Learn Basic Spanish Language: Beginning with Alphabets

Spanish is a Romance language with approximately 470 million speakers around the world. It is spoken as a first language, second language and also as a foreign language by many people. Spanish is spoken in Spain and 22 other countries like Bolivia, Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Cuba, Panama, Colombia and so on.

It originated in the Iberian Peninsula and was initially used in writings - in the form of notes and glosses in Latin religious texts. Spanish was later used for translation of rules, laws, codes etc. It is a global language and the world’s second most spoken native language after Mandarin Chinese.

Basic Spanish Language:

The Spanish language is different from English. It demands a little extra attention to be learnt. Basic Spanish language can be learnt by understanding the alphabets, phrases, and sentences that are very commonly used in daily conversations. Learning basic Spanish can be helpful for individuals who have booked a ticket for any destination with Spanish as the native language or if one has got a job offer in Spain or if one wants to quench the curiosity of learning a foreign language. Basic Spanish language is not very difficult to learn as the phrases, sentences are simpler and can be easily grasped with a little understanding of the language.

Learning Spanish language can give one an edge over others in the job market. To survive in the current competitive scenario, knowing just the native language is no longer enough. Spanish speaking population is drastically increasing across the world, due to globalisation.

Learning any new language requires one to start from scratch. There is no shortcut to learn it overnight and speak the new language fluently without learning the basics.

Basics of any foreign language serve as the foundation for the process of learning the language. The stronger the foundation, the better the language proficiency.

Spanish Language Alphabets:

To begin learning any new language, the first step is the alphabet. Learning the alphabet is a must, to proceed with the journey of learning a new language. This is what we have been accustomed to, ever since our childhood. The first step to learn any language is getting familiar with the alphabet and its sounds. The Spanish language is no exception to this practice, learning the alphabet is the first step. To learn the alphabet, one must focus on the alphabet and its phonic sound, which acts as a basis to learn the pronunciation of words and phrases.

Spanish Language Alphabet

There are a total of 27 alphabets in the Spanish language. Spanish alphabets are the same as English but differ in sound, and thus the pronunciation differs. One attempting to learn the Spanish alphabet needs not worry about the script, as it is almost the same; only the phonic sound differs. One can watch videos or audio lectures to learn the alphabet sound, to further learn the pronunciation of the words.

There are many videos that teach the alphabet and phonic sounds in an easy manner. The videos are very beneficial and give a lasting impression due to the visual impact on the viewer. It is easier to learn the sounds through these audio or video lectures.

Spanish uses acute accent over any vowel ( á, é, í, ó, ú ) to mark the stressed syllable. It is also used occasionally to distinguish homophones such as ‘si’ is for ‘if’ and ‘sí’ is for ‘yes’. Notable features of Spanish punctuation include the inverted question mark and inverted exclamation marks (¿, ¡ ).

Basic Spanish Words

After learning the Spanish alphabet, the next step is to learn basic words that help to frame sentences. To learn any new language, one must know the basic words to communicate. Learning the words helps one to speak confidently. If one learns the basic words, it is very easy to communicate and grasp other aspects of the language faster.

Words form the basis of any sentence, so knowing the right words help one to speak fluently. Learning the basic words like numbers, greetings, timings, directions etc, are instrumental in helping one to communicate without completing the learning process. Spanish words are pronounced differently than English words, as the sounds of the alphabet differ.  The writing script is very similar to the English language but not the pronunciation.

Few of the basic Spanish words:

Greetings

• Hola - Hi or Hello

• Buenos días - Good Morning

• Buenas tardes - Good Afternoon

• Buenas noches - Good Night

Other Basic Words

• Necesito ayuda - I need help

• Gracias - Thank You

• Adiós - Goodbye

• El Banco - Bank

• El Restaurante - restaurant

• La Hospital - Hospital

• Música - Music

There are many Spanish words that are similar to the English language words, but the only difference is the pronunciation. If one has learnt the important words and is ready with a good Spanish vocabulary, one can try to learn grammar and frame short sentences.

