We are pleased to announce that es-xchange now has a new home. The Blogger site will stay here as an archive, but we won't be updating it. You'll find copies of all the existing articles at the new site, and that is where new content will be published in the future.
Please check out our new location and update your bookmarks:
http://www.es-xchange.com
Sep 16, 2008
We have moved!
Apr 27, 2008
¿El español es tu idioma materno...
y te gustaría participar en el proyecto de acentos? ¿Quieres que tu ciudad figure en el mapa de acentos? Entonces escríbenos a es-xchange@bumerang180.com para más información.
Haz clic en los botones que aparecen a continuación para ver los mapas que muestran las ciudades ya incluidas en el proyecto.
Haz clic en los botones que aparecen a continuación para ver los mapas que muestran las ciudades ya incluidas en el proyecto.
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Mar 29, 2008
Podcasts as an aid to learning Spanish
Listening to podcasts is an extremely useful way to supplement your language learning studies. When it comes to Spanish, there is a huge choice of freely available audio resources that you can download. These range from lessons aimed at absolute beginners through to more advanced learners. Also for the more advanced, another great way to practise your listening skills is to download Spanish language podcasts produced for native speakers. Choosing one of these dealing with a topic that especially interests you will help to keep you motivated.
The list below provides an initial selection to get you started. All of the resources mentioned below are free. Additional material, such as transcripts and supplementary premium-content podcasts, can also be purchased for some of these.
lessons/library.html
Scots Mark, the teacher, and Kara, the student, host this series of podcasts teaching beginners' Spanish in manageable 15-20 minute lessons. The series is organised into units of 10 lessons each, and is currently on Unit 6. Some of the units feature dialogues recorded with native speakers from Spain, and there is also a companion series of occasional podcasts, Café Cortado (http://www.thecafecortado.com/), dealing specifically with listeners' queries (although the latter not been updated since August 2007). Last year Coffee Break Spanish won a European Award for Languages and has recently hit #2 in the iTunes US chart of all podcasts.
Ben, an Englishman living in Madrid, and native speaker Marina present these podcasts featuring discussions and interviews in Spanish on a wide range of topics. There are three separate series available: Inspired Beginners, Intermediate and Advanced.
Eleena, an American living and teaching English in Spain, hosts this excellent conversational series aimed at intermediate to advanced learners. Each podcast features a guest, usually a native speaker. Recent topics have included: extracts from novels, an interview with a teacher of Spanish pronunciation from Buenos Aires, yerba mate, and intercambios, to name just a few.
This is a weekly series of short, bilingual podcasts from Briteach, a company providing English classes in Argentina. This podcast explains various terms and expressions used in the region, such as che, bondi, and subte. The latest edition was produced at the end of January.
In another interesting podcast series from Argentina, Sofía discusses, entirely in Spanish, a variety of features of the Rioplatense dialect. Although this series seems to have stopped (the last episode was in September 2007), there is an archive of around 40 previous episodes available to download.
Teresa Sánchez, a teacher from Zamora in Spain, produces these Spanish-only podcasts. In each show she presents a short monologue and then follows this up with a discussion of some of the language points inherent in the first part. A transcript of the monologue in both Spanish and English is also freely available on the site. Language learning opportunities aside, these vignettes not only provide an insight into Spanish culture, they also contain some delightful observations on life in general. In 2006 SSL4YOU won a Castilla y León prize for the promotion of Spanish in the Information Society.
(click on 'Podcast' at the bottom of the left-hand navigation bar)
Radio Exterior de España produces this weekly show, which lasts around an hour and is split into about 10 individual reports. Each of these covers a topical subject from the realms of culture and current affairs relevant to the Spanish-speaking world.
Viajes a tu aire is a travel guide series with reports on trips to places such as Helsinki, Athens, Orlando, London and New York. Although the latest episode is dated September 2007 there are 27 podcasts available to download.
pasajeroscondestino/
This is another travelogue series and comes from Frecuencia Cero in Mexico and is hosted by Marco Ávalos. As well as describing places and experiences, these reports also provide advice and information for prospective travellers. Recent destinations have included Rome, Bratislava, Cadiz and Naples.
