How to Pronounce ‘LL’ and ‘Y’ in Spanish
¡Hola! Bienvenidos a Hola Spanish. Soy Brenda Romaniello tu profesora de español de Hola Spanish.
Hi! Welcome to Hola Spanish, this is Brenda Romaniello, your Spanish teacher from Hola Spanish.
Having a good pronunciation is essential to communicate more efficiently and fluently in Spanish, allowing your native Spanish speaker interlocutors to be able to understand what you say a lot easier and quicker than with a poor pronunciation. At the same time, understanding the different varieties in terms of pronunciation in the Spanish world we’ll make it easier for you to understand native speakers no matter what Spanish speaking country they’re from.
Today I’m going to teach 4 different ways to pronounce the ‘LL’ and ‘Y’ in Spanish.
There are more than 20 countries that speak Spanish around the word, in Spain and Latin America and also parts of the EEUU. With so many different countries that speak Spanish, it’s quite understandable that there’ll be differences in terms of pronunciation.
La Doble Ele ‘LL’:
I’d like to show you 4 different pronunciation differences for the double L in Spanish.
Número 1 – Number 1: /SH/
The first way to pronounce the “LL” in Spanish is with a /sh/ sound, as when you’re trying to silence someone, and you cross your lips with your index finger, quite like the nurses do it in a hospital urging people to keep quiet.
We use this way to pronounce the ‘LL’ in Argentina, most specifically in Buenos Aires and Santa Fé and Uruguay.
Por ejemplo:
– Me llamo María /meh shamoh maria/ (My name is Maria)
-Lluvia /shuveeah/
-Llaves /shahbehs/
Número 2 – Number 2: /j/
The second way to pronounce the “LL” in Spanish is with a /j/ sound, such as in ‘James’ or ‘jungle’.
It’s widely used in other parts of Argentina, some parts of Colombia, Venezuela, and some other countries in central America such as Guatemala.
Por ejemplo:
– Me llamo María /meh jamoh maria/ (My name is Maria)
-Lluvia /juveeah/
-Llaves /jahbehs/
Número 3 – Number 3: /ly/
This specific pronunciation way is mostly used in Spain and it’s a /ly/ sound, sort of like pronouncing a ‘y’ after an ‘l’ sound.
Por ejemplo:
– Me llamo María /meh lyamoh maria/ (My name is Maria)
-Lluvia /lyuveeah/
-Llaves /lyahbehs/
Número 4 – Number 4: /i/
The n way to pronounce the “LL” in Spanish is with an /i/ or /ee/ sound, as when you say ‘bee’ or ‘iguana’.
We use this way to pronounce the ‘LL’ in most countries in Latin America such as México, Chile, Perú, Bolivia, Cuba.
Por ejemplo:
– Me llamo María /meh iamoh maria/ (My name is Maria)
-Lluvia /iuveeah/
-Llaves /iahbehs/
La i griega ‘Y’:
Just as with the ‘LL’, the ‘Y’ will also have 4 distinctive pronunciations depending on the country or region, exactly the same as with the ‘LL’.
Número 1 – Number 1: /SH/
More used in Argentina, most specifically in Buenos Aires and Santa Fé and Uruguay.
Por ejemplo:
– Yo soy María /sho soi maria/ (I’m Maria)
Número 2 – Number 2: /j/
Same as the ‘ll’, this pronunciation is widely used in other parts of Argentina, some parts of Colombia, Venezuela, and some other countries in central America such as Guatemala.
Por ejemplo:
– Yo soy María /jo soi maria/ (I’m Maria)
Número 3 – Number 3: /ly/
Used in Spain.
Por ejemplo:
– Yo soy María /lyo soi maria/ (I’m Maria)
Número 4 – Number 4: /i/
Widely used in most countries in Latin America such as México, Chile, Perú, Bolivia, Cuba.
Por ejemplo:
– Yo soy María /io soi maria/ (I’m Maria)
Which one should you use?
Many of our students ask which language variety they should pick when they speak Spanish. If you’re wondering the same, I would recommend you to select one and stick to that one as you learn Spanish.
The good news is that no matter where you travel in Latin America or Spain, we’ll be able to understand you no matter which pronunciation style you’ve decided to use and learn. The only difference is that if you use the /i/ pronunciation because you’re interested in Mexican Spanish and then go and visit Spain, Spaniards will perfectly understand your Spanish and will simply assumed you’ve learn Spanish in Mexico or you live in Mexico or you’ve travelled to Mexico.
What is more, now you know some of the different accents and way of saying things in different countries which will give you an advantage when you travel to different countries because you’re now aware of how they say things and you’ll be able to understand them.
I really hope you’ve found today’s blog very useful. I’d love to hear from your in the comments, which pronunciation option will you be using and why? Let me know in the comments below.
And remember to check our Spanish Pronunciation course. This course has helped thousand of Spanish students speak Spanish fluently and more naturally.
I’ll see you next class ¡Adiós!