Catalan orthography

Spelling-to-sound correspondences

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.

Sound-to-spelling correspondences

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 representation of the sounds [ɡ] and [k]

The voiced stop sound [ɡ] (or the corresponding fricative variant [ɣ]) is represented by the spellings g and gu, and the voiceless stop sound [k], by the spellings c, q, qu and, sporadically, g and k.

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

a) They are represented by g and c, respectively, before the vowels a, o, u, or when they are followed by the liquid consonants l, 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 by gu and qu, respectively, before the vowels e, i: guerra ('war'), seguir ('to follow'); quimera ('chimera'), paquet ('package, parcel').

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

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

d) The spelling k 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 spellings c or g conforms to the following rules:

e) Within a word, c is written before c, t, s; instead, g is written before d, 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 as anècdota ('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 or c 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 written c, despite having derivatives with g, in some plain or grave words (paroxytones), like aràbic 'Arabic', bròfec ('sullen, scorched'), càrrec ('charge, position [work]'), espàrrec ('asparagus'), etc.

NOTE: In the past, the digraph ch 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 representation of the sound [s]: the spellings s, ss, c and ç

The representation of the sound [z]: The spellings s and z

The voiced fricative alveolar sound [z] is represented by the spellings z or s, according to the following rules:

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

EXCEPTIONS: Derivatives and compounds of fons, dins and trans are written with s: enfonsar ('to send down, to sink'), endinsar ('to put in, to go into'), transatlàntic ('transatlantic'), etc.

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

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

The spelling tz

In certain heritage words, the spelling tz 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 as caracteritzar ('characterize'), realització ('realization'), etc.

The representation of the sound [dʒ]: The spellings g, j, tg and tj

The voiced affricate palatal sound [dʒ] is represented by the consonants g and j, according to the following rules:

a) It is represented by g before e, i: àngel ('angel'), àgil ('agile').

EXCEPTIONS: For etymological reasons, j is written before e in certain cases, such as jerarquia ('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 before i (Beijing 'Beijing', fijià 'Fijian', Fuji 'Fuji', Jim 'Jim', etc.).

b) It is represented by j before a, o, u: penjar ('to hung [up]'), jove ('young'), dejuni ('fasting').

The spellings tg and tj, 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 before e, i, and tj before a, o, u: coratge ('courage'), paisatgístic ('landscape'); desitjar ('to wish'), pitjor ('worse'), corretjut ('leathery, tough').

The representation of the sound [tʃ]: The spellings x, tx, ig and g

The voiceless affricate palatal sound [tʃ] is represented by the spellings x, tx, ig and g, 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').

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

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

c) After a consonant is represented by x: anxova ('anchovy'), perxa ('pole, hanger'), ponx ('punch'), Barx ('Barx'), Elx ('Elche').

EXCEPTIONS: It is also represented by tx 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 spelling tx is used if the derivatives are written with tx, and the spelling ig is used (after a, e, o, u) and the spelling g (after i) if the derivatives are written with g/j or tg/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 representation of the sound [ʃ]: The spelling x

The voiceless fricative palatal sound [ʃ] is always represented by the spelling x: Xàtiva ('Xàtiva'), Xavier ('Xavier'), xenòfob ('xenophobic'), coixí ('cushion'), dibuix ('draw').

The representation of the phonetic group [ks]

The phonetic group [ks] is represented by the letter x 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, by x: esfinx ('sphinx'), larinx ('larynx') and linx ('lynx').

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

The spellings b and p

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 spelling p: 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 spellings b and p conforms to the following rules:

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

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

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

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

c) Within a word, p is written before the spellings c, s, n and t: egipci ('Egyptian'), àpside ('apse, apsis, apside'), hipnòtic ('hypnotic'), repte ('challenge').

EXCEPTIONS: For etymological reasons, some words such as dissabte ('Saturday'), dubte ('doubt') and sobte ('suddenly', only used after de) are written with b.

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 as adob ('adobe'), aljub ('well, cistern'), club ('club'), esnob ('snob'), íncub ('incubus'), tub ('tube'), etc. are written with b.

Instead, b or p 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')

The spellings b and v

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 spellings b and v it is necessary to take into account that b is written in the following cases:

a) Before l and r: bleda ('chard, a passive person'), bromera ('froth, lather').

