Preservation of hv in Danish and Norwegian

Danish and Norwegian preserve the letters hv. They always occur word-initially. However, Swedish does not. In Swedish only the v appears.

Though Danish and Norwegian retain word-initial hv, the glottal fricative is not pronounced. The phonetic value is [v]. However, it was pronounced in the past. Swedish spelling reflects the current pronunciation because only v appears in Swedish spelling.

Here is a list of ten words to compare the Danish and Norwegian words with word-initial hv and Swedish words with word-initial v:

hvad vad (what)

hval val (whale)

hvede hvete vete (wheat)

hverandre varandra (each other)

hvem vem (who)

hvid hvit vit (white)

hvilken vilken (which)

hvor var (where)

hvordan hur (how)

hvorfor varför (why)

The words hvede and hvid are Danish, and hvete and hvit are Norwegian. Many interrogative pronouns begin with hv in Danish and Norwegian. Swedish no longer preserves the word-initial hv which is still present in Danish and Norwegian.

Variation in the Pronunciation of the Dorsal Fricative in Spanish

The dorsal fricative of Spanish can be produced with different places of articulation. It occurs in words such as gemelo (twin), jaula (cage) and juego (game). In many dialects it is realized as a velar fricative. However, in most of Spain it is a uvular fricative and in the Caribbean it is often realized as a glottal fricative.

The velar fricative is common in Mexico and many parts of South America. The glottal fricative is also used in many dialects. It is common in Colombia, Bolivia, the Caribbean and southern Spain. The uvular fricative is exclusive to northern and central Spain.

Spanish has many dialects. The dorsal fricative has three realizations. It can be uvular, velar or glottal. The uvular pronunciation is only used in Spain.

Rioplatense Spanish

Rioplatense Spanish is the variety of Spanish spoken in most of Argentina and in Uruguay. It originated in the Rio de la Plata Basin. One of the most distinguishing characteristics of Rioplatense Spanish is the alveopalatal fricative. It replaces the palatal approximant used in most varieties of Spanish.

In Argentina Rioplatense Spanish is spoken in southern Argentina and in the capital city. It is not spoken in northwestern Argentina nor in the northeastern region which borders Paraguay. Rioplatense Spanish is spoken in all of Uruguay.

The alveopalatal fricative is usually voiceless in the capital city of Buenos Aires and in Uruguay. In other parts of the country, however, it is usually voiced. It can be heard in words such as yo (I), ayer (yessterday), caballo (horse) and lluvia (rain).

Rioplatense Spanish is spoken in two countries, Argentina and Uruguay. It is spoken in all of Uruguay and most of Argentina. Though it originated in the Rio de la Plata Basin, it is now spoken over a much larger area.

One Word With Different Pronunciations in Three Languages

Danish, Norwegian and Swedish are similar languages. However, it can be the case that the same word in spelling and meaning is pronounced differently in each one. The word banan means banana in the three languages. The pronunciation of the word is different in each language. 

In Danish the word banan is transcribed /banæʔn/. The second syllable has a glottal stop before the word-final nasal. In Norwegian and Swedish, the word banan does not have the glottal stop of Danish. The word is transcribed /bɑnɑn/ in Norwegian. The Swedish pronunciation is similar, but in Swedish it is /banɑn/. The vowel of the first syllable is a central vowel in Swedish, but it is a back vowel in Norwegian.

Though Danish, Norwegian and Swedish are undoubtedly similar languages, they often differ in pronunciation. Norwegian and Swedish are closer to one another in pronunciation than Danish is. The word banan, which means banana, is pronounced differently in the three languages.

Use of de France/de la France in French

In French the phrases de France and de la France both mean from France. In certain cases, de France is used and in other cases, de la France is used. Sometimes both are used, but the meaning is different.

The phrase the cheeses of France is les fromages de France. However, in the phrase the geography of France, the translation is la géographie de la France. With political, economical and geographical concepts, it is natural to include the definite article.

Let us now look at two sentences. They are 1) J'ai un souvenir de France and 2) J'ai un souvenir de la France. They best translation for the first sentence is I have a souvenir from France, and the best translation for the second sentence is I have a souvenir of France. The first souvenir was bought in France, but it is not necessarily a really French souvenir. However, the second souvenir was not only bought in France but is a souvenir that really represents France.

The French phrases de France and de la France are similar. In certain cases, only one is normally used, but it can also be the case that both are possible. Howver, when both are possible, there is a nuance in meaning.