Different national varieties of Spanish for instance Argentinian Colombian and Mexican use
different address systems with different numbers of pronouns and also give pronouns a
different social significance. For the first time this study discusses and analyses these
paradigms in the context of inter-varietal contact in a third country with English as an
additional contact language. A multiplicity of data collection methods made it possible to
uncover many new insights into address behaviour. New definitions for address pronouns are
proposed and issues arising from address are discussed such as: awareness proficiency
avoidance accommodation and uncertainty. In addition some unexpected practices emerged
which call into question all previously accepted norms of usage.
