Vulgar (Ecclesiastical) Latin etymon: “Caesaraugusta” /kɛ.sa.ɾau’.gus.ta/. Stressed syllable: penultimate /gus/. Stressed vowel /u/ length is unknown.
/tʃɛ.sa.ɾau’.gus.ta/ > /sa.ɾa.gɔ.tsa/ “Saragoça”: Complete lenition of word initial syllable /ke/, assimilation of /u/ (high back vowel) in unprotected coda position to /a/ (low center vowel), exceptional evolution of /u/ (high back vowel) to /ɔ/ (high mid back rounded vowel) because typically the high back vowel becomes the mid back /o/, metathesis of intervocalic “st” /st/ to “ç” /ts/ in ultimate syllable.
/sa.ɾa.gɔ.tsa/ > /sa.ɾa.ɣó.sa/ or /θa.ɾa.gó.θa/ “Zaragoza”: lenition /g/ (voiced velar stop) to /ɣ/ (voiced velar fricative) in unprotected intervocalic position evolution from /ɔ/ (high mid back rounded) to /o/ (low mid back rounded), which is exceptional because the high mid back rounded vowel usually becomes a diphthong in Spanish.
Viólo –> lo vio
Vulgar latin etymon: “videre” /wideɾe/. Stressed syllable: penultimate /de/. Stressed vowel /e/ is long.
/vi.dé.ɾe/ > /ve’eɾ/ “veer”: complete lenition of /d/ (voiced alveolar plosive) to /, evolution of /i/ (high front vowel) to /e/ (mid front) vowel, deletion of word final /e/ (mid front) vowel.
Vulgar Latin etymon: “faceɾe” /fa.ke.ɾe/. Stressed syllable: penultimate /ke/. Stressed vowel /e/ is long.
/fa.ke.ɾe/ > /fé.ɾe/ “fere”: complete lenition of stressed syllable onset position /k/ (voiceless velar stop) to /h/ (voiceless glottal fricative) to zero in unprotected intervocalic position, assimilation of /a/ (low center vowel) to the adjacent /e/ (mid front) vowel.
/fé.ɾe/ > /a.séɾ/ or /a.θéɾ/ “hacer”: complete lenition of word initial /f/ (voiceless labiodental fricative) but a graphemic epenthesis of word initial “h”, Exceptional evolution of now word initial /e/ (mid front) to /a/ (low center), reincorporation of the Vulgar Latin /fa.ke.ɾe/ etymon in that the /k/ (voiceless velar stop) follows a different path of lenition, this times from /k/ to /ts/ (affricate alveolar voiceless) to /s/ (fricative alveolar voiceless) or to /θ/ (voices dental fricative), depending on the dialect.
Firmemientre –> firmemente
Vulgar Latin etymon: “firmis” + suffix “mentem” /fiɾ.mis/ + /men.tem/. Stressed syllable: antepenultimate /fir/. Stressed vowel /i/ is short. In suffix, the penultimate syllable /men/ is stressed and the stressed vowel /e/ is short.
/fiɾ.mis/ + /men.tem/ > /fiɾ.me.mjén.tɾe/ “firmemientre”: evolution of unstressed /i/ (high front vowel) to /e/ (mid front vowel), addition of suffix “men.tem” in Vulgar Latin, which evolves through the diphthongization of the short/e/ to /je/, the exceptional epenthesis of /r/ in nucleus of ultimate syllable, and the deletion of word final /m/ (voiced bilabial nasal).
/fjeɾ.me.mjén.tɾe/ > /fiɾ.me.mén.te/ “firmemente”: assimilation of diphthong /je/ to /i/ in stressed syllable nucleus, assimilation of diphthong /je/ to /i/ in unstressed syllable nucleus, complete lenition
Mannana –> mañana
Vulgar Latin etymon: “maneana” /ma.ne.a.na/. Stressed syllable: penultimate /a/. Stressed syllable /a/ length is unknown.
/ma.ne.a.na/ > /ma.ɲa.na/ “mannana”: palatalization of intervocalic /n/ (voiced alveolar nasal) to /ɲ/ (voiced palatal nasal) in antepenultimate syllable, assimilation of unstressed /e/ to the adjacent /a/ (low center vowel).