With the help of a team of contributors, hosts Jordi Mariscal and Ricardo Cárdenas present this fusión de cine y actualidad. Through discussion of international cinema, Hablemos de cine examines a wide range of topical subjects. It also explores the contrasts and similarities in the way these themes are depicted by film makers from around the world.
This podcast from professional photographer Guillermo Flores from Guadalajara in Mexico is aimed at owners of digital SLR cameras. If, however, you are interested in photography and want to practise your aural comprehension then this is an ideal way to learn a bit more about photography and to pick up some specialist vocabulary along the way. You'll soon know your diafragma from your disparador.
The list below provides an initial selection to get you started. All of the resources mentioned below are free. Additional material, such as transcripts and supplementary premium-content podcasts, can also be purchased for some of these.
Language learning podcasts
Coffee Break Spanish
http://www.radiolinguamedia.com/cbs/www/lessons/library.html
Scots Mark, the teacher, and Kara, the student, host this series of podcasts teaching beginners' Spanish in manageable 15-20 minute lessons. The series is organised into units of 10 lessons each, and is currently on Unit 6. Some of the units feature dialogues recorded with native speakers from Spain, and there is also a companion series of occasional podcasts, Café Cortado (http://www.thecafecortado.com/), dealing specifically with listeners' queries (although the latter not been updated since August 2007). Last year Coffee Break Spanish won a European Award for Languages and has recently hit #2 in the iTunes US chart of all podcasts.
Notes in Spanish
http://www.notesinspanish.com/Ben, an Englishman living in Madrid, and native speaker Marina present these podcasts featuring discussions and interviews in Spanish on a wide range of topics. There are three separate series available: Inspired Beginners, Intermediate and Advanced.
Voces en español
http://spanish-podcast.com/es/Eleena, an American living and teaching English in Spain, hosts this excellent conversational series aimed at intermediate to advanced learners. Each podcast features a guest, usually a native speaker. Recent topics have included: extracts from novels, an interview with a teacher of Spanish pronunciation from Buenos Aires, yerba mate, and intercambios, to name just a few.
Argot Tango
http://www.briteach.com.ar/This is a weekly series of short, bilingual podcasts from Briteach, a company providing English classes in Argentina. This podcast explains various terms and expressions used in the region, such as che, bondi, and subte. The latest edition was produced at the end of January.
Desde el baño
http://desdeelbano.blogspot.com/In another interesting podcast series from Argentina, Sofía discusses, entirely in Spanish, a variety of features of the Rioplatense dialect. Although this series seems to have stopped (the last episode was in September 2007), there is an archive of around 40 previous episodes available to download.
SSL4YOU
http://ssl4you.blogspot.com/Teresa Sánchez, a teacher from Zamora in Spain, produces these Spanish-only podcasts. In each show she presents a short monologue and then follows this up with a discussion of some of the language points inherent in the first part. A transcript of the monologue in both Spanish and English is also freely available on the site. Language learning opportunities aside, these vignettes not only provide an insight into Spanish culture, they also contain some delightful observations on life in general. In 2006 SSL4YOU won a Castilla y León prize for the promotion of Spanish in the Information Society.
Podcasts in Spanish
The following list provides some suggestions from just a few of the very many genres available, namely podcasts devoted to current affairs, travel, cinema and photography. A good place to start for finding more is the directory of Spanish language podcasts at http://www.hispanocast.com/.Hispanorama
http://www.rtve.es/programas/intercambios(click on 'Podcast' at the bottom of the left-hand navigation bar)
Radio Exterior de España produces this weekly show, which lasts around an hour and is split into about 10 individual reports. Each of these covers a topical subject from the realms of culture and current affairs relevant to the Spanish-speaking world.
Viajes a tu aire
http://www.viajesatuaire.com/wp/Viajes a tu aire is a travel guide series with reports on trips to places such as Helsinki, Athens, Orlando, London and New York. Although the latest episode is dated September 2007 there are 27 podcasts available to download.
Pasajeros con destino
http://www.frecuenciacero.com.mx/pasajeroscondestino/
This is another travelogue series and comes from Frecuencia Cero in Mexico and is hosted by Marco Ávalos. As well as describing places and experiences, these reports also provide advice and information for prospective travellers. Recent destinations have included Rome, Bratislava, Cadiz and Naples.
