THE NEW SYSTEM OF WRITTEN ACCENTUATION PRESCRIBED BY THE ROYAL ACADEMY OF SPAIN BY LIEUT. HENRY R. LEMLY,'U.S.A. AUTHOR OF " TACTICA DE INFANTERiN." (UPTON), " EJERCICIOS GIMNASTICOS," "MANUAL OF STRATEGY" (FIX), ETC. BOSTON, U.S.A. GINN & COMPANY, PUBLISHERS I 890 COPYRIGHT, I890, BY HENRY R. LEMLY. TYPOGRAPHY BY J. S. CUSHING & CO., BOSTON, U.S.A. PRESSWORK BY GINN & Co., BOSTON, U.S.A. THE existence of numerous and costly Spanish text-books, which are correct with the single exception of the accentuation, has suggested the preparation of this little pamphlet, embodying the latest rules upon the subject from the Spanish Royal Academy. NEW SYSTEM OF WRITTEN ACCENTUATION. PRELIMINARY IDEAS. I. Prosodical accent is the greater emphasis given a particular syllable of a word in pronunciation. In Spanish, words are divided, according to the accented syllable, into agnudas, l/anas, and esdrz]u/zas. Agudas (or Oxitonas) are those which are accented upon the last syllable; as, am', estcid, venz's, Tome, liedell/'n, Santander, etc. Llanas (Graves or Paroxftonas) are those which are accented upon the penultimate syllable; as, aino, viezneu, resumen, amigo, concurrieron, Lucus, etc. Esdridjulas (or Proparoxitonas) are those which are accented upon the antepenultimate syllable; as, limite, tMmese, jvenes, genzera'isimo, etc. 2. In Spanish, vowels are divided into lfenas or fulertes (strong) and debiles (weak). The former are a, o, e. The latter, i, u. 5 6 WRITTEN ACCENTUATION. 3. The written accent ('), called tilde, serves to indicate the vowel which should be emphasized in pronunciation. As it would be very inconvenient, in writing, to place this accent above all words, these have been grouped, by agreement, according to certain orthoepical laws, and the tilde is used to mark the exceptions. For example: if the rule be that words are generally laznas, or perhaps agzZdas, the esdrz'zulas should be written with the accent, because exceptional. The systems of written accentuation have varied according to the method of this grouping of words, adopted by different grammarians or preceptors. The latest system by the Spanish Academy is the simplest and most logical of all. 4. The tilde or written accent is employed: First, to indicate the accented syllable in those cases which are considered exceptions, as, for example, in mistico (because esdr/jula, and hence of exceptional pronunciation); in borcegzu', leyd (because the greater number of words terminating in a vowel are ilanas); in ddcil, Hzjar (because nearly all words terminating in a consonant, other than n or s, are usually ilanas). Second, to indicate the dissolution of concurrent vowels. Sazico, whether accented upon the u or the a, is liana; so likewise are tenia, venia (nouns), and teniza, venz'a (verbs). Therefore, as stated above, in neither case should the accent be written, because words ending in vowels are generally lianas. However, the nouns tenia and venia are not accented; while the verbs ten'/a and ven'/a are, as well as the substantives sau'co, ego ismo, PRELIMINARY IDEAS. 7 etc., in order to show that the vowels in question do not form diphthongs, and the accent is placed above the weak vowel. Third, to distinguish words, otherwise identical in structure, as de, verb, and de, preposition; or in one of which the accent is strong and emphatic, while weak in the other, as sobre, verb, and sobre, preposition; vbz, imperative, and ven indicative. This is the diacritical accent (acento diacr'tico). Fourth, to separate the particles a, e, 6, zi, which, although without the prosodical accent in pronunciation, bear the tilde, in order that they may stand apart to the sight (especially in manuscript), and not be confounded with the preceding or following word. Let us now extract from the last edition of the grammar of the Academy the orthoepical principles from which are derived the exceptions that, in turn, are converted into orthographical rules. 8 WRITTEN ACCENTUATION. II. ORTHOEPICAL LAWS. Terminations in n. - The syllables aiZ, en, oiZ - the vowel unaccented - terminate the third person plural in eleven tenses of the verb, varied into seventeen forms; from which we deduce, multiplying said number by eight thousand verbs, that there are a great many luanias of this class in the Spanish language; as, amanz, telnaiz, partieron, hablen, creycran, sentirian, contemfplasen, olvidasen, etc. The third person plural of the future tense of the indicative mood, which is aguda, is an exception; as, anarean, partirean, etc. With respect to the remaining words which terminate in n, the number of which is greatly inferior to that of the verbs, the opposite obtains, that is, the most of them are agudas,; as,: alquitrdn, baladrdn, zaratnz,; sare rn, tanibiin, vaivez,; motin, espfadin, A/baiciiz, ainiddnz, barraco'n, Cicerdn, for;naeidon, razon, senoriz, atln, nifzgzimz, segzin, etc. The