/ma.ɲa.na/ > /ma.ɲa.na/ “mañana”: no phonetic evolution, just a graphemic change in the grapheme for the letter /ɲ/ from “nn” to “ñ”.
Pareçrá –> parecerá
Vulgar Latin Etymon: “parescere” /pa.ɾske.ɾe/. Stressed syllable: penultimate /ske/. Stressed vowel /e/ is long.
/pa.ɾe.ske.ɾe/ > /pa.”: metathesis of intervocalic cluster /sk/ to /ks/ and resolution of this /ks/ cluster to /ts/ (affricate alveolar voiceless), evolution of word final vowel /e/ (mid front) to /a/ (low center) vowel.
/pa.ɾe.tsɾá/ > /pa.ɾe.se.ɾá/ or /pa.ɾe.θe.ɾá/ “parecerá”: resolution of /tsr/ cluster with the epenthesis of /e/ (mid front vowel) between /ts/ (voiceless alveolar fricative) and /ɾ/ (voiced alveolar tap), resolution of /ts/ (affricate alveolar voiceless) cluster through the complete lenition of /t/ (voiceless alveolar stop).
Los ferredes –> las heridas
Vulgar Latin etymon: “ferire” /fe.ɾi.ɾe/. Stressed syllable: penultimate /ɾi/. Stressed vowel /i/ is short.
/fe.ɾi.ɾe/ > /fe.réɾ/ “ferrer”: fortition of /ɾ/ (voiced alveolar tap) to /r/ (voiced alveolar trill), typical evolution of stressed vowel /i/ (high front) to /e/ (mid front), and exceptional deletion of final /e/ (mid front) vowel, which would typically be kept in Spanish.
/fe.reɾ/ > /e.ríɾ/ “herir”: complete lenition of word initial /f/ (voiceless labiodental fricative), exceptional evolution of stressed vowel /e/ (mid front) to /i/ (high front), which is an abnormal vocalic evolution in Spanish.
Rreconbrar –> recobrar
Vulgar Latin etymon: “recuperare” /ɾe.cu.pe.ɾā.ɾe/. Stressed syllable: penultimate /ɾa/. Stressed vowel /a/ is long.
/ɾe.cu.pe.ɾa.ɾe/ > /re.con.bɾáɾ/ “rreconbrar”: fortition of word initial /ɾ/ (voiced alveolar tap) to /r/ (voiced alveolar trill), evolution of /u/ (high back) to /o/ (med back), epenthesis of /n/ (voiced alveolar nasal) after the evolved /o/, lenition of intervocalic /p/ (voiceless bilabial stop) to /b/ (voiced bilabial stop), syncope of inter-consonantal /e/, deletion of word final /e/ (med high).
/re.con.bɾáɾ/ > /re.co.bɾáɾ/ “recobrar”: deletion/lenition of /n/ (voiced alveolar nasal) in unprotected coda position.
Gujera –> Cullera
Vulgar Latin and Arabic etymon: “colla-aeria” /col.la.ar.ja/. Stressed syllable: penultimate /ar/. Stressed vowel /a/ length is unknown.
/ko.ʎa.aɾ.ja/ > /gu.jé.”: exceptional lenition of /k/ (voiceless alveolar affricate) to /g/ (voiced velar stop), evolution of unstressed /o/ (mid back) to /u/ (high back), delateralization of /ʎ/ (voiced palatal lateral) to /j/ (voiced glottal fricative), assimilation of geminated /a/ to produce one syllable instead of the prior two, and assimilation of dipthong /ja/ in ultimate syllable due to the /r/ + yod cluster
/gu.jé.ɾa/ > /ku.ʎé.ɾa/ “Cullera”: exceptional fortition of /g/ (voiced velar stop) to /k/ (voiceless alveolar affricate) in word initial position as a cultism, which is a word that tends to stick to its original Latin etymon without undergoing the typical changes in the normal evolution, palatalization of intervocalic /j/ (voiced glottal fricative) to /ʎ/ (voiced palatal lateral) in stressed penultimate syllable.
Rrecabdo –> recatar
Vulgar Latin etymon: “re-captare” /re.cap.tā.ɾe/. Stressed syllable: penultimate /ta/. Stressed vowel /a/ is long.