Hablemos de cine
http://hablemosdecine.com/With the help of a team of contributors, hosts Jordi Mariscal and Ricardo Cárdenas present this fusión de cine y actualidad. Through discussion of international cinema, Hablemos de cine examines a wide range of topical subjects. It also explores the contrasts and similarities in the way these themes are depicted by film makers from around the world.
Podcast fotografía digital
http://www.memoflores.com/podcast/This podcast from professional photographer Guillermo Flores from Guadalajara in Mexico is aimed at owners of digital SLR cameras. If, however, you are interested in photography and want to practise your aural comprehension then this is an ideal way to learn a bit more about photography and to pick up some specialist vocabulary along the way. You'll soon know your diafragma from your disparador.
By Graham A Stephen and Karin Sequén © 2008
Mar 21, 2008
Seseo, ceceo and yeísmo (or, some major variations in Spanish pronunciation)
As with any language, Spanish is subject to variations across geographic areas and social strata. These variations include differences in accent, vocabulary and grammatical structures. In this article we will have a look at some of the major differences in its pronunciation. A number of audio clips of native speakers from around the Spanish-speaking world all reading the same piece of text are included for comparison.
The sound [s] occurs as the s in sun and is described as a voiceless alveolar fricative3, which means that the air flow is restricted between the tongue and the upper alveolar ridge (the gum ridge behind the upper teeth).
In some varieties of Spanish these two distinct sounds both occur, with [θ] corresponding to the letter z, or c before an e or an i. This is termed distinción. In other dialects the two sounds have merged together, giving seseo where they have become [s] and ceceo where they have become [θ].
Broadly speaking, distinción is found in northern and central Spain, seseo in the Canaries, parts of southern Spain and virtually all of Latin America, and ceceo in certain areas of southern Spain4.
In accents exhibiting distinción, cien and sien, for example, are pronounced differently, whereas in seseante and ceceante accents they are not.
Note that in Spanish [ʎ] should not be pronounced as [li]6. There is some regional variation in the way that y (and ll in yeísta accents) is pronounced in Spanish:
Note that in certain Mexican place names, such as México and Oaxaca, the letter x represents a voiceless velar fricative13, [x]. This is the sound now associated in Spanish with the letter j (although in certain dialects, such as Caribbean Spanish and those of parts of southern Spain, for example, this is pronounced as [h]). This spelling comes from Spanish transcription of the Náhuatl language at a time when the letter x represented the sound [ʃ]. During the sixteenth century, however, this sound shifted to [x] and later revisions to Spanish spelling introduced the rules that the latter be represented by j and [ks] by x. Nevertheless, the original spelling was retained in certain proper nouns. And in fact the original [ʃ] sound is still present in a number of Central American place names, such as Xela, Xetulul and Xocomil in Guatemala.
The standard pronunciation is therefore [b] in words such as también and enviar, and [β] in words such as abeja and llave.
This is, however, an area where there is some debate, as the sound [v] does occur in certain dialects of Spanish (a pronunciation known as labiodentalismo). The reasons for its existence are said to include:
One study18, analysing the speech of a number of Cuban students, found occurrences of [v] (together with [β] and [b]) corresponding to the letter v and also occasionally the letter b. Another more recent study19 involved a group of native speaking instructors of Spanish from a variety of countries at the University of Southern California. In that study it was found that in the speech samples analysed b was never pronounced [v], but overall the letter v was pronounced as [v] 40% of the time. This pronunciation was not systematic, and, among other factors, a correlation was found between its prevalence and the speakers’ number of years of residence in an English-speaking country.
Downloadable PDF chart of the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA).
http://www2.arts.gla.ac.uk/IPA/fullchart.html
Paul Meier Dialect Services
Interactive IPA chart with audio samples for all of the sounds.
http://www.paulmeier.com/ipa/charts.html
Spanish Pronunciation 101
A blog on Spanish pronunciation, aimed primarily at native English speakers and written by Martín Ventola, a teacher of Spanish Pronunciation from Buenos Aires.
http://www.spanishpronunciation101.com
Université de Lausanne — Introduction to Phonetics
Introductory online course on phonetics. Includes comprehensive descriptions of how all sounds in the IPA are produced together with accompanying audio clips.
