google246b86accf55f2af.html El Alfabeto | Changes in the Spanish Alphabet | Julia Naranja | Spanish Tutoring in San Luis Obispo
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Writer's pictureJulia Naranja

El Alfabeto

Updated: Sep 29

First of all, it must be noted that language, like culture, is alive and changing. It changes over time because language is a reflection of culture and people. The Real Academia Española (Royal Spanish Academy), based out of Madrid, "is Spain's official royal institution with a mission to ensure the stability of the Spanish language" (wikipedia).


Note:

Las vocales - A, E, I, O, U

Las consonantes difíciles (difficult consonants) - G, H, J, Ñ, V

Letras eliminadas (letters eliminated) en 2010 - CH, LL (RR not an official letter, but occasionally considered one)


The Spanish language is written using the Spanish alphabet, which is the Latin script with one additional letter, "ñ" (eñe), for a total of 27 letters. Although the letters "k" and "w" are part of the alphabet, they appear only in loanwords such as karate, kilo, waterpolo and wolframio (tungsten). Each letter has a single official name according to the Real Academia Española's new 2010 Common Orthography, but in some regions alternative traditional names coexist.


The Real Academia Española (RAE) has decided that “ch” and “ll” are no longer letters. In 2010 the Real Academia recommended the use of a unified naming convention for the alphabet. *The suggested names for r, v, w, and y are erre, uve, uve doble, and ye. However, most Spanish speakers tend to use the traditional naming conventions followed in their countries.


El Alfabeto Español / The Spanish Alphabet

Sources:

Senderos 1: Spanish for a Connected World (Textbook), Vista Higher Learning, Boston Massachusetts, 2018

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