Appendix H 

Standard Abbreviations for Spanish–Language Addresses

In many areas of the country, street names are influenced by Hispanic culture. In these areas, Spanish prefix words such as AVENIDA, CALLE, and CAMINO are frequently used as the first word of the street name and often combined with prepositional phrases such as de, la, de las, and the noun they are describing. For example, AVENIDA DE LA ESTRELLA and CAMINO DE LAS VILLAS are Hispanic words called prefixes because they normally occur at the beginning of the street name, while the English translation would be placed as a suffix in an address.

When the number of characters available for output on a mailpiece is restricted by the size of the label or other considerations, abbreviations and other data compression methods are frequently employed. While it is the preference of the Postal Service that all words in a mailing address appear fully spelled out, this section is intended to provide a set of standard abbreviations to be used when mailers encounter the following Spanish prefixes in the delivery address line and there is a need to compress the output to the mailpiece.

 

Spanish Prefix

Standardization

English Translation

AVENIDA

AVE

Avenue

CALLE

CLL

Street

CAMINITO

CMT

Little Road

CAMINO

CAM

Road

CERRADA

CER

Closed

CIRCULO

CIR

Circle

ENTRADA

ENT

Entrance

PASEO

PSO

Path

PLACITA

PLA

Little Plaza

RANCHO

RCH

Ranch

VEREDA

VER

Small Path

VISTA

VIS

View

Note: The English translation is provided for information only. Do not replace the Spanish words with the English translation!