The Aragonese Alphabet - Vowels, Consonants, Accented Letters & Numerals

Q: How many letters are in the Aragonese alphabet?

The Aragonese alphabet has 27 letters from the Latin script [1] . This includes 5 vowels (a, e, i, o, u) and 22 consonants, notably including ñ (n with tilde), which is characteristic of Iberian languages.

Q: What makes the Aragonese alphabet unique?

The Aragonese alphabet has several distinctive features : • Uses ñ (n with tilde) for the "ny" sound as in "canyon" • The letter x represents the "sh" sound , unlike Spanish • Employs acute accents (á, é, í, ó, ú) to mark stress • Uses inverted question and exclamation marks (¿, ¡) like Spanish • Has archaic features preserved from medieval Iberian Romance

Q: Where is Aragonese spoken?

Aragonese survives in the Pyrenean valleys of northern Aragon , especially along the Ansó–Santolaria–Fonz–Benas line described by the regional language office. [2] Those valleys border Catalan- and Occitan-speaking areas, so Aragonese forms a transition zone while remaining protected as a regional language of Aragon [3] . Standardization efforts are led by the Academia de l'Aragonés , which publishes the modern orthography [4] .

Q: How is Aragonese different from Spanish?

Although both descend from Latin, Aragonese developed its own Romance variety alongside Castilian and Catalan during the Reconquista and once extended as far south as Murcia before Castilian dominance shifted public usage. [2] Today it retains the Pyrenean-centered alphabet and orthography standardized by the Academia de l'Aragonés, keeping contrasts such as x for the "sh" sound that differ from modern Spanish spelling conventions. [4]

Q: How do you pronounce Aragonese special letters?

Aragonese has some unique pronunciation rules : • Ñ ñ - pronounced like "ny" in "canyon" • X x - pronounced like "sh" in "ship" (key feature!) • J j - pronounced like "h" in "hot" • R r - trilled or tapped, stronger at word beginnings • Z z - pronounced like "th" in "thin" These sounds make Aragonese phonetically distinct !

Q: What is being done to preserve Aragonese?

Regional policy protects Aragonese as part of Aragon's own linguistic heritage, ensuring public support for the language [3] . The Academia de l'Aragonés provides orthographic standards, dictionaries, and teaching materials so learners share a common written form [4] .

Aragonese Alphabet at a Glance

27 letters from Latin script: 5 vowels and 22 consonants ^[1]
Autochthonous Ibero-Romance language of the Pyrenees valleys in northern Aragon ^[2]
Letter ñ (n with tilde) characteristic of Iberian languages
Letter x represents "sh" sound - unique pronunciation feature
Acute accents (á, é, í, ó, ú) indicate stress
Officially recognized by the Aragonese government ^[3]
Standardized by Academia de l'Aragonés ^[4]

Uppercase Vowels:

[A]

[E]

[I]

[O]

[U]

Lowercase Vowels:

[a]

[e]

[i]

[o]

[u]

Uppercase Consonants:

[B]

[C]

[D]

[F]

[G]

[H]

[J]

[L]

[M]

[N]

[Ñ]

[P]

[Q]

[R]

[S]

[T]

[V]

[X]

[Z]

[Y]

[W]

[K]

[B]

Uppercase consonant "B", pronounced like "b" in "boy".

[C]

Uppercase consonant "C", pronounced like "k" or "th".

[D]

Uppercase consonant "D", pronounced like "d" in "day".

[F]

Uppercase consonant "F", pronounced like "f" in "food".

[G]

Uppercase consonant "G", pronounced like "g" or "h".

[H]

Uppercase consonant "H", silent in Aragonese.

[J]

Uppercase consonant "J", pronounced like "h".

[L]

Uppercase consonant "L", pronounced like "l" in "love".

[M]

Uppercase consonant "M", pronounced like "m" in "mother".

[N]

Uppercase consonant "N", pronounced like "n" in "name".

[Ñ]

Uppercase "Ñ" with tilde, pronounced like "ny".

[P]

Uppercase consonant "P", pronounced like "p" in "pen".

[Q]

Uppercase consonant "Q", used before "u".

[R]

Uppercase consonant "R", trilled "r" sound.

[S]

Uppercase consonant "S", pronounced like "s" in "sun".

[T]

Uppercase consonant "T", pronounced like "t" in "top".

[V]

Uppercase consonant "V", pronounced like "v" in "very".

[X]

Uppercase consonant "X", pronounced like "sh".

[Z]

Uppercase consonant "Z", pronounced like "th".

[Y]

Uppercase consonant "Y", pronounced like "y".

[W]

Uppercase consonant "W", rare, used in loanwords.

[K]

Uppercase consonant "K", rare, used in loanwords.

Lowercase Consonants:

[b]

[c]

[d]

[f]

[g]

[h]

[j]

[l]

[m]

[n]

[ñ]

[p]

[q]

[r]

[s]

[t]

[v]

[x]

[z]

[y]

[w]

[k]

[b]

Lowercase consonant "b", pronounced like "b" in "boy".

[c]

Lowercase consonant "c", pronounced like "k" or soft "th" before e, i.

