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TheCatalan andValencianorthographies encompass the spelling and punctuation of standardCatalan (set by theIEC) andValencian (set by theAVL). There are also several adapted variants to the peculiarities of local dialects of Insular Catalan (Alguerese and theBalearic subdialects).

The history of theCatalan andValencian orthographies shows a singularity in regard to the otherRomance languages. These have been mostly developed from Latin, adapting them to their own phonetic particularities. It had been a gradual and slow process through centuries until the creation of the Academies in the 18th century that fixed the orthography from their language dominant variety.^[1]

In the case of Catalan and Valencian, the mediaeval orthography had a noticeable homogeneity. The Royal Chancellery set a unitary written model in several fields. Thus,Ramon Muntaner expressed in hisChronicle (1325–1328) that the Catalans are the largest group with a single language, since all the Romance-speaking regions had very divided languages like the difference that exists between Catalans and Aragonese.^[2]

In the 16th century, just after the Golden Age, the split of Catalans started. With the isolation of the Royal Court and several political events, the unitary linguistic consciousness and the shared cultural tradition broke off. The production became more dialectal.

In the 19th century, the recovery of the unity emerged, beginning with the orthography. Institutions like theAcadèmia de Bones Lletres or theFloral Games were in the middle of several orthographic dilemmas.

The orthographic norms of Catalan were first defined officially in the First Internationals Congress of the Catalan Language, held in Barcelona in October 1906. Subsequently, the Philological Section of theInstitut d'Estudis Catalans (IEC, founded in 1911) published theNormes ortogràfiques in 1913 under the direction ofAntoni Maria Alcover andPompeu Fabra. Despite some opposition, the spelling system was adopted immediately and became widespread enough that, in 1932, Valencian writers and intellectuals gathered inCastelló to make a formal adoption of the so-calledNormes de Castelló, a set of guidelines following Pompeu Fabra's Catalan language norms.^[3]

In 1917, Fabra published an Orthographic Dictionary following the orthographic norms of the IEC. In 1931–1932 theDiccionari General de la Llengua Catalana (General Dictionary of the Catalan language) appeared.  In 1995, a new normative dictionary, theDictionary of the Catalan Language of the Institute of Catalan Studies (DIEC), marked a new milestone in the orthographic fixation of the language, in addition to the incorporation of neologisms and modern uses of the language.

For a list of words relating to Catalan words affected by 2016 spelling reform, see theCatalan words affected by 2016 spelling reform category of words inWiktionary, the free dictionary.

On the 24th October 2016, the IEC published a new orthography for Catalan, theOrtografia catalana, which outlined several modifications, including a reduced number of monosyllabic words that take anacute orgrave diacritic for reasons of disambiguation.^[4] Thus, the disyllabic wordadéu is now generally spelledadeu; the monosyllabic wordssec ("dry", pronounced/sɛk/ inCentral Catalan) andséc ("fold, wrinkle", pronounced/sek/) are both writtensec after the reform. Discretionary use of a diacritic is possible if the context is not sufficient for disambiguation.^[4]

Like those of many otherRomance languages, theCatalan andValencian alphabet derives from theLatin alphabet and is largely based on the respectivelanguage's phonology.^[5]

The Catalan and Valencian alphabet consists of the 26 letters of theISO basic Latin alphabet:

The following letter-diacritic combinations are used, but they do not constitute distinct letters in the alphabet:À à,É é,È è,Í í,Ï ï,Ó ó,Ò ò,Ú ú,Ü ü andÇ ç (though the Catalan keyboard includes the letterÇ as a separate key).^[6]K k andW w are used only inloanwords. Outside loanwords, the lettersQ q andY y appear only in the digraphsqu,qü andny. However,Y was used until the official orthography was established in 1913, when it was replaced withI, except in the digraphny and loanwords.^[7] Some Catalan surnames conserve the lettery and the word-final digraphch (pronounced/k/), e. g.Layret,Aymerich.

The following table shows the letters and their names inStandard Catalan (IEC) andStandard Valencian (AVL):

The namesefa (/ˈefa/),ela (/ˈela/),ema (/ˈema/),ena (/ˈena/),erra (/ˈera/), andessa (/ˈesa/) are also used in certain speeches of Valencian.^[8]

The namesbe alta ("high b") andve baixa ("low v") are used by speakers who do not distinguish the phonemes/b/ and/v/. Speakers that do distinguish them use the simple namesbe andve.^[8]

Catalan is apluricentric language; the pronunciation of some of the letters is different in CentralEastern Catalan (IEC) andValencian (AVL). Apart from those variations, the pronunciation of most consonants is fairly straightforward and is similar to French, Occitan or Portuguese pronunciation.

The following lists includes a quick pronunciation of letters in standard Catalan and Valencian, for an in-depth view see attached main article on top of this section.

The following lists include most sound-to-spelling correspondences in Catalan and Valencian. It also includes gemination as well as more foreign spellings than previous lists (as it is easier to represent them in the charts).

The voiced plosive[ɡ] (or the corresponding fricative[ɣ]) is represented by the spellingsg andgu, and the voiceless stop sound[k], by the spellingsc,q,qu and, sporadically,g andk.

At the beginning of a syllable, the sounds[ɡ] and[k]:

a) They are represented byg andc, respectively, before the vowelsa,o,u, or when they are followed by the liquid consonantsl,r:gat ('cat'),govern ('government'),gust ('taste'),glop ('gulp'),groc ('yellow');casa ('house'),colom ('pigeon'),acurtar ('to shorten'),clam ('clamor'),cremar ('to burn').

b) They are represented bygu andqu, respectively, before the vowelse,i:guerra ('war'),seguir ('to follow');quimera ('chimera'),paquet ('package, parcel').