http://www.unil.ch/ling/page30184.html
The University of Iowa — Fónetica: Los sonidos del Español
Animated anatomical diagram showing production of the various sounds in Spanish by the vocal apparatus, with accompanying sound samples and descriptions of how the sounds are articulated.
http://www.uiowa.edu/~acadtech/phonetics/spanish/frameset.html
The University of Iowa — Dialectoteca del Español
Audiovisual library with speech samples from a diverse range of native Spanish speakers.
http://www.uiowa.edu/~acadtech/dialects/
Ceceo
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ceceo
Yeísmo
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ye%C3%ADsmo
Spanish dialects and varieties
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_dialects
Vocal apparatus
The diagram below illustrates the major components of the human vocal apparatus. This will be useful to refer to when the production of various sounds is described below.Distinción, seseo and ceceo
The sound [θ] occurs in English as, for example, the th in thin and is described in phonetic terms as a voiceless interdental fricative1. This means that it is produced by restricting the flow of air with the tongue between the teeth and with no sound produced by the vocal folds. (Compare this with its voiced counterpart [ð]2, occurring as the th in the.)The sound [s] occurs as the s in sun and is described as a voiceless alveolar fricative3, which means that the air flow is restricted between the tongue and the upper alveolar ridge (the gum ridge behind the upper teeth).
In some varieties of Spanish these two distinct sounds both occur, with [θ] corresponding to the letter z, or c before an e or an i. This is termed distinción. In other dialects the two sounds have merged together, giving seseo where they have become [s] and ceceo where they have become [θ].
Broadly speaking, distinción is found in northern and central Spain, seseo in the Canaries, parts of southern Spain and virtually all of Latin America, and ceceo in certain areas of southern Spain4.
In accents exhibiting distinción, cien and sien, for example, are pronounced differently, whereas in seseante and ceceante accents they are not.
Lleísmo and yeísmo
The sound [ʎ], which does not naturally occur in English, is termed a palatal lateral approximant5. This means that it is produced by air escaping sideways over the tongue when the middle (lamina) or back (dorsum) is brought close to the hard palate. Traditionally this sound corresponded to the letter elle, or doble l, (ll) in Spanish: a pronunciation known as lleísmo. Replacing the sound with that associated with the letter y, however, is known as yeísmo, and this is prevalent in most of Latin America and parts of Spain. In Spain yeísmo is widespread among the younger generation, even in traditionally lleísta areas.Note that in Spanish [ʎ] should not be pronounced as [li]6. There is some regional variation in the way that y (and ll in yeísta accents) is pronounced in Spanish:
- [ʝ] voiced palatal fricative7. Produced by a restricted airflow down the centre of the tongue with its middle or back raised against the hard palate and the vocal folds vibrating.
- [j] palatal approximant8 — y in yes. Produced by an airflow down the centre of the tongue with its middle or back raised against the hard palate and the vocal folds vibrating. The airflow is not restricted to the same extent as it is with [ʝ].
- [ʃ] voiceless postalveolar fricative9 — sh in shirt. Produced with the tip (apex) of the tongue behind the alveolar ridge directing the airflow over the edge of the teeth without the vocal folds vibrating.
- [ʒ] voiced postalveolar fricative10 — s in treasure. Produced in a similar manner to that of [ʃ] but with the vocal folds vibrating.
Aspirated ‘s’
Another feature characteristic of certain accents is where the letter s at the end of a syllable is pronounced as [h] or even dropped completely. [h] is known as the voiceless glottal fricative12, and corresponds to the h in hat. In Spanish this pronunciation of s is called the ese aspirada, and the phenomenon ‘comer las eses’. This is common, for example, in Caribbean, Rioplatense and Southern Spanish accents.‘x’
When the letter x occurs at the start of word (e.g. xilofón) it is normally pronounced as [s]. In other positions it is pronounced as [ks] in Latin America, but in informal speech in Spain this is usually softened to become [s].Note that in certain Mexican place names, such as México and Oaxaca, the letter x represents a voiceless velar fricative13, [x]. This is the sound now associated in Spanish with the letter j (although in certain dialects, such as Caribbean Spanish and those of parts of southern Spain, for example, this is pronounced as [h]). This spelling comes from Spanish transcription of the Náhuatl language at a time when the letter x represented the sound [ʃ]. During the sixteenth century, however, this sound shifted to [x] and later revisions to Spanish spelling introduced the rules that the latter be represented by j and [ks] by x. Nevertheless, the original spelling was retained in certain proper nouns. And in fact the original [ʃ] sound is still present in a number of Central American place names, such as Xela, Xetulul and Xocomil in Guatemala.