/re.kap.ta.ɾe/ > /re.kab.dáɾ/ “rrecabdar”: lenition of syllable final /p/ (voiceless bilabial stop) to /b/ (voiced bilabial stop) in unprotected coda position, lenition of /t/ (voiceless alveolar stop) to /d/ (voiced alveolar stop) in syllable onset position, deletion of word final /e/ (mid front vowel), which is usually kept in Spanish evolution. Also a possibility is the analogy of evolution of the Vulgar Latin etymon “re-cautus” /re.kaw.tus/, which would have evolved to the Old Spanish “re.kab.da” through the fortition of the /aw/ cluster to the /ab/ cluster.
/re.kab.dáɾ/ > /re.ka.táɾ/ “recatar”: “assimilation of /b/ (voiced bilabial stop) to adjacent /d/ (voiced alveolar stop) in subsequent syllable onset position, exceptional fortition of /d/ (voiced alveolar stop) to /t/ (voiceless alveolar stop) in new syllable onset position.
Çibdad –> ciudad
/ki.wi.ta.te/ > /.dád./ “Çibdad”: syncope of /i/ (high front vowel) in penultimate syllable, lenition of /t/ (voiceless alveolar stop) to /d/ (voiced alveolar stop), palatalization of word initial /k/ (voiceless velar stop) to /ts/ (affricate alveolar voiceless), fortition of /b/ (voiced bilabial stop) in antepenultimate syllable from /w/ (voiced labial-velar glide), lenition of ultimate syllable initial position /t/ (voiceless alveolar stop) to /d/ (voiced alveolar stop) and deletion of word final /e/ (mid front vowel).
/tsib’.dád/ > /sju’.dád/ or /θju’.dad/: exceptional diphthongization of /i/ (high front vowel) to /ju/ in penultimate syllable (an exceptional diphthong in Spanish, lenition of /b/ (voiced bilabial stop) in coda position to the semi-consonant /w/ (voiced labial-velar glide), lenition of word initial /ts/ (affricate alveolar voiceless) to /s/ (voiceless alveolar fricative).
Senna –> enseña
Vulgar Latin etymon: “signa” /sig.nāStressed syllable: antepenultimate /sig/. Stressed vowel /i/ is short.
/síg.na typical evolution of /i/ (high front) to /e/ (mid front), palatalization of intervocalic cluster /gn/ to /ɲ/ (voiced palatal nasal) in the process of compromise articulation.
/séɲ.a/ > /en.séɲ.a/ “enseña”: epenthesis of word initial vowel/consonant cluster /en/ (mid front vowel and voiced alveolar nasal consonant).
Verbal Morphology
L’viniessen –> le viniesen
Vulgar Latin etymon: “venire” /we.ni.ɾe/. The third person singular pluperfect form is “veníssent” /we.ní.sent/. It is a Class II verb. The penultimate syllable /i/ is stressed. The stressed syllable /i/ is long.
/we.ni.sent/ > /vi.njé.sen/ “viniessen”: fortition of word initial /w/ (voiceless labial-velar glide) to /v/ (voiceless labiodental fricative), vocalic evolution of /e/ (mid front) to /i/ (high front) in a stem change, diphthongization of /ni.e/ to /nje/ in stressed syllable, deletion of word final /t/ (voiceless alveolar stop), recategorization of Vulgar Latin pluperfect tense verb inflections (“veníssent”) as the preterite subjunctive form in Spanish.
/vi.njé.sen/ > /bi.njé.ɾon/ “vinieron”: fortition of Word initial /v/ (voiced labiodental fricative) to /b/ (voiced bilabial stop), exceptional fortition of /s/ (voiced alveolar fricative) to /ɾ/ (voiced alveolar tap) in ultimate syllable onset position, exceptional evolution of /e/ (mid front) to /o/ (mid back).
Legan –> llegan
Vulgar Latin etymon: “plicare” /pli.ka.ɾe/. The third person plural present form is “plicant” /pli.kant/. It is a Class I verb. The penultimate syllable /pli/ is stressed, and the stressed vowel /i/ is short.
/pli.kant/ > /lé.gan/ “legan”: complete lenition of word initial /p/ (voiceless bilabial stop), typical evolution of short /i/ (high front) vowel to /e/ (mid front) in stressed syllable, lenition of intervocalic /k/ (voiceless velar stop) to /g/ (voiced velar stop), deletion of word final /t/ (voiceless alveolar stop).