[d]

Lowercase consonant "d", pronounced like "d" in "day".

[f]

Lowercase consonant "f", pronounced like "f" in "food".

[g]

Lowercase consonant "g", pronounced like hard "g" or soft "h" before e, i.

[h]

Lowercase consonant "h", silent in Aragonese.

[j]

Lowercase consonant "j", pronounced like "h" in "hot".

[l]

Lowercase consonant "l", pronounced like "l" in "love".

[m]

Lowercase consonant "m", pronounced like "m" in "mother".

[n]

Lowercase consonant "n", pronounced like "n" in "name".

[ñ]

Lowercase "ñ" with tilde, pronounced like "ny" in "canyon".

[p]

Lowercase consonant "p", pronounced like "p" in "pen".

[q]

Lowercase consonant "q", used before "u", pronounced like "k".

[r]

Lowercase consonant "r", trilled or tapped "r" sound.

[s]

Lowercase consonant "s", pronounced like "s" in "sun".

[t]

Lowercase consonant "t", pronounced like "t" in "top".

[v]

Lowercase consonant "v", pronounced like "v" in "very".

[x]

Lowercase consonant "x", pronounced like "sh" in Aragonese.

[z]

Lowercase consonant "z", pronounced like "th" in "thin".

[y]

Lowercase consonant "y", pronounced like "y" in "yes".

[w]

Lowercase consonant "w", rare, used in loanwords.

[k]

Lowercase consonant "k", rare, used in loanwords.

A a

B b

C c

D d

E e

F f

G g

H h

I i

J j

L l

M m

N n

Ñ ñ

O o

P p

Q q

R r

S s

T t

U u

V v

X x

Y y

Z z

[á]

[Á]

[é]

[É]

[í]

[Í]

[ó]

[Ó]

[ú]

[Ú]

[á]

Lowercase "á" with acute accent, stressed "a" sound.

[Á]

Uppercase "Á" with acute accent, stressed "a" sound.

[é]

Lowercase "é" with acute accent, stressed "e" sound.

[É]

Uppercase "É" with acute accent, stressed "e" sound.

[í]

Lowercase "í" with acute accent, stressed "i" sound.

[Í]

Uppercase "Í" with acute accent, stressed "i" sound.

[ó]

Lowercase "ó" with acute accent, stressed "o" sound.

[Ó]

Uppercase "Ó" with acute accent, stressed "o" sound.

[ú]

Lowercase "ú" with acute accent, stressed "u" sound.

[Ú]

Uppercase "Ú" with acute accent, stressed "u" sound.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

The number zero.

[1]

The number one.

[2]

The number two.

[3]

The number three.

[4]

The number four.

[5]

The number five.

[6]

The number six.

[7]

The number seven.

[8]

The number eight.

[9]

The number nine.

;

Used to mark the end of a sentence.

Used to separate clauses or items in a list.

Used at the end of interrogative sentences.

Used at the beginning of interrogative sentences (Spanish-style punctuation).

Used to express strong emotion or emphasis.

Used at the beginning of exclamatory sentences (Spanish-style punctuation).

Used to introduce lists or explanations.

;

Used to separate closely related independent clauses.

Used to join words or separate syllables.

Used to indicate elision or possession.

A a

[A]

E e

[E]

I i

[I]

O o

[O]

U u

[U]

Ñ ñ

[Ñ]

J j

[J]

X x

[X]

R r

[R]

C c

[C]

A a

[A]

Pronounced like "a" in "father". Open central vowel.

E e

[E]

Pronounced like "e" in "bet". Mid-front vowel.

I i

[I]

Pronounced like "ee" in "see". Close front vowel.

O o

[O]

Pronounced like "o" in "go". Mid-back vowel.

U u

[U]

Pronounced like "oo" in "food". Close back vowel.

Ñ ñ

[Ñ]

Pronounced like "ny" in "canyon". Palatal nasal sound distinctive to Iberian languages.

J j

[J]

Pronounced like "h" in "hot". Voiceless glottal fricative.

X x

[X]

Pronounced like "sh" in "ship". Distinct feature of Aragonese.

R r

[R]

Trilled or tapped "r" sound. At beginning of words, strongly trilled.

C c

[C]

Before e, i: soft "th" as in "thin". Before a, o, u: hard "k" as in "cat".

Expand All Collapse All

How many letters are in the Aragonese alphabet?

What makes the Aragonese alphabet unique?

Where is Aragonese spoken?

How is Aragonese different from Spanish?

How do you pronounce Aragonese special letters?

What is being done to preserve Aragonese?

References:

[1] Unicode Consortium. "Basic Latin Unicode Block (U+0000-U+007F)". Retrieved from Unicode Basic Latin
[2] Dirección General de Política Lingüística. "El aragonés o lengua aragonesa". Retrieved from Aragonese Language Portal
[3] Gobierno de Aragón. "Aragonese Language and Culture". Retrieved from Aragon Government Languages
[4] Academia de l'Aragonés. "Official Aragonese Language Standards". Retrieved from Aragonese Language Academy