‘b’ and ‘v’
In English the letter v is pronounced as a voiced labiodental fricative14, [v] (e.g. the v in vet). This means that it is formed with the bottom lip under the upper teeth. It is normally stated that this sound does not exist in Spanish and also that the letters b and v are pronounced identically, a phenomenon known in Spanish as betacismo. Their pronunciation depends on the position of the letter: after a pause or after m or n (the latter then being pronounced as an m), the pronunciation is [b], which is a voiced bilabial plosive15 (b in bad, for example, in English); otherwise the pronunciation is [β], which is a voiced bilabial fricative16. (Note that in some dialects it is only pronounced as a fricative when it occurs between vowels.) This sound does not occur in English and is made in a similar manner to [v] but with the both lips in front of the teeth and brought close together but not quite touching.The standard pronunciation is therefore [b] in words such as también and enviar, and [β] in words such as abeja and llave.
This is, however, an area where there is some debate, as the sound [v] does occur in certain dialects of Spanish (a pronunciation known as labiodentalismo). The reasons for its existence are said to include:
- Survival in certain areas of pronunciation from old Spanish
- Influences of other languages, such as Catalan, French and English
- Hypercorrection as a reaction against popular styles of speech
- Teaching children that [v] is the ‘correct’ pronunciation of v in order to make spelling easier.
One study18, analysing the speech of a number of Cuban students, found occurrences of [v] (together with [β] and [b]) corresponding to the letter v and also occasionally the letter b. Another more recent study19 involved a group of native speaking instructors of Spanish from a variety of countries at the University of Southern California. In that study it was found that in the speech samples analysed b was never pronounced [v], but overall the letter v was pronounced as [v] 40% of the time. This pronunciation was not systematic, and, among other factors, a correlation was found between its prevalence and the speakers’ number of years of residence in an English-speaking country.
Speech samples
Audio clips of a number of native Spanish speakers all reading the same piece of text are provided below for comparison. Listen carefully and see how many of the features described above you can detect. Note, however, that as the recordings are of a text being read, the speech is very likely to be more formal than that used in everyday conversation. One contributor commented, for example, that she was conscious of forcing the s at the end of words that in spontaneous speech she would have dropped.Sample text
El cazador de libros se sentía feliz al encontrar en una casa señorial de Zaragoza una colección de cien publicaciones científicas insólitas.
—Yo no veo ningún caballo —le dije a ella al llegar a la llanura lluviosa. Yo sé que viajar instruye mucho pero ayer en la calle de Nueva York, con el billete en el bolsillo, nunca me lo habría imaginado así.
Todos los tesoros oscuros de las islas estaban en la sala de subastas. En el primer lote había dos cisnes negros, unos sigilosos gatos de dimensiones gigantescas y tres muñecos enmascarados.
El boxeador extraño se exasperó al tomar el examen exigente en Extremadura. Se consideraba un excelente experto, pero a su parecer fueron muy ortodoxos y exudaron una exquisita inflexibilidad.
Veintinueve vacas hambrientas vuelven a comer hierba, mientras las abejas zumban por todas partes. Bebiendo un vaso de vino y sentado en un banco cercano, el hombre descubre la clave. Desde ahora sabe qué hacer en verano y en invierno también.