In the case of the sound[k], in addition:

c) It is represented byq when it precedes a rising diphthong:conseqüència ('consequence'),quota ('share, fee').

d) The spellingk is used only in certain words from non-Romance languages:kàiser ('kaiser'),kantisme ('Kantianism'),kurd ('Kurdish').

At the end of a syllable, in the inner or final position of the word, the opposition between the unvoiced and the voiced consonant is neutralized, to the extent that it ceases to be distinctive. Regardless of the pronunciation, which can be unvoiced or voiced depending on the phonic context, the use of the spellingsc org conforms to the following rules:

e) Within a word,c is written beforec,t,s; instead,g is written befored,m,n:acció ('action'),actriu ('actress'),dacsa ('corn');amígdala ('tonsil'),fragment ('fragment'),magnitud ('magnitude').

EXCEPTIONS:c is written in some words of cultured formation or from other languages, such asanècdota ('anecdote'),aràcnid ('arachnid'),dracma ('drachma'),pícnic ('picnic'),tècnic ('technician'), etc.

f) At the end of an acute word (oxytone),c is written after a vowel:alifac ('infirmity'),batec ('beat'),pessic ('pinch'),albercoc ('apricot'),caduc ('caducous') and the first person of the present indicative of certain verbs of the second conjugation (bec 'I drink',dec 'I owe',dic 'I say',trac 'I take out', etc.).

EXCEPTIONS:g is written in some acute words of cultured formation or from other languages (buldog 'bulldog',mag 'magician',tuareg 'Tuareg',demagog 'demagogue').

Instead,g orc is written, depending on the spelling of the derivatives, at the end of an acute word after another consonant or at the end of a plain word after a vowel:

fang ('mud') ↔fangar ('place full of mud')

llarg ('long') ↔llargària ('length')

pròdig ('prodigal') ↔prodigar ('to waste, to lavish')

blanc ('white') ↔blancor ('whiteness')

arc ('arch') ↔arcada ('arcade, retching')

pràctic ('practical') ↔practicar ('to practice')

EXCEPTIONS: It is writtenc, despite having derivatives withg, in some plain or grave words (paroxytones), likearàbic 'Arabic',bròfec ('sullen, scorched'),càrrec ('charge, position [work]'),espàrrec ('asparagus'), etc.

NOTE: In the past, the digraphch was used in final position, to represent the sound[k], spelling that is still preserved in some lineages:Doménech 'Doménech',March 'March',Pitarch 'Pitarch',Estruch 'Estruch', etc.

The voiceless fricative alveolar sound[s] is represented bys in the following cases:

a) At the beginning of a word:salut ('health, greeting'),senyor ('lord, owner, mister').

b) Between consonant and vowel or between vowel and consonant:ansa ('handle'),aspecte ('aspect').

c) At the end of a word:gos ('dog'),excels ('of great excellence').

EXCEPTIONS: Some words from other languages are written withz, such ashertz ('hertz'), and the nounbrunz (buzz), from the verbbrunzir (to buzz).

d) After certain prefixes and prefixed forms:asimetria ('asymmetry'),antisocial ('antisocial'),contrasenya ('password'),multisecular ('multisecular'),polisèmia ('polysemy'),psicosomàtic ('psychosomatic'),dinosaure ('dinosaur'), etc.

e) In compound words whose second formant is written with an initials:esclata-sang ('bloody/saffron milk cap'),para-sol ('parasol, sunshade').

The voiceless fricative alveolar sound[s] is represented byss between vowels:bassa ('pond'),passar ('to pass').

NOTE: The spellingss preceded by a consonant may also appear in words in which a prefix ending ins, such astrans- orsots-, is attached to a root beginning withs (transsexual 'transsexual',transsiberià 'trans-Siberian',sotssecretari 'sub-secretary') and in the plurals of cultured formationqualssevol ('any, whichever') andqualssevulla ('any, whichever').

For etymological reasons, the sound[s] is also represented by the spellingsc andç in certain cases:

a) It is represented byç beforea,o,u and at the end of a word:confiança ('trust'),lliçó ('lesson'),vençut ('won, expired'),feliç ('happy').

b) It is represented byc beforee,i:ceba ('onion'),bicicleta ('bicycle').

NOTE: In the most common pronunciation, thesc group also represents the[s] sound in words such aspiscina ('pool') andascensor ('lift').

The voiced fricative alveolar sound[z] is represented by the spellingsz ors, according to the following rules:

a) It is represented byz in word-initial position and between consonant and vowel:zebra ('zebra'),pinzell ('paint brush').

EXCEPTIONS: Derivatives and compounds offons,dins andtrans are written withs:enfonsar ('to send down, to sink'),endinsar ('to put in, to go into'),transatlàntic ('transatlantic'), etc.

b) It is represented bys between vowels:casa ('house'),revisió ('review').

EXCEPTIONS: Some loans and cultisms (learned borrwings) are written withz in intervocalic position:bizantí ('Byzantine'),protozou ('protozoo'),nazisme ('Nazism'),buldòzer ('bulldozer'), etc.

In certain heritage words, the spellingtz represents the alveolar affricate phonetic group[dz]:dotze ('twelve'),tretze ('thirteen'),setze ('sixteen').

This same group is also used, with the phonetic value of[z], in the graphic representation of verbs formed with the suffix -itzar (and derivatives), such ascaracteritzar ('characterize'),realització ('realization'), etc.

