Spanish Language Standards and Usage: A Comprehensive Guide

Posted on Oct 11, 2024 in Language

Standards and Uses of the Spanish Language

Review

• Phonemic Transcription
• Classification of Monemes
• Parsing
• The Study of Semantics

Mechanisms Used by Saussure

• Syntagmatic Relations: Value for establishing a unit based on the elements that precede or follow it. For example, “roses.” The noun “roses” is plural and determines the use of a plural verb.
• Paradigmatic Relations: Value for establishing a unit based on elements that could replace it. This helps identify relationships within the language.

Linguistic Levels

1) Phonology and Phonetics

Phonetics is the science that studies the physical substance of the signifier in spoken language. It focuses on the actual sounds produced in speech.

Phonology is the science that studies how sounds function as part of the linguistic system. It analyzes the sound patterns and their role in language.

Vowel Phonemes

Vowel phonemes can be classified by:

• Manner of Articulation: How the mouth is positioned to produce the sound (closed, semi-open, open).
• Place of Articulation: Where in the mouth the sound is primarily produced (front, central, back).
• Height: How high or low the tongue is in the mouth (high, mid, low).

Consonant Phonemes

Consonant phonemes can be classified by:

• Place of Articulation:
  • Bilabial: Sounds produced with both lips (e.g., /b/, /p/, /m/).
  • Labiodental: Sounds produced with the lower lip and upper teeth (e.g., /f/).
  • Interdental: Sounds produced with the tongue between the teeth (e.g., /θ/).
  • Dental: Sounds produced with the tongue against the upper teeth (e.g., /d/, /t/).
  • Alveolar: Sounds produced with the tongue against the alveolar ridge (e.g., /s/, /r/, /n/).
  • Palatal: Sounds produced with the tongue against the hard palate (e.g., /ɲ/).
  • Velar: Sounds produced with the back of the tongue against the soft palate (e.g., /k/, /g/).
• Manner of Articulation:
  • Occlusive/Stop: Sounds produced by completely blocking the airflow (e.g., /p/, /t/, /k/, /b/, /d/, /g/).
  • Fricative: Sounds produced by forcing air through a narrow opening (e.g., /f/, /s/, /θ/).
  • Affricate: Sounds that begin as a stop and release as a fricative (e.g., /tʃ/, /dʒ/).
  • Lateral: Sounds produced by air flowing along the sides of the tongue (e.g., /l/).
  • Nasal: Sounds produced with air flowing through the nose (e.g., /m/, /n/, /ɲ/).

Phonemes and Graphemes

Archiphoneme: When two phonemes lose the distinctive feature that separates them, they are neutralized and can be represented by an archiphoneme.

• Between /p/ and /b/ = /B/
• Between /t/ and /d/ = /D/
• Between /k/ and /g/ = /G/
• Between /r/ and /ɾ/ = /R/

Prosody

Syllable: The smallest phonetic unit between two pauses. The nucleus of a syllable is always a vowel.

Intonation Group: A set of syllables grouped under a single primary stress.

• Tonic Group: A group of unstressed syllables grouped around a stressed syllable.
• Phonic Group: A set of morphofunctional elements between two pauses (often coincides with a simple sentence, main clause, or subordinate clause).

Suprasegmental Units: Units that accompany or are above the segmental level of speech. One example is the pause, which often coincides with the boundaries of a phonic group.

Stress: In Spanish, syllables can be stressed (tonic) or unstressed (atonic). Stressed syllables have greater intensity or prominence.

Intonation: The melodic contour of speech. It can be:

• Descending (cadence)
• Ascending (anticadence)
• Horizontal (suspension)

Morphology

Monemes

Monemes are minimal units of meaning composed of a signifier and a signified.

Lexemes: The base or root of a word that carries its core meaning.

Morphemes: Units that modify the meaning or grammatical function of a lexeme. They can be:

• Bound: Attached to the lexeme.
  • Inflectional: Indicate grammatical features like gender, number, tense, etc.
  • Derivational: Create new words by adding prefixes, suffixes, or infixes.
• Free: Standalone units.
  • Function Words: Connect words or phrases (prepositions, conjunctions).
  • Determiners: Specify or introduce nouns (articles, demonstratives).

Syntax

Syntax studies the structure of sentences and the relationships between words and phrases.

Types of Sentences:

• Simple Sentence: Contains a single independent clause (subject + predicate).
• Compound Sentence: Contains two or more independent clauses joined by coordinating conjunctions.
• Complex Sentence: Contains an independent clause and one or more dependent clauses joined by subordinating conjunctions.

Elements of a Sentence

Noun Phrase (NP):

• Determiner (optional)
• Noun (head)
• Adjective/Modifier (optional)

Verb Phrase (VP):

• Verb (head)
• Direct Object (optional)
• Indirect Object (optional)
• Circumstantial Complement (optional)
• Agent Complement (optional)
• Supplement (optional)
• Attribute (optional)

Semantics

Semantics is the study of meaning in language.

Seme: The smallest unit of meaning.

Archisememe: A semantic feature shared by several words within a semantic field.

Semantic Field: A group of words related by meaning.

Semantic Relations:

• Synonymy: Words with similar meanings.
• Antonymy: Words with opposite meanings.
• Hyponymy: A hierarchical relationship where one word is a subcategory of another.
• Meronymy: A part-whole relationship.

Semantic Change

Metaphor: A figure of speech where a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable.

Metonymy: A figure of speech in which a thing or concept is referred to by the name of something closely associated with that thing or concept.

Languages and Dialects

Language: A system of communication used by a particular community or country.

Dialect: A regional or social variety of a language distinguished by pronunciation, grammar, or vocabulary.

Formation of New Words

• Derivation: Adding prefixes or suffixes to existing words.
• Compounding: Combining two or more words to create a new word.

Texts for Practice

Text 1: Phonological Transcription

Cuando le dije que sentía el frío
de una lámina de acero en las entrañas;
me apoyé contra la pared, y un instante
perdí el conocimiento de dónde estaba.

Cayó sobre mi mente la noche;
en ira y en piedad se anegó el alma…
¡Y entonces comprendí por qué se llora,
y entonces comprendí por qué se mata!

Pasó la nube de dolor…, con pena
logré balbucir algunas palabras…
¿Quién me dio la noticia?… Un fiel amigo…
¡Me hizo un gran favor!…; le di las gracias.

Text 2: Phonological Transcription

No me importa, mariposa negra o blanca,
que tu anuncio o agüero desdichado nuevo
mi ambiente o mi ambiente de candileja
agiteis inquieta.

La copa del placer dichoso para siempre
mi pie la ha quebrado,
y la del dolor llena…, ¡llena hasta el borde!,
ni frases ni amarguras le caben ya más.

Text 3: Classification of Monemes

Primera vez que se acerca al problema del significado en el campo específico del lenguaje, no en el de la lógica abstracta. Y Saussure completó su término de lengua –con un sistema personal de relaciones entre palabra y pensamiento, y entre materia acústica y sonidos de las lenguas–: la lengua antes de formular nuestro pensamiento es sólo una masa amorfa.

Text 4: Review Exercises

• Phonemic transcription.
• Classification of monemes.
• Parsing.
• Formation of a lexeme with the phrase “leismo” and create a flat structure with the word “mind.”