Lottery Slang in Argentina

Walking down the streets of Buenos Aires, keen observers may notice little hole-in-the-wall shops with a banner saying, Quiniela. These little huts are the offices of a special lottery where locals bet on numbers and test their luck. If you’re like me and you don’t have a lucky number, Quiniela is the right game for you. No need to keep betting on the same favorites, as the tradition of this game is to remember your dreams and play the numbers that correspond. The chart below lists the numbers and the dreams with which they are associated. While Quiniela is played in other countries as well, the dream association is a practice unique to Buenos Aires.

Most of the dream associations are quite clear. For example, those who dream of a vast seascape at night would choose lucky number 1, el agua. Or those who dream of a fetching young lady would choose lucky number 15, la niña bonita.

The meanings behind other Quiniela numbers are more cryptic, however, as their meanings have been culled from local slang (lunfardo). The best example is lucky 55, el gallego. Ever since immigrants from Galicia, Spain arrived at the Port of Buenos Aires, los gallegos have been ridiculed and stereotyped for being rude, hard-headed brutes. This stereotype has stemmed the tides of time, and is now used as a colloquial term meaning, a crass or stubborn ruffian.

Interestingly, the Quiniela lottery has played an important role in society since the early days of tango. Street hoodlums used the numbers as a coded slang to throw off the cops, and subsequently these codes appeared in the stories told though tango song lyrics. Translated below is the last phrase of the song, “Por culpa del escolazo” (The fault of horse race winners’ list). These lines by Roberto Grela-Cerere highlight a sentiment of hope and illusion mirrored in this game of luck as in real life:

Y, hay que darse el gusto, total… en unas de esa viene el 9, llama al 13 y nos manda al 94. Qué 17…!
[And, you have to indulge…in one of these come the 19 (stream), then the 13 (bad luck) and sends us to the 94 (cemetery). What 17 (misfortune)!]

So ladies, next time you hear a Porteño (Buenos Aires resident) slyly referring to you in slang as a 15 (pretty young girl), you can look at him and say, “Che 22, andate un poquito a la 71!” (Hey, crazy guy, go eat shit!).

Ojo! (Caution!) Keep in mind if you are in a restaurant and the mozo refers to you as a 15 or worse as a 78 (prostitute), they are most likely referring to your table number. So save yourself from the lunfardo fail, and don’t take it personally!

Below is a list of numbers and the dreams they are associated with. Review the list and comment below. Create your own Spanish pick up lines, insults and phrases in slang with these Quiniela numbers and win yourself a 72 (surprise).

Madi Lang is a private concierge and Buenos Aires trip planner who helps create unique and tailor made itineraries for Argentina bound travelers.