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

c) In those cases where it alternates with p in words of the same family: cabut 'big-headed, stubborn' (↔ cap, 'head'), saber 'to known' (↔ sap, 'they know').

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

And v is written in the following cases:

a) After n: canviar ('to change'), invent ('invent').

b) In those cases where it alternates with u 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 spellings d and t

The voiced occlusive dental sound [d] (or the corresponding fricative variant [ð]) is represented by the spelling d, and its voiceless correlate [t], by the spelling t: 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 spellings d or t conforms to the following rules:

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

EXCEPTIONS: For etymological reasons, some words such as atlàntic ('Atlantic'), atles ('atlas'), atleta ('athlete') and atmosfera ('atmosphere') are written with t.

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 as almud ('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 or t 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 spellings m, n, mp, tm and tn

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

The spelling mp is used with the value of [m] or [n], for etymological reasons, in a medial syllable, in cases such assumpció ('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 spellings m or n are used, according to the following rules:

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

EXCEPTIONS: The spelling n 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 for f, the spelling n is also used in words beginning with con-, in- and in most of those beginning with en-: confessar ('to confess'), confegir ('to spell'); infermer ('nurse'), infinit ('infinite'); enfangar ('to cover with mud'), enfortir ('to strengthen'), etc.

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

EXCEPTIONS: The spelling m 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 words are spelled tm or tn: setmana ('week'), setmesí ('born in the seventh month of gestation'), logaritme ('logarithm'); cotna ('pork rind'), ètnia ('ethnic group, ethnicity').

The spelling ny

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

The spellings l, ŀl and tl

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

For etymological reasons, certain cultisms are written with ŀl: 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 spelling tl, such as ametla ('almond'), batle ('mayor'), guatla ('quail'), motle ('mold'), vetlar ('to stay up, to patrol, to watch over'), etc. However, the spelling tl represents the sounds [dl] in cultisms such as atles ('atlas'), atlàntic ('Atlantic'), etc.

The spellings ll and tll

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

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

The spellings r and rr

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 spelling r, while the vibrating is represented by the spellings r or rr, according to the following rules:

a) r is written at the beginning of a word or after l, n and s: rabosa ('fox'), honrat ('honoured').

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

EXCEPTIONS: The sound [r] is also represented by the spelling r 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

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

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

The spelling w

The spelling w 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 semivowel u [w]: whisky ('whisk[e]y'), wèlter ('welter').

The spelling y

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

Accentuation

Diaeresis

The diaeresis 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 a hiatus, 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), but suïssa /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, like reis /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 example traduir, traduint, traduiré and traduiria, all with bisyllabic /u.i/). All other forms of such verbs do receive a diaeresis on the ï according to the normal rules (e.g. traduïm, traduïa).

In addition to this, ⟨ü⟩ represents /w/ between a velar consonant /ɡ/ or /k/ and a front 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 verb argüir 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 gives arguïm /arguˈim/, i.e. and arguïa /arguˈia/, but argüir /arˈgwir/, argüint /arˈgwint/ and argüiré /argwiˈre/ as these forms don't receive a diaeresis on the i normally, according to the exception above.

Ce trencada (c-cedilla)

Catalan and Valencian ce trencada (Ç ç), literally in English 'broken cee', is a modified ⟨c⟩ with a cedilla mark ( ¸ ). It is only used before ⟨a u o⟩ to indicate a soft c /s/, much like in Portuguese, Occitan or French (e.g. compare coça /ˈkosə/ or /ˈkosa/ 'kick', coca /ˈkokə/ or /ˈkoka/ 'cake' and cosa /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') and braç esquerre /ˈbɾaz əsˈkɛrə/ or /ˈbɾaz esˈkɛre/ ('left arm').

Punt volat (middot)

The punt volat or middot is only used in the sequence ⟨ŀl⟩ (called ela or el(e) geminada, 'geminate el') to represent a geminated 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, before Fabra's standardization, it was sometimes used to note certain elisions, especially in poetry. The only (and improbable) possibility of ambiguity in the whole language is the pair ceŀla /ˈsɛlːa/ ('cell') vs cella /ˈseʎa/ ('eyebrow').