/lé.gan/ > /ʎé.gan/ “llegan”: palatalization of word initial /l/ (voiced alveolar lateral liquid) to /ʎ/ (voiced palatal lateral).
Fazíen –> Hacían
Vulgar Latin etymon: “facere” /fa.ke.ɾe/. The third person plural imperfect form is “faciebant” /fa.ki.e.bant/. It is a Class II verb. The penultimate syllable /ke/ is stressed, and the stressed vowel /e/ is long.
/fa.ki.é.bant/ > /fa.zí.en/ “fazíen”: lenition of intervocalic /k/ (voiceless velar stop to /z/ (voiced alveolar fricative), complete lenition of intervocalic /b/ (voiced bilabial stop), exceptional evolution of unstressed /a/ (low center) vowel to /e/ (mid front) vowel, emphasis on the new penultimate syllable /zi/, deletion of word final /t/ (voiceless alveolar stop).
/fa.zí.en/ > /a.sí.an/ or /a.θí.an/ “hacían”: gradual lenition of word initial /f/ (voiceless labiodental fricative) to /h/ (voiceless glottal fricative) to a complete lenition, lenition of intervocalic /z/ (voiced alveolar fricative) to /s/ (voiceless alveolar fricative) or /θ/ (voiceless dental fricative), exceptional vocalic evolution of /e/ (mid front) to /a/ (low center) as compromise articulation to the subsequent /n/ (voiced alveolar nasal) which brings the vowel closer to the front of the mouth.
Rrobavan –> robaban
Vulgar Latin etymon: “raubare” /ra.u.bā.ɾe/. The third person plural imperfect form is “raubabant” /ra.u.bā.bant/. It is a Class I verb. The penultimate syllable /bā/ is stressed, and the stressed syllable /a/ is long.
/ra.u.bā.bant/ > /ro.bá.van/ “rrobavan”: assimilation of initial syllable nucleus /a/ (low center) and antepenultimate syllable /u/ (high back) into one syllable and then into one vowel: /o/ (mid back), lenition of intervocalic /b/ (voiced bilabial stop) to /v/ (voice labiodental fricative), deletion of word final /t/ (voiceless alveolar stop).
/ro.bá.van/ > /ro.bá.ban/ “robaban”: exceptional fortition of intervocalic /v/ (voiced labiodental fricative) back to /b/ (voiced bilabial stop), perhaps in assimilation to the ultimate syllable onset /b/.
partiemos –> partimos
Vulgar Latin etymon: “partire” /paɾ.ti.ɾe/. The first person plural present form is “partimus” /paɾ.tī.mus/. It is a Class IV verb. The penultimate syllable /ti/ is stressed, and the stressed vowel /i/ is long.
/paɾ.tī.mus/ > /paɾ.tje.mos/ “partiemos”: exceptional diphthongization of stressed vowel /i/ (high front) to /je/, evolution of unstressed /u/ (high back) to /o/ (mid back) in ultimate syllable nucleus.
/paɾ.tje.mos/ > /paɾ.ti.mos/ “partimos”: analogy of <-er> ending verb into the conjugation of <ir> verbs to assimilate the /je/ diphthong to /i/.
Dexado –> dejado
Italic Latin etymon: “daxare” /da.xɾe/. The third person singular present form is “daxatum” /da.xa.tum/. It is a Class I verb. The penultimate syllable /xat/ is stressed, and the stressed vowel /a/ is short.
/da.ʃa.tum/ > /de.ʒa.do/ “dexado”: exceptional evolution of unstressed /a/ (low center) vowel to /e/ (mid front) vowel, palatalization of stressed intervocalic /ʃ/ (voiceless postalveolar fricative) to /ʒ/ (voiced palato-alveolar fricative), lenition of unstressed intervocalic /t/ (voiceless alveolar stop) to /d/ (voiced alveolar stop), evolution of unstressed /u/ (high back vowel) in ultimate syllable) to /o/ (mid back vowel), deletion of word final /m/ (voiced bilabial nasal).
