What If We Treated Strangers Like Family?

Seven affectionate terms Peruvians use for passersby

Let’s say your mom breaks your favorite cup. You would be angry, right? But you probably would use a firm, though not unkind tone to express your displeasure. You might even keep a lilt of love in your voice. Peru is a very family-centered culture, and this familial treatment extends to strangers. Peruvians call this quality cariños.

What is cariños? English doesn’t have a perfect equivalent, but it’s kind of like “kindness” or “affection.” It’s a disposition of care towards someone. Here are seven terms that encapsulate cariños that Peruvians use when talking to strangers. I’m no expert in this, but at least I can share what I have observed. I hope you like them!

1. Casero or casera

If you go to a bustling popular market, teeming with merchandise from shoes to fresh fruit and vegetables, to nick nacks, you will often hear the sellers call out, “What are you looking for, casero o casera?” The closest way to describe this in English is not with one word, but with an idea. Casera or casero means someone with whom you have some sort of affection, who buys your wares. This does not mean you have necessarily bought from the seller before.

2. Maestro

I have only heard this term used to address men taxi drivers or men driving vehicles in general. Maestro literally means “instructor” or “teacher.” It’s a respectful way to address a chauffeur or driver.

3. Amigo or amiga

I like this one a lot. If you approach a stranger on the street for directions, or if you want to call a waitstaff over to your table, you sometimes use “amigo” o “amiga” which means “friend.” This term shows a connection and respect at the same time.

4. Compadre

I have heard this term used mostly between men above 45. The dictionary translates this word to “buddy,” but that term isn’t quite right. I would say buddy doesn’t convey the layer of shared experience and circumstance, as well as a feeling of closeness.

5. Reina

This one belongs in the same category as casera. It means “queen” and I have heard it used by women above 30 to address other women. But unlike casera, it isn’t only used in contexts of buying things.

6. Usted form

This probably represents the underlying theme of this little article. Respect. Usted is a respectful form of “you” that is normally used to address a person older than yourself or a stranger. I use this form to address my boyfriend’s parents, even though I have known them for almost six years. Usted is followed by, and related to the polite verb form which is the third person singular or plural depending on the context, so you can’t help but convey respect when you use it. I have seen two men after a near car crash speak in this respectful term and verb form. Again, English doesn’t have a proper equivalent, but the feeling of it is like,

“My dear sir, why did your good person cut me off?”

Whereas in English, you basically just have, “Hey you, why did you cut me off?”

7. Caballero

I have mostly heard this term used by men over 45 to address other men over 20. It means “gentleman.” Just yesterday while I was on the bus, the bus driver called to a young man, “Caballero, please find a seat.”

As you can see, language can really change the tone of a message and how it is received. What I like about Spanish is that the vocabulary projects this cariños. The words are also imbibed with a soft and familial tone because the meaning elicits a type of affection. I suppose that is why people say Peruvians have a lot of “heart.”