UNIT 1 SPANISH ALPHABET Pronunciation and Phonetics.pdf

EL ALFABETO EN ESPAÑOL PARA EXTRANJEROS

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In this guide, I review the Spanish phonetic alphabet that includes all 30 possible letters that
you might see (even the unofficial ch, ll, and rr.) This way, you’ll gain a greater understanding
of every Spanish letter you might come across!
Similarities and Differences Between the English and Spanish Alphabets
The English and Spanish alphabets are very similar! This makes learning Spanish a lot
easier than learning a language with a different alphabet like Russian or Japanese. As
long as you pay attention to a few key similarities and differences, you’ll be spelling in
Spanish in no time!
Similarities
The letters look exactly the same as English letters! No need to learn a whole new
alphabet since the English letters have the same appearance as the Spanish ones. Many
of the Spanish letters also sound similar to their English counterparts (for example: s, t,
and f ).

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Differences
The letters g and j can be confusing for English speakers since a Spanish g sometimes
sounds like an English “j.” Additionally, the letter i in Spanish is pronounced like the
English “e.”
The letter rr can also be challenging for English speakers since this “rolling R” sound
doesn’t exist in English! To pronounce this Spanish trill, you quickly touch the tip of your
tongue to your hard palate multiple times while blowing air out of your mouth.
This rapid motion is where the term rolling your Rs comes from, as it feels like your
tongue is rolling around in your mouth.
But, how many letters are there in Spanish? There is some debate over this topic. This is
due to confusion on whether to include the letters ch, ll, and rr.
Ultimately, however, there are currently 27 official letters in Spanish. According to the
Real Academia Española (the group in charge of the official Spanish language), this is the
official Spanish alphabet:
je

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The history of Ñ and the tilde

Ñ, which did not exist in Latin and is therefore not seen
in other Romance languages, was originally created
around the twelfth century by Spanish scribes. They used the tilde (that’s this symbol: ~)
as short form for two of the same letter appearing in a row when they were copying Latin
text. So, for example, the original Latin for year, annus, eventually became the Spanish
año.
Over time, the tilde symbol fell out of use over other letters, but it remained on the n,
taking on new meaning. It became used to indicate that specific “nyuh” pronunciation,
becoming part of the unique fabric of the language.
Grammar nerd corner
There are a few Spanish accents that we don’t use in English. However, the other diacritics
(that’s the symbols added to letters) don’t make the vowels they’re added to into new
letters.
The ´ that appears over vowels (á, é, í, ó, ú) is considered one accent that can be applied
as needed to indicate which syllable in a word is stressed. And ü does indicate
pronunciation (it tells you that the u makes a “w” sound), but simply isn’t considered its
own letter.
Other retired letters in the Spanish alphabet
The other unique letters previously in use were:
• Ch (“che”)
• Ll (“doble ele”)

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And you may still see them listed as letters, especially in older textbooks and resources.
See, today, the Spanish alphabet has 27 letters, but it was considered to have 29 up until
2010. That was when the RAE (Real Academia Española) – the institution in charge of the
Spanish language – made the decision to officially eliminate che and doble ele as
individual letters.
Instead, they’re considered to be something called digraphs – a combination of two
letters that represent one sound, like ph and th in English. In making the switch, ch and
ll join rr – “doble erre” – another digraph you may sometimes see listed as its own letter!
The intention was to simplify Spanish spelling and grammar, and the change came along
with new rules for hyphens and accents. Fun stuff, right?

Did you know that all Spanish letters are all feminine?

If you need to talk about a specific letter in Spanish, use the femeine definite article la.
For example:
La letra m The letter m
La letra O The letter O

Spanish Accent Marks
If you’ve ever encountered Spanish writing, chances are you’ve run across an accent or
two. Letters with accents like á, é, í, ó, and ú might seem unusual at first, but don’t let
these accents intimidate you! With a bit of practice, the accents will come with ease.
Spanish accents can only be written over the five vowels (a, e, i, o, and u), and the
accent is written from lower left to upper right: á, é, í, ó, ú.

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Pronunciation and Phonetics
Accent marks in Spanish are simply instructions on how to pronounce a word. Accents
point out emphasis. Syllables are marked with an accent to let the reader know to stress
that syllable. Try reading these examples aloud and paying attention to the stressed
syllable.
Examples
Café (Coffee)
Ka-fay
Día (Day)
Dee-uh
Sofá (Sofa)
So-fa

Differentiate Words
Accents aren’t always used for phonetics. They also differentiate words that are
spelled the same but have different meanings. These words may be pronounced
the same, but the accent helps the reader avoid confusion.
Examples
Tu (possessive)
Spanish: Me gusta tu nuevo abrigo.
English: I like your new coat.
Tú (subject)
Spanish: Tú quieres salir.
English: You want to leave.

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Si (conditional)
Spanish: Si estás cansado, acuéstate.
English: If you’re tired, go to bed.
Sí (confirmation)
Spanish: Sí, voy a ir.
English: Yes, I will go.

Practice Reading with Your New Phonetics and Accents Knowledge
Let’s practice your new knowledge by reading some Spanish words aloud!
Adiós (Goodbye)
Ah-deeohs
Por favor (Please)
Por fa-bor
Salud (Bless you)
Sa-lud
El pájaro (Bird)
Pa-hah-roh
El té (Tea)
Teh
El tiempo (Time/Weather)
Tiem-po
La película (Movie)
Pe-li-ku-la
El gato (Cat)
Ga-to