who need the extra push to give up their own binkies.
The Spanish Slang Meanings of CHUPI
Since Spanish is so diverse, I thought that chupi could be a Spanish slang word that means something else in some Hispanic country. I turned to the Diccionario de Americanismos, my number one reference source of Latin American Spanish slang, and BINGO! This is what I found for chupi:
• In Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay it is used to make reference to any alcoholic drink or to the action of drinking alcoholic drinks. These meanings don’t surprise me at all, since chupar is a common colloquial word for drinking in many Latin American countries.
• In addition, in the northwestern part of Argentina is an alternate name for chupe or a type of soup made with milk or water with potatoes, beef, corn, and rice among other ingredients. This sounds yummy!
• But the most unfortunate meaning is coming next. In Bolivia, chupi is a synonym for the Quechua word apasanca (apassánka) or spider, but in the popular culture is a vulgar term for vulva.
• Wandering around the net I also found two additional usages for chupi in Spain. The first one is an interjection to express excitement, similar to ¡jupi! or ¡yupi! The second meaning for chupi in Spain is something nice and pretty.
On a side note… I have to recognize that I didn’t know the word “binky,” so I googled it to learn that it is another word for pacifier in English.
I wish success to Thalía with this new project and that she can fulfill the objective of helping other parents.
Does the word chupi mean something in your country?
Check out these other articles on Spanish Books.