Hyphen

The hyphen (called a guionet) 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 and para-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, and trenta-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 construction no plus substantive^{[clarification needed]} (but not no plus adjective, no-violència but the nacions no violentes) and certain singular constructions like abans-d'ahir and adéu-siau.

Since 1996, the normative set that in the none mentioned cases in the previous paragraph do not carry hyphen. Thus, the general norm set that the prefixed forms, aside from the cited exceptions, are written without hyphen (the only normative option, then, is to write arxienemic and fisicoquímic).^{[clarification needed]}

In regard to numbers, hyphen 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 written trenta-cinc mil quatre-cents vint-i-dos.

In the case of the separation of a term at the end of line, syllable boundaries are maintained. Still, there are digraphs that can be separated and others that cannot. The digraphs that can be separated 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. (Thus, the digraph rr, for example it corresponds with the nearest sound of a rhotic alveolar trill. Cor-randes, calit-ja and as-sas-sí are words with digraphs that can be split). 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. (For example, the digraph ny cannot be separated.)

To orthographic effects, the syllabic separation of words follow the following norms:

• 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

Apostrophe

Catalan and Valencian follow some apostrophation rules that serve to determine whether it is necessary to use an apostrophe (') with an article, preposition or pronoun or not if the word that follows it or precedes it begins or finishes in a vowel, respectively.

Article

The masculine singular article (el, en, and dialectally also lo, in Continental Catalan, and es and so in Balearic, the so called salted article, with s) is apostrophated before all words of masculine gender that begin with a vowel, e.g. l'avió, l'encant, l'odi, n'Albert, s'arbre; with a silent h, e.g. l'home, l'ham, n'Hug, s'home; with a liquid s, e.g. l'spa, l'Stuttgart. It is not apostrophated before of words that begin with a consonantic i or u (with or without h), el iogurt, el iode (or dialectally lo iogurt, lo iode).

In case of apostrophation, the specific forms al (dial. as), del (dial. des), pel (dial. pes), cal (dial. cas) and can are broken and become a l' (dial. a s'), de l' (dial. de s'), per l' (dial. per s'), ca l' (dial. ca s') and ca n' respectively.

The feminine singular article (la, na and dialectally sa) are apostrophated in the following cases: When the following word start with a vowel: l'emoció, l'ungla, l'aigua, n'Elena; when the word start with a silent h: l'heura, l'holografia, n'Hermínia, s'horabaixa. It is not apostrophated in the following cases: When it goes before word that starts with a consonantic i or u (with h or not): la hiena; when it goes before a word that begins with unstressed i or u (with h or not): la humitat, la universitat, la imatge; before some specific terms like la una (when referring to the time), la ira, la host, la Haia (toponym); before the name of the letters (la i, la hac, la essa); before a word that start with s followed by a consonant, la Scala de Milà.

Traditionally, to avoid ambiguities, words beginning with the negative prefix a- did not take an apostrophe. Nowadays, general apostrophation rules are followed in written text: l'anormalitat, l'amoralitat, l'atipicitat, l'asimetria, l'asèpsia, etc. The Diccionari de l'Institut d'Estudis Catalans (DIEC) of 1995 started to apply the new criteria; however, it was never formulated explicitly. In the same way, the introduction of DIEC writes about the abnormality of the situation, and the outline of the new normative grammar that prepares the IEC already does not collect that traditional exception.

Preposition de

The preposition de takes the apostrophe before a vowel (with silent h, or without): d'aigua, d'enveja, d'humitat. It does not apostrophate however before the following cases: words that start with a consonantic i or u (with silent h or without); de iode, de ioga, de uombat, de iogurt, de Utah, de ouija; before names of letters; de a, de hac. In general it does not apostrophate in case of metalanguage: el plural de alt és alts; before a liquid s: de Stalin.

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. When there are two, the second if the 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, like me 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 pronouns us, vos, hi, ho, li, les: us el dono or vos el done, se us esperava or se vos esperava. Like in the case of the article, the pronoun before words that start by unstressed i and u (with silent h or without): la ignora, la hi pren, la humitejarem, la usàvem. It also does not take the apostrophe the first weak pronoun in the forms la hi and se us.