following are graves or lianas: alguien, ArYicun, Carmenm, c/iruzmnen, dolmen, Esteben, germen, imagen, jovenm, margen, orden, origen, reslinen, virgen, etc. And esdri'ul/a- egimnen. Many identical words terminate in i, which are only distinguished from each other by the accent; as: ORTHOEPICAL LAWS. 9 aman Aman borren borren hacen Hacdn amen amen caen Caen oran Oran anden anden casaron casaron pasaron Pasar6n aran Aran cascaron cascar6n picaron picaron Baden Baden colon Col6n salen Salen bailen Bailen duran Durain sellen Sellen batan batan escoben escoben etc., etc. Terminations in s. -The greater number of words terminating in s are lanas, and they greatly exceed those ending in n, inasmuch as the former letter is the distinctive termination of the plural of all nouns, as well as of different persons in all the tenses of the verb. For example: acrpas, letras, vidas, coronas, frutas, doradas, excelsas, temidas, honrosas, mzucas, anmeios, temas,a partieres,; Ceres, Paris (the Trojan), Adonis, etc. The following are exceptions, because agudas: the second person plural of the present of the indicative; the second persons, singular and plural, of the future indicative; and the second person plural of the present subjunctive: averigzdis, aversigzuards, averigzar'is, averigiiizs, etc. Also, for the same reason, other words, not verbs, as adeamds, jamas, cipr&s, pavzzs, and the national names aavyes, calabr&s, portzlugZs, etc.; an's, chisgaravvs, naravedis, semidics, obozs, Cajzis, Andrs, Anmadis, Beltencebros, Emaais, etc. The following are exceptions, because esdrzi'ulas: the first person plural of the imperfect indicative, and the imperfect and future subjunctive: amdbamnos, tenieranmos, temeriamos, and temiesemos; partieremos, etc. There are many identical words terminating in s, tO WRITTEN ACCENTUATION. which, as before explained for those ending in n, are only distinguished from each other by the accent; as: alas Alas cortes cortes montes montes aulas Aulas delfines delfinds ojos Oj6s amos Am6s fines fines Paris Paris anas Anas gines Gines selles Selles ares Ards girones girones tomas Tomas arras Arra's leones leones valles Valles banastas Banastas marques marques veras veras berros Berr6s meras Meras etc., etc. Borbones Borbones monas monas Nouns and adjectives, when their number is modified, usually suffer a corresponding change of accent. Those ending in a vowel, if l/aras, do not vary the accent upon forming the plural; as: mano manos firme firmes roca rocas dura duras If they end in a consonant, they become esdrzzulas in the plural; as: crater crateres germen germenes ddctil dIctiles flibil fledbiles virgen vlrgenes i til uitiles (An exception is cardcter, the plural of which, to-day, is caracteres.) If agudas, whether terminating in a vowel or consonant, they become l/anas in the plural; as: alell alelfes guardian guardianes atroz atroces astur astures carmesi carmesies infiel infieles baja' bajaes marcial marciales etc., etc. ORTHOGRAPHICAL RULES. II III. ORTHOGRAPHICAL RULES. Words of more than one syllable, terminating in a vowel, if aguzdas, require the written accent. If they end in a consonant other than n or s, they are not thus accented, as Godoy. The final y, although sounded like a vowel, is considered a consonant for the purposes of accentuation. Those ending in n or s must be accented; as, alacrdn, anden, espadz'z, corazoz, altzi, amardn, temerdn, Jpar/irdn, tambien, ningizn, segzin, Amdn, Duradz, Bailzn, Albaiczin, Cicero'n, Sahagunii; compas, reves, aiz's, semidigs, paatzas, veras, prevJs, compartis, ademds, atrds, jamads, Barabds, Ioise's, Parl's (city), Ojds, Portizs, etc. Words terminating in a vowel, if lianas, are not accented. If they end in a consonant, they are accented, unless it be n or s, in which case they are not accented; as, virgen, volumen, aman, bailen, duran, pensaron, vienen, conocieron; Tasman, Carmen, Yemer, Oyarzun, martes, jzieves, sintaxis, crisis, dosis, virus, campanas, veras, diamantes, ojos, adoras, vences, hufyes, amaras, temnieras, partieres, amaremos; Lucas, Cervantes, Paris (the Trojan), Carlos, Nicodemus, etc. Words terminating in two vowels, when lianas, must be accented if the first vowel is weak and receives the emphasis in pronunciation, whether or not followed by final n or s; as, poesia, desvar'io, fabua, dizo, ten'a, 12 WRITTEN ACCENTUATION. seria, Dario, Benal;ua, Rhz', Espeliy, Tziyl, desvarzos, etc.; teni'an, considerari'as, etc.; Isaz'as, Yerni'as, DarnuZts, etc. In ag udas, containing a strong vowel combined with a weak, accented one, the latter should bear the tilde, as, paLs, rat's, atazid, badi, Sazil, etc. An accented, weak vowel, followed by a diphthong and final s, as in certain persons of the verb, should likewise bear the tilde; as, tenz'ais, deczais, etc. But