The voiced fricative palatal sound[ʒ] (Catalan) or the affricate palatal sound[dʒ] (Valencian) is represented by the consonantsg andj, according to the following rules:

a) It is represented byg beforee,i:àngel ('angel'),àgil ('agile').

EXCEPTIONS: For etymological reasons,j is written beforee in certain cases, such asjerarquia ('hierarchy'),jeroglífic ('hieroglyphs'),jersei ('jersey'),jesuïta ('Jesuit'),majestat ('majesty'), etc., and before the groups -ecc- and -ect-:injecció ('injection'),objecte ('object'), etc. In fewer cases, and mainly in loanwords,j is also found beforei (Beijing 'Beijing',fijià 'Fijian',Fuji 'Fuji',Jim 'Jim', etc.).

b) It is represented byj beforea,o,u:penjar ('to hung [up]'),jove ('young'),dejuni ('fasting').

The spellingstg andtj for the sound[dʒ] in both language standards, which correspond to the geminate pronunciation practiced in some places, are presented only in intervocalic position. Parallel to the corresponding simple spellings,tg is written beforee,i, andtj beforea,o,u:coratge ('courage'),paisatgístic ('landscape');desitjar ('to wish'),pitjor ('worse'),corretjut ('leathery, tough').

The voiceless affricate palatal sound[tʃ] is represented by the spellingsx,tx,ig andg, according to the following rules:

a) At the beginning of a word it is written x:xafar ('to crush'),xiquet ('boy'),Xelva ('Chelva'),Xirivella ('Xirivella'). Note: Those words are pronounced with[tʃ] only in some language varieties (Valencian), in other varieties they are pronounced with[ʃ].

EXCEPTIONS: In word-initial position, it is also represented bytx in some words or proper names from other languages:Txad ('Chad'),Txaikovski ('Chaikovski'),txec ('Czech'), etc.

b) Between vowels it is always represented bytx:clòtxina ('blue mussel'),pitxer ('pitcher').

c) After a consonant is represented byx:anxova ('anchovy'),perxa ('pole, hanger'),ponx ('punch'),Barx ('Barx'),Elx ('Elche'). See the note in the item a).

EXCEPTIONS: It is also represented bytx between consonant and vowel in some words or proper nouns from other languages:solontxac ('solonchak'),Khruixtxov ('Khrushchev').

d) At the end of a word following a vowel, the spellingtx is used if the derivatives are written withtx, and the spelling ig is used (aftera,e,o,u) and the spellingg (afteri) if the derivatives are written withg/j ortg/tj:

despatx ('office, dispatch') ↔despatxar ('to complete, to send, to attend')

capritx ('caprice, fancy') ↔encapritxar ('to cause to fall in love')

cartutx ('cartridge') ↔cartutxera ('cartridge belt')

bateig ('baptism') ↔batejar ('to baptize')

roig ('red') ↔roja ('red', f.)

desig ('wish') ↔desitjar ('to wish')

The voiceless fricative palatal sound[ʃ] is always represented by the spellingx:Xàtiva ('Xàtiva'),Xavier ('Xavier'),xenòfob ('xenophobic'),coixí ('cushion'),dibuix ('draw'). The letterx in this value can be word-initial, follow a syllabic or non-syllabici, a non-syllabicu or a consonant. Some speakers do not pronounced a non-syllabici before anx, so the [ʃ] sound following a syllabic vowel different fromi should be written asix except in compound words (e. g.electroxoc) and in some surnames (e. g.Rexach).

The phonetic group[ks] is represented by the letterx in the following positions:

a) Between vowels:fixar ('to fix'),màxim ('maximum').

b) Between vowel and voiceless consonant:explosió ('explosion'),extens ('extensive').

c) At the end of a word after a vowel:annex ('annexe),apèndix ('appendix').

EXCEPTIONS: At the end of a word after a consonant, the phonetic group[ks] is also represented, in some cases, byx:esfinx ('sphinx'),larinx ('larynx') andlinx ('lynx').

NOTE: Thex does not represent the unvoiced group[ks], but the voiced[ɡz], in the initial groupsex- andinex- followed by a vowel,h or voiced consonant:examen ('exam'),exagerar ('to exaggerate'),exhortar ('to exhort'),exdiputat ('ex-deputy'),inexorable ('inexorable').

The bilabial occlusive voiced sound[b] (or the corresponding fricative variant[β]) is represented by the spelling b, and the bilabial voiceless occlusive sound[p], by the spellingp:baix ('low, short'),roba ('clothes');poc ('little, [a] few'),llépol ('sweet-toothed'),compra ('shopping').

At the end of a syllable, in internal or word-final position, the opposition between voiceless and voiced consonants is neutralized. Regardless of the pronunciation, which can be unvoiced or voiced depending on the context, the use of the spellingsb andp conforms to the following rules:

a) At the beginning of a word, the syllablesab-,abs-,ob-,obs-,sub-,subs- are written withb:abdicar ('to abdicate'),abstraure ('to abstract'),objecció ('objection'),obstruir ('to obstruct'),subvenció ('subsidy'),substantiu ('substantive').

EXCEPTIONS: For etymological reasons, some words such asapnea ('apnea'),apte ('apt'),optar ('to opt'),òptica ('opticians'),òptim ('optimal'), etc. are written withp.

b) At the beginning of a word, the syllablecap- is written withp:capçal ('head [of a bed], pillow'),captiu ('captive').

EXCEPTIONS: Some words such ascabdal ('main, primary'),cabdell ('ball [of wool, cotton]'),cabdill ('caudillo'), etc. are written withb.

c) Within a word,p is written before the spellingsc,s,n andt:egipci ('Egyptian'),àpside ('apse, apsis, apside'),hipnòtic ('hypnotic'),repte ('challenge').