Audio clips
Instructions: use the map below to navigate the audio clip collection. You can click and drag to pan the map and use the control on the left to zoom. Clicking on a map marker will bring the list of associated recordings into view in the panel below the map. You can then click on a link to open the audio clip or right click on it to download it as an MP3 file.- Argentina
- Chile
- Colombia
- Cuba
- Granma
- BayamoMartín
- Sancti Spíritu
- Sancti SpíritusJuan
- Granma
- Ecuador
- El Oro
- MachalaJavier
- El Oro
- Guatemala
- Guatemala
- MixcoKarin
- Guatemala
- Mexico
- Chihuahua
- ChihuahuaLaura
- Mexico DF
- Mexico DF'kyber'
- Nayarit
- TepicCecilia
- Puebla
- PueblaGuillermina
- Sonora
- HermosilloErica
- Chihuahua
- Nicaragua
- Managua
- ManaguaMichael
- Managua
- Peru
- Lambayeque
- ChiclayoRoberto
- Tacna
- TacnaWilson
- Lambayeque
- Spain
- Andalucía
- GranadaPaula
- SevillaBarbara (Professional voice artist. Recorded reading without Andalucian accent.)
- Aragón
- ZaragozaIsmael
- Baleares
- Castilla y León
- ZamoraTeresa
- Cataluña
- La Rioja
- LogroñoFermín
- Madrid
- MadridAlberto
Juanjo
Luis
María Jesús - MóstolesDavid (has been living in Murcia for the past five years)
- Navarra
- PamplonaJesús
- Valencia
- AlicanteAna
- Andalucía
- Uruguay
- Montevideo
- MontevideoEstefanía
- Montevideo
- Venezuela
Further resources
International Phonetic AssociationDownloadable PDF chart of the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA).
http://www2.arts.gla.ac.uk/IPA/fullchart.html
Paul Meier Dialect Services
Interactive IPA chart with audio samples for all of the sounds.
http://www.paulmeier.com/ipa/charts.html
Spanish Pronunciation 101
A blog on Spanish pronunciation, aimed primarily at native English speakers and written by Martín Ventola, a teacher of Spanish Pronunciation from Buenos Aires.
http://www.spanishpronunciation101.com
Université de Lausanne — Introduction to Phonetics
Introductory online course on phonetics. Includes comprehensive descriptions of how all sounds in the IPA are produced together with accompanying audio clips.
http://www.unil.ch/ling/page30184.html
The University of Iowa — Fónetica: Los sonidos del Español
Animated anatomical diagram showing production of the various sounds in Spanish by the vocal apparatus, with accompanying sound samples and descriptions of how the sounds are articulated.
http://www.uiowa.edu/~acadtech/phonetics/spanish/frameset.html
The University of Iowa — Dialectoteca del Español
Audiovisual library with speech samples from a diverse range of native Spanish speakers.
http://www.uiowa.edu/~acadtech/dialects/
Ceceo
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ceceo
Yeísmo
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ye%C3%ADsmo
Spanish dialects and varieties
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_dialects
Acknowledgements
Many thanks to all those who very kindly provided voice recordings for this project:Alberto Aparicio, Ana Toral García, Analia Laserna, Anna Navarro, Ariel Leonel Melo, Barbara Pérez, Carlos Martín Llatas Pérez, Carolina Conde, Cecilia Medina, Christian Bidart Sánchez, Cinthya Castro, Daniela Huguet, David Nogales Úbeda, Eduardo Miyahira, Erica Neith Ruiz Duarte, Estefanía Ganduglia Barrios, Fabian Alejandro Abarzúa Díaz, Fermín Palacios, Guillermina Ramírez Orozco, Ismael, Jahnava, Jatniel Villarroel Ruiz, Javier Alejandro Solano Solano, Jesús Miguel Gaztambide Ganuza, Juan Brito, Juan José del Coz Velasco, Karin Sequén, 'kyber', Laura Pilar Chávez G., Luis Angulo Verdugo, Luis Francisco García Agüero, María Jesús R, María López Puertas, Mariano Marandino, Mariano Talanchuk, Martín, Michael René Martínez Huete, Natalia F, Óscar Leonardo Acevedo Pabón, Paula, Pilar Trabal, Radha Villalobos Ruano, Roberto Carlos Muñoz Tuesta, Teresa Sánchez, Wilson Mamani.
References
1 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiceless_dental_fricative
2 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiced_dental_fricative
3 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiceless_alveolar_fricative
4 See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andalusian_Spanish for a map showing ceceante regions of Andalucía.
