I.
Short Background
The Spanish language has been close to our hearts as Filipinos, I would say. After 300
years of being a colony of Spain, Spanish language has not just been affectionately sweet to our
ears but also have shape the Filipino language and the numbers of dialects that we have. So, we
find a lot of common words in the Spanish language.
But more than that the Spanish language is one of those sought-after language to study or
learn because it is a romance language. It means that it is derived from Latin. Latin is an italic
language of the Indo- European language family. It appeared at around 1000 BC at a region
called Lazio. At first, Latin is used mostly by peasants and called “sermo rusticus” but with the
expansion of Rome also came the expansion of the Latin language. From then on, Latin was used
by Kings and courts in their documents, and even by the Church. Sciences also utilized Latin on
their terminology and key terms. From Latin came the romance languages of, Italian, French,
Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish, etc. The Latin language therefore have a wide and strong
influence on culture and sciences.
We look to one of those we consider offspring of the Latin language- the Spanish
Language. It is a language spoken from the 9th century AD at the Iberian Peninsula. The first
written texts found in this language were the Valpuesta Charter. (The Cartularies of Valpuesta
are a series of 12th-century Visigothic documents which, in turn, are copies of earlier documents,
some of which date back to the 9th century. These cartularies contain an abundance of words of a
developing Romance dialect and a copious list of place names in the Valley of Gaubea and the
surrounding area.) Spanish as a language has 20% Latin. Spanish is also called Castilian from the
fact that it is born in Castile- a term that applies to a certain imprecise geographical area that
alludes to Spain.
As exploration and colonization take its place in history the Spanish language mixed with
other languages. In the Americas and other parts of the world Spanish was mixed with the native
languages and so Creoles were born. Creoles languages are chavacano- Zamboanga and some
parts of the Philippines, palenquero- San Basilio, Columbia, and Papiamento- Netherlands
Antilles.
Up to this day, the Spanish language is a language of influence.
II. Pronunciation and Sounds
Spanish spelling is an exact reflection of the pronunciation of the language. The
Pronunciation of each is subject to precise and consistent rules, and words are pronounced by
adding together the sounds of each individual letter.
The Vowels
Letter Pronounced like Examples
a the a in father la casa, la tapa
e two sounds:
-the e in café when final elefante, come, vive,
-the e in set elsewhere pero, es, hotel
i the i in machine si, cine, comida
o two sounds:
-the o in hope oso, otro,hospital
-the o in for if followed by r doctor, professor
u the u in rule
-written as ü when agüero, güira
pronounced in güe ang güi
-silent in gue and gui Guerra, guitarra
y Spanish i y, soy, hay
The Consonants
Letter Pronounced like Example
b/ v the b in boat when they occur La casa, la tapa
at the beginning or at the if
following l, m, or n softer
elsewhere
c the c in cat before a, o, u, or Camisa, color
before a consonant, the s in
sail before e or i Centavo, cita
ch the ch in chum Chocolate, chorizo
d two sounds: the d in dog Donde, falda, conde
when it occurs in the
beginning or following I or m
n, the th in other if elsewhere Boda, poder, verdad
f pronounced like in English Future, falda
g the g in game before a,o,u or Gato, gusto
before a consonant; the h in
hat before e or i Generoso, genio
h silent Hombre, hasta
j h in English Juan, ojo
k k in English Kayak, kilometro
l English l El, hotel
ll The y in beyond Caballo, llave
m M in English Menos, cama
n N in English Nota, nacion
ñ The ny in canyon Mañana
p English p Papel, persona
q The k in key Quinto, queso
r The dd in ladder Caro, barato
rr A trill r Perro, carro
s English s Sopa, sala
t English t Torta, talent
v Spanish b
W The letter exist in Spanish
only in words that are foreign
X English x Experto, examen
Y Spanish ll Papaya, ayer
z The s in sail Azul, brazo