EXCEPTIONS: For etymological reasons, some words such asdissabte ('Saturday'),dubte ('doubt') andsobte ('suddenly', only used afterde) are written withb.

d) At the end of an acute word,p is written after a vowel:cep ('vine, cep'),galop ('gallop'),grup ('group'),xop ('soaked, black poplar').

EXCEPTIONS: For etymological reasons, some words such asadob ('adobe'),aljub ('well, cistern'),club ('club'),esnob ('snob'),íncub ('incubus'),tub ('tube'), etc. are written withb.

Instead,b orp is written, depending on the spelling of the derivatives, at the end of an acute word after another consonant or at the end of a plain word after a vowel:

destorb ('obstacle, nuisance') ↔destorbar ('to obstruct')

corb ('crow') ↔corbató ('crow's chick')

àrab ('Arabian') ↔arabesc ('arabesque')

camp ('countryside, field') ↔campestre ('rural')

pòlip ('polyp') ↔polipoide ('polypoid')

serp ('snake') ↔serpentí ('snakelike, serpentine')

Although some Valencian speakers differentiate the voiced occlusive bilabial sound[b] from the voiced labiodental fricative[v], to avoid confusion in the use of the spellingsb andv it is necessary to take into account thatb is written in the following cases:

a) Beforel andr:bleda ('chard, a passive person'),bromera ('froth, lather').

b) Afterm:embotit ('stuffed, crammed'),tomba ('tomb').

c) In those cases where it alternates withp in words of the same family:cabut 'big-headed, stubborn' (↔ cap, 'head'),saber 'to know' (↔ sap, 'he/she/it/formal singular you know(s), also ↔saps, informal you know).

NOTE: In some cases, due to differences in cultural or heritage treatment, words from the same family may alternate the use ofb andv:avortar ('to abort') /abortiu ('abortive');calb ('bald') /calvície ('baldness'),cervell ('brain') /cerebral ('cerebral').

Andv is written in the following cases:

a) Aftern:canviar ('to change'),invent ('invent').

b) In those cases where it alternates withu in words of the same family:blava 'blue, f.' (↔blau, 'blue, m.'),escriviu 'you write' (↔escriure, 'to write').

c) In the endings of the imperfect indicative of the first conjugation -ava, -aves, -àvem, -aveu, -aven:cantava ('I sang, they sang'),cantaves ('you sang'),cantàvem ('we sang'),cantàveu ('you sang, pl.',cantaven ('they sang, pl.').

The voiced occlusive dental sound[d] (or the corresponding fricative variant[ð]) is represented by the spellingd, and its voiceless correlate[t], by the spellingt:donar ('to give'),banda ('side, band'),badar ('to open [up], to be careless');tallar ('to cut'),contar ('to tell, to say'),gaiato ('shepherd's crook').

At the end of a syllable, in internal or word-final position, the opposition between voiceless and voiced consonants is neutralized. Regardless of the pronunciation, which can be unvoiced or voiced depending on the phonetic context, the use of the spellingsd ort conforms to the following rules:

a) The final consonant of the following syllable is written withd of consonant, in word-initial position:adjudicar ('to award, adjudge'),admissió ('admission').

EXCEPTIONS: For etymological reasons, some words such asatlàntic ('Atlantic'),atles ('atlas'),atleta ('athlete') andatmosfera ('atmosphere') are written witht.

b) At the end of an acute word,t is generally written after a vowel:blat ('wheat'),llet ('milk'),humit ('humid'),bruixot ('warlock'),pelut ('hairy').

EXCEPTIONS: For etymological reasons, some words such asalmud ('almude'),fluid ('fluid'),fred ('cold'),sud ('South');Alfred ('Alfred'),Conrad ('Conrad'),David ('David'), as well as feminine words formed with the cultured endings -etud and -itud:quietud ('stillness, calm'),multitud ('crowd'), etc.

Instead,d ort is written, depending on the spelling of the derivatives, at the end of an acute word after another consonant or at the end of a flat word after a vowel:

verd ('green') ↔verdós ('greenish')

sord ('deaf') ↔ensordir ('to deafen')

àrid ('arid') ↔aridesa ('aridity')

sort ('luck') ↔sorteig ('draw, sorting')

pont ('bridge') ↔pontet ('little bridge')

crèdit ('credit') ↔creditor ('creditor')

The letter m usually represents the nasal bilabial sound[m]:mare ('mother'),cama ('leg'),termal ('thermal'),bram ('bray, roar'), and then, the nasal alveolar sound[n]:nas ('nose'),manar ('to command'),urna ('urn'),gran ('great, grand').

The spellingmp is used with the value of[m] or[n], for etymological reasons, in a medial syllable, in cases suchassumpció ('assumption'),atemptar ('attempt'),compte ('to count'),prompte ('soon'),símptoma ('symptom'), etc.

At the end of a syllable, in word-internal position, the opposition between the nasal consonants is neutralized. In this position, the spellingsm orn are used, according to the following rules:

a)m is written beforeb,f,m andp:símbol ('symbol'),amfiteatre ('amphitheatre'),commoure ('to disturb, to move'),omplir ('to fill [up]').

EXCEPTIONS: The spellingn is kept when it belongs to certain prefixed forms or to the first constituent of a compound word:enmig ('in the middle'),benparlat ('well-spoken'),entornpeu ('baseboard'), etc. As forf, the spellingn is also used in words beginning withcon-,in- and in most of those beginning withen-:confessar ('to confess'),confegir ('to spell');infermer ('nurse'),infinit ('infinite');enfangar ('to cover with mud'),enfortir ('to strengthen'), etc.

b)n is written beforev:convent ('convent'),recanvi ('spare, replacement').

