The Consortium delegate, Fran González, has praised the work of the event coordinator, Lola Pons, and the rest of the speakers and technicians for putting together a program with four large-scale presentations
The mayor of the city, Jose María González, has thanked the Cádiz Consortium for its real and concrete support for the candidacy
The meeting brought together professors and professors to debate the origins, present and perspective of the Spanish Language linked to commercial exchange, especially with America.
The coordinator of the event, Lola Pons, received today the Miguel Delibes National Journalism Award, awarded by the Valladolid Press Association
The conference 'Other capital gains from foreign trade', organized by the Cádiz Free Trade Zone as part of its contribution to Cádiz's candidacy as the venue for the perspective of the Spanish Language linked to commercial exchange, especially with America.
The day began with the opening ceremony chaired by the delegate of the Free Trade Zone of Cádiz, Fran González, the mayor of Cádiz, José María González, and Lola Pons, professor in the department of Spanish Language, Linguistics and Theory of Literature at the University of Seville and coordinator of the meeting who also learned today that she has been awarded the Miguel Delibes National Journalism Prize, awarded by the Press Association of Valladolid.
Fran González thanked the attendees and speakers for their contribution to making Cádiz the venue for the 10th International Congress of the Spanish Language in 2025. As the delegate of the Free Trade Zone explained, “this day materializes our support for the candidacy and our gratitude to the City Council for the work it is developing to achieve it.”
“We are convinced that Cádiz deserves to be the showcase of the language in 2025 because for centuries it has been the entry and exit door, not only for merchandise, but for customs and knowledge, which has led us to have a rich lexicon, enriched with the evolution of history and by the commercial exchange that has always existed in our city,” added the delegate of the Free Trade Zone.
For his part, the mayor thanked the Free Trade Zone for its “real and concrete support” with the organization of a day in which figures of recognized prestige in terms of knowledge of the language participate. He also praised the appropriateness of addressing language and commerce at this time, which he related to his recent visit to Guadalajara (Mexico) to promote the Cadiz candidacy at the International Book Fair.
The Cádiz councilor gave way to Lola Pons, as “one of the most common and most rigorous voices on the study of Spanish”, while highlighting her role as “a tireless defender of our way of speaking, of the Andalusian that went from Cádiz to America, of its wealth, its greatness and its hallmarks”.
Among other things, Pons has taught at prestigious universities such as Tübingen, Oxford, King's College London, Lyon and Zurich and, in addition, has numerous publications and articles in the field of communication and scientific research, in addition to being a regular collaborator in the media. She is a corresponding academic of the Academy of the Panamanian Language, of the Royal Academy of Noble Arts of Antequera, honorary member of the Union of Correctors of Spanish, Ciudad de Alcalá de Henares 'Manuel Azaña' Journalism Award, Archivo Hispalense Research Award and Redele Award, among others.
A complete program
Next, Lola Pons gave the first conference of the day, titled 'The vocabulary of economics in the history of the Spanish language'. The second of the interventions was given by Ana María Reguera, professor of the Department of Philology and Translation of the Pablo de Olavide University and doctor in German Philology from the University of Seville, who will offer a presentation 'If I don't understand it, I don't buy it. Relevance and impact of linguistic management in the foreign trade of Spanish SMEs', which brought together a large group of students.
In the afternoon, at 4:30 p.m., the weight of the debate was carried by Carmen Varo, professor of General Linguistics and secretary of the Institute of Applied Linguistics of the University of Cádiz. His presentation revolved around language at the service of the company, with linguistic tools to strengthen the corporate image.
The day was closed by Professor of Spanish Language at the Autonomous University of Madrid Pedro Álvarez de Miranda, who is also a philologist and expert in Historical Lexicography and History of the Spanish Language. Álvarez de Miranda spoke about a curious character from the late 17th century: the Cádiz merchant Raimundo de Lantery.