/de.ʒa.do/ > /de.xa.do/ “dejado”: further palatalization of stressed intervocalic /ʒ/ (voiced palate-alveolar fricative) to /x/ (voiced palatal glide).
Nominal Morphology
La Gesta –> la gesta
Vulgar Latin etymon: “gestus” /ges.tus/. It is in the second Vulgar Latin declension and is a singular nominative masculine noun. The penultimate syllable /ges/ is stressed, and the stressed vowel /e/ is long.
/ges.tus/ > /ʒés.ta/ “gesta”: palatalization of word initial /g/ (voiced velar stop) to /ʒ/ (voiced palato-alveolar fricative), deletion of word final /s/ (voiceless alveolar fricative), evolution of unstressed word final /u/ (high back vowel) to /a/ (low center vowel). Evolution due to analogy to a different declension, since “gestus” is in the fourth Classical Latin declension and follows the second Vulgar Latin declension, which is masculine, but instead the Spanish etymon “gesta” is feminine. Its definite article “la” comes from the vulgar Latin “illa”, which became “la” through the complete lenition of the first syllable. “Illa”, originally a pronoun, became re-appropriated as a definite article, which doesn’t exist in Latin. Its gender marking /-a/ originates from its roots in the Classical Latin first declension, which ends in /-a/ as well, which was also the first declension in Vulgar Latin. Its number marking, without an /s/ and ending in the gender marking, is reflective of the structure of the first declensions of Classical and Vulgar Latin, which also ended in that way.
/ʒés.ta/ > /hés.ta/ “gesta”: lenition of word initial /ʒ/ (voiced palate-alveolar fricative) to /h/ (voiceless glottal fricative).
El Alva –> el alba
Vulgar Latin etymon: “albus” /al.bus/. It is in the second Vulgar Latin declension and is a singular nominative masculine noun. The penultimate syllable /a/ is stressed.
/ál.bus/ > /ál.βa/ “alva”: lenition of ultimate syllable initial /b/ (voiced bilabial stop) to /β/ (voiced bilabial fricative), deletion of word final /s/ (voiceless alveolar fricative), evolution of word final /u/ (high back vowel) to /a/ (low center vowel), though the gender of the noun does not change, which reflects an analogy because the word is in the Classical Latin fourth declension and instead of going into the second Vulgar Latin declension as a masculine noun, it follows the conjugations for the feminine first declension despite still being masculine. Its definite article “el” reflects is belonging in the Classical Latin second declension and comes from the Vulgar Latin “ille”, which became “el” through the evolution of the stressed penultimate syllable’s vowel /i/ (high front) to /e/ (mid front) and the complete lenition of the ultimate unstressed syllable. “Ille”, originally a pronoun, became re-appropriated as a definite article, which doesn’t exist in Latin. Its gender marking, /-a/, reflects the structure of the first Classical and Vulgar Latin declensions, despite being a masculine noun that originated in the second Classical and Vulgar Latin declension, which makes it exceptional. Its number marking, ending in its gender marking without a plural /-s/ is reflective of the Classical and Vulgar Latin singular first declension. Despite being a masculine noun, it follows the Latin second declension structure, so it is exceptional.
/ál.βa/ > /ál.ba/ “alba”: fortition of ultimate syllable initial /β/ (voiced bilabial stop) to /b/ (voiced bilabial stop).
Spirital –> espiritual
Vulgar Latin etymon: “spiritualis” /spi.ɾi.tu’a.lis/. It is in a singular nominative neuter adjective. The penultimate syllable /a/ is stressed, and the stressed vowel /a/ is long.
/spi.ɾi.tu’á.lis/ > /spi.ɾi.tál/ “spirital”: assimilation of /tu’a/ into one syllable and assimilation of /u/ (high back vowel) to the adjacent /a/ (low center) vowel, complete deletion of word final /is/. Its gender marking as neutral – since it doesn’t end with an /-o/ or an /-a/ is reflective of the third Vulgar Latin declension, originating from the third Classical Latin declension, which is neuter. It is a singular adjective, ending without an /-s/, which is how singular adjectives in Vulgar Latin end as well.