EXCEPTIONS: The spellingm is kept when it belongs to prefixed forms or to the first constituent of a compound word:circumvalació ('ring road'),tramvia ('tramway'),triumvir ('triumvir'), etc.

For etymological reasons, certain borrowings are spelledtm ortn:setmana ('week'),setmesí ('born in the seventh month of gestation'),logaritme ('logarithm');cotna ('pork rind'),ètnia ('ethnic group, ethnicity').

The nasal palatal sound[ɲ] is represented in all positions by the spellingny:nyora ('a type of pepper'),pinya ('pine cone, pineapple'),codony ('quince [fruit]').

The lateral alveolar sound[l] is represented in all cases by the consonantl:líquid ('liquid'),colar ('to strain'),pèl ('hair'),blat ('wheat').

For etymological reasons, certain words are written withŀl:aŀlicient ('lure, incentive'),Aveŀlí ('Avelline'),Brusseŀles ('Brussels'),coŀlaborar ('to collaborate'),escarapeŀla ('cockade'),gaŀlicisme ('Gallicism'),iŀlegal ('illegal'),iŀlògic ('illogical'),iŀlusió ('illusion, hope, happiness'),miŀlímetre ('millimeter'),síŀlaba ('syllable'),aquareŀla ('watercolour'), etc.

Some heritage words that have a geminate pronunciation[lː] in a part of Valencian are written with the spellingtl, such asametla ('almond'),batle ('mayor'),guatla ('quail'),motle ('mold'),vetlar ('to stay up, to patrol, to watch over'), etc. However, the spellingtl represents the sounds[dl] in borrowings such asatles ('atlas'),atlàntic ('Atlantic'), etc.

The lateral palatal sound[ʎ] is usually represented by the letterll, which can appear in any position:llebre ('hare'),pallasso ('clown'),coll ('neck').

But, in certain cases, it is also represented by the spellingtll ([ʎː] in Standard Catalan):bitllet ('ticket, bank note'),rotllo ('roll, annoyance'),ratlla ('line, scratch'), etc.

The spelling r is used to represent the alveolar tap sound[ɾ] and the vibrating alveolar sound[r]:mira ('they look') /mirra ('myrrh').

The tap is always represented by the spellingr, while the vibrating is represented by the spellingsr orrr, according to the following rules:

a)r is written at the beginning of a word or afterl,n ands:rabosa ('fox'),honrat ('honoured').

b)rr is written between vowels:barranc ('cliff'),terra ('Earth, land').

EXCEPTIONS: The sound[r] is also represented by the spellingr in intervocalic position when it follows a prefix, a prefixed form or a formant of a compound word ending in a vowel:arítmia ('arrhythmia'),contrarestar ('counteract'),vicerector ('vice-rector'),malva-rosa (rose geranium), etc.

The h spelling is usually silent; it is used, for etymological reasons, in a series of words, such asharmonia ('harmony'),herba ('herb'),hivern ('winter'),ahir ('yesterday'), etc.

NOTE: In certain interjections or in words derived from foreign proper names, the spellingh is pronounced aspirated:ehem ('ahem'),ha ('ha [laugh]'),he ('he [laugh]'),hegelià ('Hegelian').

The spellingw is used in certain words from other languages, but it represents two different phonic values depending on whether they have a Germanic or Anglo-Saxon origin:

a) In words of continental Germanic origin, it represents the voiced bilabial fricative sound[v]:wagnerià ('Wagnerian'),wolframi ('tungsten').

b) In words of Anglo-Saxon origin, it has a phonic value equivalent to that of the semivowelu[w]:whisky ('whisk[e]y'),wèlter ('welter').

The spellingy, in addition to being used to form the digraphny, is also used independently, with the phonetic value that would correspond toi, in the representation of certain words from other languages or formed from proper names:faraday ('faraday'),gray ('gray'),jansky ('jansky'),NovaYork ('New York'), etc.

Catalan and Valencian also use theacute andgrave accents to markstress or vowel quality. An acute on⟨é ó⟩ indicates that the vowel is stressed andclose-mid (/eo/), while grave on⟨è ò⟩ indicates that the vowel is stressed andopen-mid (/ɛɔ/). Grave on⟨à⟩ and acute on⟨í ú⟩ simply indicate that the vowels are stressed. Thus, the acute is used on close or close-mid vowels, and the grave on open or open-mid vowels.^[5] For example:

• també:/təmˈbe/ or/tamˈbe/ ('also')
• èxtasi:/ˈɛkstəzi/ or/ˈɛkstazi/ ('ecstasy')
• córrer:/ˈkorə/ or/ˈkoreɾ/ ('to run')
• pròxim:/ˈpɾɔksim/ ('nearby')
• ànima:/ˈanimə/ or/ˈanima/ ('soul')
• pastís:/pəsˈtis/ or/pasˈtis/ ('pie')
• fúcsia:/ˈfuksiə/ or/ˈfuksia/ ('fuchsia')

Standard rules governing the presence of accents are based on word endings and the position of the stressed syllable. In particular, accents are expected for:

• Oxytones ending in a syllabic vowel, a vowel + -⟨s⟩, or -⟨en⟩/⟨in⟩, examples:
  • parlà/pəɾˈla/ or/paɾˈla/ ('he spoke')
  • parlés/pəɾˈles/ or/paɾˈles/ ('that he spoke' past subjunctive)
  • entén/ənˈten/ or/enˈten/ ('he understands')

This does not occur in words likeparleu/pəɾˈlɛw/ or/paɾˈlɛw/ ('you are speaking' plural), orparlem/pəɾˈlɛm/ or/paɾˈlɛm/ ('we are speaking').

