Chapter 4. New social categories in dangerous times

Abstract

After a three-month Covid-19 lockdown, the Spanish national and regional governments implemented stringent rules to curb the pandemic’s spread during the “new normal”. These measures aimed to reduce face-to-face interactions while sustaining economic and educational activities, reshaping social behaviours and perceptions. Notably, a distinct shift occurred in Spain’s landscape of social groups and relationships, traditionally characterised by keywords like familia and amigos/amigas used to refer to close connections. Emerging from political and legal jargon, technical terms such as unidad familiar, conviviente, and grupo burbuja entered the public sphere and everyday conversation. Using the Natural Semantic Metalanguage (NSM) framework, this study analyses these expressions, revealing that, unlike familia and amigos/amigas, the new terms are primarily grounded in the concept of “space” and lack an inherent emotional component. This finding prompts reflection on the potential impact of these concepts on people’s mindsets in the “new normal” era.