Many of the rules and punctuation in the Spanish language are a combination of Latin and Arabic languages. For this reason, if you’re first language is based on these languages, learning Spanish will be easier. The alphabet uses the Latin alphabet with a few variations.
Some of the variations on the Latin alphabet include:
o There are vowels both with and without accents
o The vowels with the accents are a variation of the unaccented vowel.
o The letter n is used with or without a tilde. Each of these variations is considered to be a separate letter.
o The diagraphs ll and ch are considered separate letters in the alphabet.
Letters and Pronunciation of the Spanish Alphabet
Letters and Pronunciations
The letter is listed to the left, with the pronunciation of each letter:
A is pronounced /a/
B is pronounced /b/
C is pronounced /se/
Ch is pronounced /che/
D is pronounced /de/
E is pronounced /e/
F is pronounced /efe/
G is pronounced /ge/ or /he/
H is pronounced /hache/
I is pronounced /i/
J is pronounced /jota/ or /hota/
K is pronounced /ka/
L is pronounced /ele/
Ll is pronounced /elle/
M is pronounced /eme/
N is pronounced /ene/
N with the tilde is pronounced /ene/
O is pronounced /o/
P is pronounced /pe/
Q is pronounced /ku/
R is pronounced /erre/
S is pronounced /ese/
T is pronounced /te/
U is pronounced /u/
V is pronounced /uve/ or /w/
W is pronounced doble ve or doble u
X is pronounced /ekis/ or /ks/
Y is pronounced /je/
Z is pronounced /zeta/ or /seta/
If you speak English, you will find that much of the pronunciation is similar to what you find in the English alphabet. For example, the letter C has two sounds like it does in English. The letter C can sound like either a K or an S.
There are some letters that make the sounds of other letters in the English language. The letter j sounds like the letter h in English. The letter V sounds like the letter B. The letter Z sounds like the letter S. The letter R in Spanish makes a rolling R sound that is somewhat similar to the English pronunciation.
Other Information About the Spanish Alphabet
The vowel accents in the Spanish language serve two purposes. The first purpose is for marking the stress. This helps with pronunciation when you are first learning the language. The other purpose is to differentiate between words.
In the written language, the default stress is on the last syllable of a word. When a word ends in a consonant, the stress is on the last syllable. As in many languages, the rules don’t always apply. There are a few exceptions to the rules of stress.
Words that don’t follow the default stress include an accent on the stressed vowel. The rules of the language include using a syllable count to assign written accents to words. Learning this helps in learning the Spanish language.
Spend time becoming familiar with the Spanish alphabet and pronunciation of each letter. This will make learning the language and becoming fluent much easier. There are many websites that offer additional information on pronouncing the letters. Some have recorded pronunciation. You click the letter and listen to the letter pronounced. Then you can try to imitate the sounds you hear.