• Paroxytones with any other ending, including non-syllabic -⟨i⟩, -⟨u⟩, examples:
  • parlàveu/pəɾˈlabəw/ or/paɾˈlavew/ ('you were speaking' plural)
  • parlàvem/pəɾˈlabəm/ or/paɾˈlavem/ ('we were speaking')

This does not occur in words likeparla/ˈpaɾlə/ or/ˈpaɾla/ ('he is speaking'),parles/ˈpaɾləs/ or/ˈpaɾles/ ('you are speaking' singular), orparlen/ˈpaɾlən/ or/ˈpaɾlen/ ('they are speaking').

• Anyproparoxytones, examples:
  • química/ˈkimikə/ or/ˈkimika/ ('chemistry')
  • ciència/siˈɛnsiə/ or/siˈɛnsia/ ('science')

Since there is no need to mark the stressed syllable of a monosyllabic word, most of them do not have an accent. Exceptions are those with a diacritical accent differentiating words that would otherwise be homographic. Example:es/əs/ or/es/ ('it' impersonal) vsés/ˈes/ ('is'),te/tə/ or/te/ ('you' clitic) vsté/ˈte/ ('s/he has'),mes/ˈmɛs/ or/ˈmes/ ('month') vsmés/ˈmes/ ('more'),dona/ˈdɔnə/ or/ˈdɔna/ ('woman') vsdóna/ˈdonə/ or/ˈdona/ ('s/he gives'). In most cases, the word bearing no accent is either unstressed (as in the case of 'es' and 'te'), or the word without the accent is more common, usually afunction word.

The different distribution ofopen e/ɛ/ vsclosed e/e/ between Eastern Catalan and Western Catalan is reflected in some orthographic divergences between standard Catalan and Valencian norms, for example:anglès/əŋˈɡlɛs/ (Catalan) vsanglés/aŋˈɡles/ (Valencian) ('English'). In the Balearic Islands, open e/ɛ/ tends to be a centralised e (/ə/) in the same cases whereopen e contrasts withclosed e in Catalan and Valencian. The cases where the difference of pronunciation ofe can have graphical repercussions are the followings:^[9]

• Words ending with the demonym -es (anglès /anglés 'English',francès /francés 'French'), the past participles (admès /admés 'admitted',compromès /compromés 'committed') and adjectives (cortès /cortés 'courteous').
• The ordinal numerals ending in stressede:cinquè /cinqué ('fifth'),sisè /sisé ('sixth').
• The ending of the third person of the plural of indicative -en of some verbs of the 2nd conjugation (aprèn /aprén 'learn',comprèn /comprén 'comprehend',depèn /depén 'depend'), except in the cases where this ending is preceded by the consonantt orc, where it is pronounced with a closede in all speeches (atén 'attend',entén 'understand',pretén 'pretend',encén 'switch on').
• The infinitives ending in -eixer (conèixer /conéixer 'to know',merèixer /meréixer 'to deserve',parèixer /paréixer 'to seem', but uniquelycréixer 'to grow') and -encer (vèncer /véncer 'to win',convèncer /convéncer 'to convince').
• The second and third person of the plural of the simple past tense of indicative with accent on the radical:fèiem /féiem 'we did',fèieu /féieu 'you pl. did'.

Thecircumflex is rarely used in modern Catalan and Valencian, nonetheless it has been used in the beginning of the 19th century by Antoni Febrer i Cardona to representschwa in the Balearic subdialects. According to theDiccionari català-valencià-balear, in modern times there are some cases where the circumflex can be used to indicate silent etymological sounds (similar toFrench)^[10] or a contraction.^[11] Contrary to the restrictions of the acute and grave accent, the circumflex can be used with all vowels⟨â ê î ô û⟩, the most common, especially in Valencian, being⟨â⟩ (i.e. due to the elision of/d/), e.g.mascletâes (instead ofmascletades 'pyrotechnic festivals'),anâ (instead ofanar 'to go'),témê (instead oftémer 'to fear'),sortî (instead ofsortir 'to exit'),pâ (instead ofper 'for' akin to Colloquial Spanish 'pa' from para 'for').

Thediaeresis has two different uses: to mark hiatus over⟨ï, ü⟩, and to mark that⟨u⟩ is not silent in the groups⟨gü, qü⟩.

If a diaeresis appears over an⟨i⟩ or⟨u⟩ that follows another vowel, it denotes ahiatus, examples:^[12]

• raïm/rəˈim/ or/raˈim/ ('grape')
• taüt/təˈut/ or/taˈut/ ('coffin')

This diaeresis is not used over a stressed vowel that already should have an accent. Examples:suís/suˈis/ ('Swiss' masculine), butsuïssa/suˈisə/ or/suˈisa/ ('Swiss' feminine),suïs/ˈsuis/ ('that you sweat' subjunctive) (without the diaeresis, this last example would be pronounced/ˈsui̯s/, i.e. as only one syllable, likereis/ˈrei̯s/ 'kings').

Certain verb forms of verbs ending in-uir do not receive a diaeresis, although they are pronounced with separate syllables. This concerns the infinitive, gerund, future and conditional forms (for exampletraduir,traduint,traduiré andtraduiria, all with bisyllabic/u.i/). All other forms of such verbs do receive a diaeresis on theï according to the normal rules (e.g.traduïm,traduïa).