lianas which end in a diphthong, or in two strong vowels, whether followed or not by a final is or s, obey the general rule, and are not accented: patria, tenia (tape-worm), seria, delirio, sitio, agza, fatuo; acaricia, atestigZ a,' bacalao, desco, canoa, corroe, Galisteo, Bidasoa, albricias, patrias, fatuos, lidian, amnortizguan, trataseis, leyereis, Clinias, Titaguas, Esquivias, bacalaos, canoas, corroen, etc. If there is a diphthong in the syllable of a wordagulda, ilana, or esdrznula - which, according to the rules prescribed, should be accented, the tilde must be placed above the strong vowel, or if both are weak, over the second; as, buscapie, acaricie, parabi/n, verei/s, despizes; RRzupi, Sebastidn, Navasqngs, bei'zji, rarafgii;,' gudjar, Huercal, Lie'tor; pi/lago, CdEcaso, etc. Monosyllabic verbs with diphthongs follow the same rule; as, fuge flut' did, vid, etc. The adverb azzn, when it precedes the verb or part of speech which it modifies, is not accented, because, in this case, the two vowels form a diphthong; but when 1 In these two words the tilde is placed above the u, because, according to the Academy, there is no diphthong. Coczy, muy, are not accented, because in these words the n and y form a diphthong. ORTHOGRAPHICAL RULES. 13 it follows said word, it should be accented, as it is then pronounced like a dissyllabic aguda; as AZunn no han venido? - No han venzido azn. The triphthong is accented upon the strong vowel; as, amorzigud'is, despreciis, etc. Latin words, or those of other languages employed in Spanish, and foreign proper names, are accented, as far as possible, in accordance with the rules already prescribed for Spanish words; as, item, memordundum, exectzlr, trdanseat, Schilee,e4 Wincke/mann, Toidn, W'indsor, etc. In accordance with the foregoing rules, heroe, errdneo, Ddnae, hiecctrea, Suido, and similar words, are accented, because they are esdrul/as,; the second person singular of the verb, arndis, terneis, amnarfis, temner/is, ameis, terndis, etc., because aguzdas terminating in s; the verbal forms, deci'a, dec'an, etc., because combinations in which the weak and not the strong vowel bears the accent (see recent publications by the Spanish Academy); likewise the plurals, as dias rnzos, mn'as, tz/as, pa/ses, baziles, parazisos, etc.; the participles, as raido, ro/do, cre/do, and such words as ego'ismo, ego/s/a, sazlco, creible, azllla, etc. Applying the rules cited above, agudas of more than one syllable, terminating in n or s, as Leon, Yaen,jamnds, revds, partis, Fesses, etc., should be accented; but not monosyllables of like termination, as ulan, buen, bien, cien,. fin, pan, Dies, Luis, piues, nor estoico, Jheroico, deseo, Baena, rtina, viuda, rlido (Grammar of the Academy, page 364), because the latter are llanas, and end in a vowel. However, words like contizzio, gradi'e, etc., are accented, because, although 1ianas and terminating in a 14 WRITTEN ACCENTUATION. vowel, they possess the same characteristics if pronounced continzuo, gradzue, with the accent upon the i and a. The diacritical accent is indispensable for distinguishing words of the same form but different meaning; as: amzanzos (present), azmdmos (preterit). batiznos (present), batimos (preterit). luego (conjunction), lztgo (adverb of time). solo (adjective), sdlo (adverb). mzas (conjunction), mzd's (adjective or adverb). sown (verb), son (substantive). ve (present of ver), vi (imperative of ir). bajo (adjective and preposition), bdjo (verb). si (conditional), si (pronoun or affirmative). se (pronoun), se (verb). de (preposition), di (verb). zquien (relative), qzziez (interrogative). etc. etc. RECAPITULATION. For greater clearness the foregoing rules are reduced to the two following: I. The tilde or written accent must be employed with All aguedas of more than one syllable, terminating in a vowel or in ni or s; as, ane, o', amzbigz, a/zz' etc.; panzteo, freiz, tazpi, eslrdiz, tintes, in ere's, podeis, ols, anamis, etc. All graves or lianas, terminating in a consonant other than in or s; as, dspid, angel, prccr, etc. All esdrzy' las and sobresdrz' ulas; as, he'roe, flizido, aMdsemos, cedhamos, ]jvenes, castfzguesemcle, dir'amosteio, etc. All words in which a strong and weak vowel concur, the latter being accented, in order to indicate the dissolution of the diphthong; as, Cas'i, bazid, badles, dia, dias, ihto, mnzos, Iho, gzua, pie (from liar), ah'ra, bahi'a, creible, egohfsmo, coztinioo,eztezinev, auzxiHo, oer, etc.; and All words which require it to distinguish them from others of like structure. 2. The tilde or written accent is omitted with all other classes of words; as, vi, di (from dar), pie (noun), fe, uiZan, bien, buen, Dios, Luis, res, mies, pies, dosel, placer, construido, tenue, restaura, auxilio, hay, convoy, envzy, margen, Carmenz, Carlos, Lucas, etc. I5