/spi.ɾi.tál/ > /es.pi.ɾi.twál/ “espiritual”: epenthesis of word initial /e/ (mid front vowel), diphthongization of previously assimilated /a/ (low center) to /wa/, perhaps by analogy to the original form of the word.
cavalleros –> caballeros
Vulgar Latin etymon: “caballarius” /ka.ba.la.ɾi’us/. It is a singular nominative masculine noun in the second declension. The penultimate syllable /la/ is stressed and the stressed vowel /a/ is long.
/ka.ba.lá.ɾi’us/ > /ka.βa.ʎé.ɾo/ “cavallero”: lenition of intervocalic /b/ (voiced bilabial stop) to /β/ (voiced bilabial fricative), palatalization of intervocalic /l/ (voiced alveolar lateral liquid) to /ʎ/ (voiced palatal lateral), exceptional evolution of stressed /a/ (low center vowel) to /e/ (mid front vowel), assimilation of /iu/ to /u/ (high back vowel) and then evolution of /u/ (high back vowel) to /o/ (mid back vowel), deletion of word final /s/ (voiceless alveolar fricative). Its definite article “los” comes from the Latin “illos”, which became “los” through the complete lenition of the penultimate syllable “los”. “Illos”, originally a pronoun, became re-appropriated as a definite article, which doesn’t exist in Latin. Its gender marking, /-o/, originates from the Classical and Vulgar Latin second declensions, which ended in /-us/, so its evolution involved the deletion of word final /-s/ and the regular evolution of /u/ (high back) to /o/ (mid back). Its number marking, /-s/, reflects analogy to the number marking system of the Vulgar Latin second declension non-nominative nouns, which ended in /-s/, since the plural nominative nouns ended in a vowel (/-i/).
/ka.βa.ʎé.ɾo/ > /ka.βa.ʎé.ɾo/ “caballero”: graphemic change of <β> to <b> as the /b/ (voiced bilabial stop) and <v> /β/ (voiced bilabial fricative) sound become assimilated.
Estranna –> extraña
Vulgar Latin etymon: “extraneus” /ex.tɾa.ne’us/. It is a first declension singular feminine adjective. The penultimate syllable /tɾa/ is stressed and the stressed vowel /a/ is long.
/ex.tɾá.ne’us/ > /ex.tɾá.ɲa/ “extranna”: palatalization of /n/ (voiced alveolar nasal) to /ɲ/ (voiced palatal nasal) in intervocalic position, deletion of word final /s/ (voiceless alveolar fricative), assimilation of ultimate syllable nucleus /e’u/ to /u/ (high back) then evolution to /o/ (mid back) and feminization of /o/ ending to /a/. Its feminine gender marking, /-a/, reflects the same gender markings as the Classical and Vulgar Latin first declension, which ends in /-a/ as well to mark its femininity. It is a singular adjective, so unlike plural adjectives that end in an /-s/ in Spanish and Latin, it ends with its gender marking to show that it is singular, which is the same in Vulgar Latin adjectives.
/ex.tɾá.ɲa/ > /ex.tɾá.ɲa/ “extraña”: graphemic change of <nn> to <ñ> to represent /ɲ/ (voiced palatal nasal) sound.
Annos –> años
Vulgar Latin etymon: “annus” /an.nus/. It is a second declension singular masculine nominative noun. The penultimate syllable /an/ is stressed.
/án.nus/ > /á.ɲo/ “anno”: palatalization of intervocalic geminated /n/ (voiced alveolar nasal) to /ɲ/ (voiced palatal nasal), deletion of word final /s/ (voiceless alveolar fricative), evolution of unstressed /u/ (high back vowel) in ultimate syllable nucleus to /o/ (mid back vowel). Its definite article “los” comes from the Latin “illos”, which became “los” through the complete lenition of the penultimate syllable “los”. “Illos”, originally a pronoun, became re-appropriated as a definite article, which doesn’t exist in Latin. Its masculine gender marking, /-o/, reflects the evolution from the second Vulgar and Classical Latin declensions that ended in /us/, which became /o/ through the deletion of word final /s/ and the evolution of /u/ (high back) to /o/ (mid back). Its plural number marking /-s/ reflects an analogy to the number marking structure of the Vulgar Latin second declension non-nominative nouns, despite being a nominative noun.
/á.ɲo/ > /á.ɲo/ “año”: graphemic change of <nn> to <ñ> to represent /ɲ/ (voiced palatal nasal).