These Spanish words can be combined and used as basic Spanish phrases to make the statements more meaningful. For instance: ‘Con permiso’ means ‘with your permission’,  ‘Mucho Gusto’ is for ‘nice to meet you’ and so on. If one knows these phrases well, the communication process is much easier and more meaningful than just knowing the words. Learning basic Spanish phrases helps one to have a better hold over the language and in no time one can easily master this language with constant practice.

Basic Spanish Sentences

When one has learnt the alphabet, basic words, phrases, the next step is to learn to frame sentences. Framing sentences needs one to have knowledge of basic Spanish grammar to use the words correctly and frame meaningful sentences.

There are some basic rules that one needs to consider when framing Spanish sentences. For English speakers, it is slightly confusing to frame Spanish sentences as the formation differs.

• Every sentence must have a subject and a verb - To make a simple sentence one needs to have a subject and a verb to describe the action of the subject in the sentence.

• In Spanish, adjectives come after the noun, unlike in English where the adjective comes before the noun. For instance: ‘El libro rojo es mío’. which means, ‘The red book is mine’. Here, ‘El libro’ stands for ‘the book’ and ‘rojo’ means ‘red’; instead of ‘red book’ in Spanish it is ‘El libro rojo’ (book red). This is one major difference in English language and Spanish. There are some exceptions to this rule as well.

• The function of adverbs are the same as in English. - The work of adverbs is exactly the way it is in English language and has not much difference; it describes the action of the subject. ‘Mike lee rápidamente’, which means ‘Mike reads quickly’ here ‘rápidamente’ means ‘quickly’ and it describes the action ‘read’, of the subject ‘Mike’.

One trick to write adverb is to add ‘mente’ to verbs like ‘rápido - rápidamente’, ‘perfecto - perfectamente’ and so on. It is similar to ‘ly’ in English like ‘quickly, slowly,’ etc.

• Negating a Spanish sentence- When one wants to negate a statement, it is very simple in Spanish, just add a ‘no’. ‘Mike escribe’ means ‘Mike writes’ and if one intends to say ‘Mike doesn’t write’ it is ‘Mike no escribe’.

There are many such simple rules to follow in basic Spanish grammar, which help one to easily frame sentences. With consistent practice, one can master the skills of the Spanish language.

Why learn basic Spanish?

Learning any foreign language is an added advantage. In this era of globalisation, knowing just the native language is not enough; one needs to know one or more foreign languages to stand at a competitive position in the job market. In the vast pool of qualified candidates, one needs to stand out of the crowd to get selected in top companies for a good profile.

Learning basic Spanish can help one to get a higher job placement as compared to others. Spanish is a global language with more than 400 million speakers around the world.

• Job opportunities - Many Spanish companies are rapidly increasing its reach in India, giving excellent career benefits to Indians with Spanish language skills. Many job avenues like travel and tourism, translation, teaching, journalism etc, have high demand for Spanish speakers. Knowing Spanish opens more opportunities for candidates to get high paying jobs at managerial levels.

• Travel - There are many countries that have Spanish as their first language, and there apparently seem to be almost in every traveller’s bucket list because of the adventurous experience and pristine natural beauty that these countries boast of. For avid travellers, knowing basic Spanish language can enhance the travel experience and rule out all difficulties that people face in terms of language.

• Explore art, culture, literature - Some people have the fondness for a new language, art, culture of different regions. For such people learning the Spanish language could be a wonderful experience as it opens them to a whole new world of literature, art, culture, etc.

• Social circles - With more than 400 million speakers, the Spanish language can help one to connect with new people from varied backgrounds. One can coordinate better at the workplace, if one knows more than one foreign language.

• Study abroad- Learning basic Spanish language can help those who dream of going abroad for higher studies. Knowing foreign languages helps one to easily get admissions and also opens doors to various financial aids in the form of scholarships at foreign universities.