In addition to this,⟨ü⟩ represents/w/ between a velar consonant/ɡ/ or/k/ and afront vowel (⟨gu⟩ and⟨qu⟩ are used to represent a hard (i.e. velar) pronunciation before⟨i⟩ or⟨e⟩).^[13]

• ungüent/uŋˈɡwen(t)/ ('ointment')
• qüestió/kwəstiˈo/ or/kwestiˈo/ ('topic')

Forms of the verbargüir represents a rare case of the sequence/ɡu.i/, and the rules for/gu/ and/ui/ clash in this case. The ambiguity is resolved by an additional rule, which states that in cases where diaereses would appear on two consecutive letters, only the second receives one. This thus givesarguïm /arguˈim/, i.e. andarguïa /arguˈia/, butargüir /arˈgwir/,argüint /arˈgwint/ andargüiré/argwiˈre/ as these forms don't receive a diaeresis on thei normally, according to the exception above.

Catalan and Valenciance trencada (Ç ç), literally 'broken c', is a modified⟨c⟩ with acedilla mark ( ¸ ). It is only used before⟨a o u⟩ to indicate asoft c/s/ because using⟨s⟩, much like in Portuguese, Occitan or French, would make it pronounced[z] (e.g. comparecoça/ˈkosə/ or/ˈkosa/ 'kick',coca/ˈkokə/ or/ˈkoka/ 'cake' andcosa/ˈkɔzə/ or/ˈkɔza/ 'thing'). In Catalan and Valencian,ce trencada also appears as last letter of a word (e.g.feliç/fəˈlis/ or/feˈlis/ 'happy',falç/ˈfals/ 'sickle'), but then⟨ç⟩ may be voiced to[z] before vowels and voiced consonants, e.g.feliçment/fəˌlizˈmen(t)/ or/feˌlizˈmen(t)/ ('happily') andbraç esquerre/ˈbɾazəsˈkɛrə/ or/ˈbɾazesˈkɛre/ ('left arm').

Neither of the Catalan and Valencian standards capitalise days of the week, months, or demonyms.^[14] Although, like in English, both standards capitalise proper nouns.

dilluns,setembre,anglès, Barcelona

'Monday', 'September', 'English', 'Barcelona'

Catalan and Valencian punctuation rules are similar to English, with some minor differences.^[15]

• Guillemets (cometes baixes)« » are frequently used instead of double inverted commas. They are used to mark titles of works, or phrases used as proper names.^[15]
• In texts containing dialogue, quoted speech is usually set off with dashes, rather than inverted commas.^[15]

—Què proposes, doncs?

—El que hauríem de fer —s'atreví a suggerir— és anar a...

'What do you propose, then?'

'What we should do' she ventured to suggest 'is to go to...'

• In Catalan, there is no⟨¿⟩ or⟨¡⟩ unlike in Spanish, but in Valencian questions and exclamations are optionally opened with a⟨¿⟩ or⟨¡⟩, like in Spanish.^[15] Before 1993, questions and exclamations could be enclosed with¿...? or¡...!, but this is no longer recommended by theIEC but still is optionally allowed by theAVL.^[15][16]

Thepunt volat ormiddot is only used in the sequence⟨ŀl⟩ (calledela orel(e) geminada, 'geminated l') to represent ageminated sound/lː/ (often simplified to/l/, especially in Valencian), as the digraph⟨ll⟩ is used for the palatal lateral/ʎ/. This usage of the middot sign dates to the beginning of twentieth century; in medieval and modern Catalan, beforeFabra's standardisation, it was sometimes used to note certain elisions, especially in poetry. The only (and improbable) possibility of ambiguity in the whole language is the pairceŀla/ˈsɛlːa/ ('cell') vscella/ˈseʎa/ ('eyebrow').

Thehyphen (called aguionet) is used in Catalan and Valencian to separate a verb and the combination of pronouns that follow them (e.g.menjar-se-les), to separate certain compounds (e.g.vint-i-un andpara-sol), and to split a word at the end of a line of text for the purpose of maintaining page margins.

Compounds are hyphenated in cases that involve numerals (e.g.trenta-sis, andtrenta-sisè/é); cardinal points (e.g.sud-americà); repetitive and expressive compounds (xup-xup); those compounds in which the first element ends in a vowel and the second starts with⟨r⟩,⟨s⟩, or⟨x⟩ (e.g.penya-segat); and those compounds in which the combination of the two elements can lead to wrong reading (e.g.pit-roig). There are also compound terms in which the first element carries a grave accent (mà-llarg), the constructionno plus noun^{[clarification needed]} (but notno plus adjective,no-violència but thenacions no violentes) and certain singular constructions likeabans-d'ahir andadéu-siau.

The hyphen in numbers is set according to the D-U-C rule (Desenes-Unitats-Centenes, 'Tens-Units-Hundreds'), thus, a hyphen is placed between tens and units (quaranta-dos) and between units and hundreds (tres-cents). For example, the number 35,422 is writtentrenta-cinc mil quatre-cents vint-i-dos.

When a word gets separated due to a new line, syllable boundaries are kept, although, there are some digraphs that can be separated. These digraphs are those that, when splitting them, they result in two graphs the corresponding sound from which they share a phonetic trait with the sound of the digraph. The digraphs that cannot be separated are those in which the two graphs correspond to sounds that they are not related with the sound of the digraph.

