HISTORY OF THE SPANISH LANGUAGE

Course on Spanish and Latin American language is a core edutional activity in the "Letterario-culturale" and "Politico internazionale" curriculum of Languages, Civilisation and the Science of Language programme. This course consists of a half-year learning module. The overall objective of this course is to study the phonetic and phonological changes of the Spanish language. The achievement of the expected learning results is verified in a structured exam.

1. Knowledge and understanding
The processes of phonetic-phonological change of the Spanish language.
2. Ability to apply knowledge and understanding
Ability to identify and describe the main processes of phoneticphonological change in the Spanish language; ability to recognize the main stages of historical formation of the Spanish language.
3. Making judgments
Ability to connect the historical phases of the Spanish language with the current standard and modern varieties of the Spanish language; ability to understand the origin of the linguistic diversity of the Spanish language; ability to establish a relationship between phoneticphonological evolution and writing; ability to philologically analyze a text at an initial level; ability to use electronic resources for the historical study of the Spanish language (such as Corpus de documentos anteriores a 1800).
4. Communication skills
Ability to apply the terminology of historical linguistics to describe the phonetic-phonological changes of the Spanish language; ability to explain the main phonetic-phonological features characterizing the historical phases of the Spanish language; ability to orally discuss the diachronic phenomena.
5. Learning skills
Self-assessment ability with respect to content acquisition; ability to apply the acquired knowledge to undertake the study of the history of the Spanish language at an advanced level; ability to consult the bibliographic sources suggested by the teacher in order to increase knowledge.

Knowledge and ability acquired through the course of Spanish language 1.

1. Introduction:
1.1) From latin to spanish; diachronic evolution; 1.2) General concepts of Phonology; 1.3) Language change: stages and problems; 1.4) phonological change; 1.5) Sounds and writting.
2. The syllable:
2.1) Structure of the syllable; 2.2) Phonetic processes in the syllable (assimilation, dissimilation, prosthesis, epentesis, metathesis, apocope, syncope, apheresis).
3. Vowels:
3.1) Latin vowel system; 3.2) Stress vowels; 3.3) Diphthongs; 3.4) Effects of "yod" on stressed vowels; 3.5) Non stressed vowels.
4. Consonants (I):
4.1) Initial position; 4.2) Internal position; 4.3) Final position.
5. Consonants (II) - consonant groups:
5.1) Initial position; 5.2) Internal position.

Ralph Penny, Gramática histórica del español, Barcelona, Ariel, 2006 (2 ed.) [IBERIS Cons. E 576]

Further readings:
Concepción Company Company y Marcela Flores Cervantes, Manual de filología hispánica. Fonetica y fonología históricas, México, UNAM, 2001 [IBERIS 3A2106].
Manuel Fradejas Rueda, Fonología histórica del español, Madrid, Visor, 1997.
Pedro Sánchez-Prieto Borja, Cómo editar los textos medievales. Criterios para su presentación gráfica, Madrid, Arco/Libros, 1998 [IBERIS Cons. H 120].

Students’ learning is assessed via a written exam (30 points), consisting of a multiple choice test for assessing Knowledge and understanding, as well as communication and argumentation skills.

Frontal lectures; workshops.

Non-attending students are required to contact the lecturer at the beginning of the second semester

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