Читать книгу A Spanish Anthology - Various - Страница 11

(1) Three contiguous vowels with the accent on the first. These offer two possible forms of combinations, viz., one of two vowels with the first accented plus one of two vowels after the accent. To these apply the rules already stated. Thus in lóaos we have óa in two syllables according to I, rule 1, and ao which may be in two syllables by II, rule 1, therefore all three vowels may be in separate syllables. So, too, in iríais we have ía in two syllables by I, rule 4, and ai which forms a diphthong by II, rule 2, therefore the combination íai forms two syllables.

(2) Three contiguous vowels with the accent on the second. There are two combinations possible, one of two vowels with the accent on the second and one of two vowels with the accent on the first. Apply the rules to these: e.g., fiáos has iá in two syllables by I, rule 5 b and áo in two syllables by I, rule 1, so that the combination is trisyllabic; again, cambiáos has iá, a diphthong by I, rule 5 b, and áo in two syllables by I, rule 1, therefore the combination has two syllables; buey has ue, a diphthong by I, rule 5 a, and ey, a diphthong by I, rule 2, so that the whole combination is linked together and forms one syllable as a triphthong.

(3) Three contiguous vowels with the accent on the last. The combinations are one of two vowels before the accent plus one of two vowels accented on the last. So, applying the rules to rehuí, for example, we find eu (h mute) to be a dissyllable by the exception to III, rule 2, and uí to be probably a dissyllable by I, rule 7, so that the combination probably forms three syllables.

(4) Combinations of more than three vowels may be decomposed in a similar way. Thus, decaíais has aíai with four contiguous vowels in three combinations, viz., aí, a dissyllable by I, rule 3; ía, a dissyllable by I, rule 4; ai, a diphthong by II, rule 2, so that the combination has three integral elements and three syllables.

xxviii

N.B.—Despite all these rules, it should be noted that the tendency of the language is toward synæresis.