The syllabic separation of words follow the following rules:

• The following digraphs and combination of letters can be separated:

ix (quei-xa), rr (car-rer), ss (pas-sar), sc (es-ce-na), l·l (vil-la), tj (jut-jat), tg (fet-ge), tx (pit-xer), tl (vet-la), tll (rot-llo), tm (rit-me), tn (cot-na), ts (pot-ser), tx (despat-xar), tz (set-ze), mm (im-mens), nn (in-no-cent)

• The following digraphs cannot be separated:

gu (jo-guet), ny (pe-nya), qu (pa-quet), ig (ba-teig), ll (pe-lle-ter)

• The constituents of a compound, or the prefix of a prefixed word, can be separated:

ad-herir,in-expert,ben-estar,mil-hòmens,des-encolar,vos-altres

• Letters cannot be left on their own at the end or beginning of a line:

d'a-mor,aber-rant,l'a-plicació,histò-ria

Catalan and Valencian follow someapostrophisation rules that serve to determine whether it is necessary to use an apostrophe (') or not

Articles

The masculine singular articles (el, en, and dialectallylo, in Continental Catalan; andes andso in Balearic), and the feminine singular articles (la, na and dialectally sa) are apostrophised before all masculine words that begin with a vowel, e.g.l'avió, l'encant, l'odi, n'Albert,s'arbre, and l'emoció, l'ungla, l'aigua; with a silenth, e.g.l'home, l'ham, n'Hug, s'home, and l'heura, l'holografia, n'Hermínia, s'horabaixa. The masculine singular article also contract when the next word starts with s + consonant, e.g.l'spa, l'Stuttgart; butla Scala de Milà. They aren't apostrophised before words that begin with an⟨i⟩ or⟨u⟩ (with or without h) that is pronounced[j] or[w], or for the feminine articles when the word begins with an unstressed⟨i⟩ or⟨u⟩, e.g.el iogurt,el iode (or dialectallylo iogurt,lo iode), and,la hiena, la humitat, la universitat, la imatge. Additionally,la,na andsa before letter names, e.g.la i, la hac, la essa; and some other specific words likela una (when referring to the time), la ira, la host, etc. .

The formsal (dial.as), del (dial.des), pel (dial.pes), cal (dial.cas) andcan are broken and become al' (dial.a s'), de l' (dial.de s'), per l' (dial.per s'), ca l' (dial.ca s') and ca n' respectively.

Traditionally, to avoid ambiguity, words beginning with the negative prefix a- did not take an apostrophe. Nowadays, general apostrophising rules are followed:l'anormalitat,l'amoralitat,l'atipicitat,l'asimetria,l'asèpsia, etc. . The 1995 edition of theDiccionari de l'Institut d'Estudis Catalans (DIEC) started was the first one to use this rule, however, it was never explicitly stated.

The prepositionde

The prepositionde changes intod' in all the same cases as the femenine singular articles with one exception: normally it doesn't contract in metalanguage:el plural de alt és alts.

Weak pronouns

Weak pronouns take the apostrophe in the following cases:

Before a verb that starts with a vowel, using its elided form:m'agrada, n'abastava, s'estimaran, l'aconseguiria, at the end of a verb that finishes in a vowel, using the reduced form:menja'n, trenca'l, fondre's, compra'ns, between two of them if the other orthographic rules allow it:me'n, li'n , se'm, te'ls, la'n, n'hi; if it is possible, it takes the apostrophe with the following word, likeme n'ha dut tres. The apostrophe always goes the further to the right possible:te l'emportes, not *te'l emportes.

Does not take the apostrophe:

The pronounsus,vos, hi, ho, li, les: us el dono orvos el done, se us esperava orse vos esperava. Like in the case of the article, the pronoun before words that start by unstressedi andu (with silenth or without):la ignora, la hi pren, la humitejarem, la usàvem. It also does not take the apostrophe the first weak pronoun in the formsla hi andse us.

The distribution of the two rhotics/r/ and/ɾ/ closely parallelsthat of Spanish. Between vowels, the two contrast but they are otherwise in complementary distribution: in the onset, analveolar trill,[r], appears unless preceded by a consonant; different dialects vary in regards to rhotics in the coda with Western Catalan generally featuring analveolar tap,[ɾ], and Central Catalan dialects like those of Barcelona or Girona featuring a weakly trilled[r] unless it precedes a vowel-initial word in the sameprosodic unit, in which case[ɾ] appears.^[17]

In Eastern Catalan and North Western Catalan, most instances of word-final⟨r⟩ are silent, but there are plenty of unpredictable exceptions (e.g. in Central Eastern Catalanpor[ˈpo] 'fear' butmar[ˈmaɾ] 'sea').

In Valencian, most instances of word-final⟨r⟩ are pronounced.

• Catalan manual alphabet
• Catalan Braille

• Ortografia catalana. Institut d'Estudis Catalans
• Gramàtica normativa valenciana. Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua(PDF).
• Carbonell, Joan F.; Llisterri, Joaquim (1992). "Catalan".Journal of the International Phonetic Association.22 (1–2):53–56.doi:10.1017/S0025100300004618.S2CID 249411809.
• Padgett, Jaye (2003).Systemic contrast and Catalan rhotics. University of California, Santa Cruz.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
• Swan, Michael; Smith, Bernard (26 April 2001).Learner English: A Teacher's Guide to Interference and Other Problems. Cambridge University Press.ISBN 978-0-521-77939-5.
• Wheeler, Max W.; Yates, Alan; Dols, Nicolau (1999).Catalan: A Comprehensive Grammar. New York: Routledge.ISBN 0-415-20777-0.
• Wheeler, Max W. (2005).The Phonology Of Catalan. Oxford: Oxford University Press.ISBN 0-19-925814-7.

• Catalan language
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