5 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palatal_lateral_approximant
6 Diccionario panhispánico de dudas, http://buscon.rae.es/dpdI/SrvltConsulta?lema=ll
7 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiced_palatal_fricative
8 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palatal_approximant
9 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiceless_postalveolar_fricative
10 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiced_postalveolar_fricative
11 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rioplatense_Spanish
12 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiceless_glottal_fricative
13 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiceless_velar_fricative
14 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiced_labiodental_fricative
15 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiced_bilabial_plosive
16 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiced_bilabial_fricative
17 Saborit, J, Estévez, I, El español de la República Dominicana, http://www.geocities.com/saborit72/fonetica.html?200813
18 Isbasescu, Cristina (1968), “Sobre la existencia de una fricativa labiodental sonora [v] en el español cubano”, Actas del III Congreso de la Asociación Internacional de Hispanistas
http://cvc.cervantes.es/obref/aih/pdf/03/aih_03_1_054.pdf
19 Stevens, John J (2000), “On the Labiodental Pronunciation of Spanish /b/ among Teachers of Spanish as a Second Language”, Hispania, Vol. 83, No. 1, 139–149
http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0018-2133(200003)83:1<139:OTLPOS>2.0.CO;2-J
2 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiced_dental_fricative
3 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiceless_alveolar_fricative
4 See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andalusian_Spanish for a map showing ceceante regions of Andalucía.
5 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palatal_lateral_approximant
6 Diccionario panhispánico de dudas, http://buscon.rae.es/dpdI/SrvltConsulta?lema=ll
7 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiced_palatal_fricative
8 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palatal_approximant
9 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiceless_postalveolar_fricative
10 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiced_postalveolar_fricative
11 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rioplatense_Spanish
12 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiceless_glottal_fricative
13 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiceless_velar_fricative
14 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiced_labiodental_fricative
15 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiced_bilabial_plosive
16 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiced_bilabial_fricative
17 Saborit, J, Estévez, I, El español de la República Dominicana, http://www.geocities.com/saborit72/fonetica.html?200813
18 Isbasescu, Cristina (1968), “Sobre la existencia de una fricativa labiodental sonora [v] en el español cubano”, Actas del III Congreso de la Asociación Internacional de Hispanistas
http://cvc.cervantes.es/obref/aih/pdf/03/aih_03_1_054.pdf
19 Stevens, John J (2000), “On the Labiodental Pronunciation of Spanish /b/ among Teachers of Spanish as a Second Language”, Hispania, Vol. 83, No. 1, 139–149
http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0018-2133(200003)83:1<139:OTLPOS>2.0.CO;2-J
By Graham A Stephen and Karin Sequén © 2008
Jan 19, 2008
Vocabulary: document preparation / Vocabulario: preparación de documentos
| Presented below is a selection of terms related to document preparation together with their Spanish equivalents. The words are given in thematic sections. | A continuación presentamos una selección de términos relacionados a la preparación de documentos junto con sus equivalentes ingleses. Los vocablos se agrupan en bloques temáticos. |
Physical | Físico |
| paper | papel m |
| page | página f |
| sheet / leaf | hoja f |
| quire (1/20th of a ream) | mano (de papel) f (vigésima parte de la resma) |
| ream (500 sheets of paper) | resma f (500 hojas de papel) |
| lined paper | papel m con líneas |
| graph paper | papel m cuadriculado / milimetrado |
| leaflet / flier | hoja f / folleto m / volante m |
| brochure / booklet / pamphlet | librito m / folleto m / panfleto m |
| book | libro m |
| paperback | libro m en rústica |
| hardback | libro m de tapa/pasta dura |
| ink | tinta f |
| toner | toner m |
| cartridge | cartucho m |
| printer | impresora f |
| laser printer | impresora f (de) láser |
| ink jet printer | impresora f (de) chorro (de) tinta / impresora f de inyección de tinta |
Textual organisation | Organización del texto |
| letter | letra f |
| word | palabra f, voz f, vocablo m |
| phrase | frase f, sintagma m |
| sentence | oración f |
| paragraph | párrafo m |
| section | apartado m |
| subsection | inciso m |
| chapter | capítulo m |
| volume | tomo m, volumen f |
| line | línea f, renglón m, verso m |
| stanza | estrofa f |
| verse | verso m |
| title page / front page / cover | portada f |
| right-hand page (recto) | página f impar, recto m |
| left-hand page (verso) | página f par, verso m |
| back (of a sheet of paper) | dorso m |
Typographic | Tipográfico |
| font | tipo m de letra, fuente f |
| lower case | caja f baja, minúscula f |
| UPPER CASE | CAJA f ALTA, MAYÚSCULA f, VERSAL f |
| SMALL CAPS | VERSALITAS f |
| boldface | negrita f |
| Roman type | redonda f |
| italics | cursiva f, itálica f |
| underlined | (texto) subrayado |
| (texto) | |
| superscript | superíndice m, (texto) volado, letra voladita |
| subscript | subíndice m |
| font size1 (e.g. 12pt) | cuerpo1 m (tamaño del tipo) |
| x height2 | altura f x2 |
| shoulder3 | hombro3 m, rebaba f |
| serif4 | remate4 m, gracia f, serifa f |
| ascender5 | (asta f) ascendente5 |
| descender6 | (asta f) descendente6 |
| base line7 | línea f de base7 |
| point (1/72 inch) | punto m tipográfico (1/72 de pulgada) |
| stroke | trazo m |
| sans serif font | tipo m (de letra) paloseco |
| serif font | tipo m (de letra) romano, con serifas |
| fixed pitch, monospaced, non-proportional font | tipo m de espaciado fijo |
| proportional font | tipo m de espaciado proporcional |
| leading (spacing between lines) | interlineado m |
| tracking (space between characters) | prosa f (espaciado interletrado) |
| kerning (adjustments in spacing between letters in certain pairs) | interletraje m (ajustes visual sobre ciertos pares de carácteres) |
| left aligned | alineado a la izquierda |
| right aligned | alineado a la derecha |
| justified | justificado |
| centred | centrado |
| margin | margen m |
| indent | sangrado m |
| to indent a line | sagrar una línea |
| blockquote | metido m |
| footnote | nota f al pie |
| text figuresa | números m elzevirianosa, cifras f de estilo antiguo |
a In text figures 0, 1, 2 have x-height size; 3, 4, 5, 7, 9 have descenders; 6, 8 have ascenders.
En los números elzevirianos el tamaño de las cifras 0, 1, 2 es la altura x; 3, 4, 5, 7, 9 tienen astas descendentes; 6, 8 tienen astas ascendentes.
By Graham A Stephen and Karin Sequén © 2008
Nov 2, 2007
Punctuation marks / signos de puntuación
We probably all take it for granted: when we write not only do we employ letters to form words and figures to stand for numbers, but we also take advantage of a range of other little marks, which —when used well— can make our intended meaning clear. Used badly, on the other hand, they can lead to ambiguity and can even totally change the intended meaning. We are of course talking about punctuation marks.
| Probablemente no le prestamos mucha atención: al escribir no sólo empleamos letras para formar palabras y cifras para representar números, sino también nos aprovechamos de una serie de otros pequeños signos, que —al utilizarse bien— pueden hacer claro lo que queremos expresar. Mal usados, en cambio, pueden conducir a la ambigüedad e incluso cambiar por completo el sentido deseado. Estamos hablando, por supuesto, de los signos de puntuación. [3] Lynne Truss, Eats, Shoots & Leaves, Profile Books (London), 2003. http://eatsshootsandleaves.com/ esl.html |
By Graham A Stephen and Karin Sequén © 2007
Jul 21, 2007
El hecho de que... indicative or subjunctive?
The general guidance given to learners of Spanish with regards to choosing between the indicative and subjunctive moods usually centres on the notion of the speaker’s model of reality: when dealing with certainties (from the speaker’s point of view), the indicative is used; whereas the subjunctive is normally used in situations involving factors such as uncertainty, denial, emotional reaction, desire, and influence.
This article looks at one particular example that appears to run counter to the above: namely the use of the subjunctive following el hecho de que where the phrase is used to state an objective fact and where no emotional reaction is involved.
Let’s start by taking a closer look at some typical descriptions of the general rules involved in the use of the subjunctive mood. We will then go on to take a look at so-called factive clauses and follow this up by examining the choice of mood in such clauses. This mentions previous investigation in this area and presents some observations based on a statistical analysis undertaken for this article.
Read more...
By Graham A Stephen and Karin Sequén © 2007
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