Pronunciation of Spanish 'j'?

[vijayjohn]

Wow, I didn't know that [x] was the pronunciation of <j> in most of Mexico.

Is that sarcasm?

No, it's really not. Looking at the earlier posts in this thread almost makes it sound like you're the first person who noticed it even existed in Mexican Spanish. But maybe that's just me misinterpreting those posts, idk. I even tried looking for examples of [x] in videos of Mexican Spanish on YouTube and couldn't seem to find any for some reason, at least not with the [x] I've heard Spaniards pronounce. But I'm willing to blame my ears for that. EDIT: Or my laziness in looking around. Or the fact that I'm not a native speaker. Or something.

[Iparxi_Zoi]

No, it's really not. Looking at the earlier posts in this thread almost makes it sound like you're the first person who noticed it even existed in Mexican Spanish. But maybe that's just me misinterpreting those posts, idk. I even tried looking for examples of [x] in videos of Mexican Spanish on YouTube and couldn't seem to find any for some reason, at least not with the [x] I've heard Spaniards pronounce. But I'm willing to blame my ears for that. EDIT: Or my laziness in looking around. Or the fact that I'm not a native speaker. Or something.

I also read that in Spain it can be anywhere from velar, to post-velar to uvular (sorry for not including it earlier, I was trying to get my point across). Or maybe it's because people are thinking of a somewhat harsh, guttural sound when they think of /x/ when it really is softer. Take it from someone who's heard this sound his whole life

I would also suggest listening to Modern Greek; it also has /x/, and it's the same sound I've heard and used all my life. If that isn't a voiceless velar fricative /x/, I don't know what is.

[hottiesteachspanish]

Hi!

Im salvadorian aswell, the IPA value of this phoneme actually is /x/ but the real pronunciation sounds (jota)

Hope that helps!

[linguoboy]

Im salvadorian aswell, the IPA value of this phoneme actually is /x/ but the real pronunciation sounds (jota)

Eso lo dices en broma ¿no?

[Serafín]

¿Broma? A mí ese me suena mediotomado... [rather drunk]

[Iparxi_Zoi]

¿Broma? A mí ese me suena mediotomado... [rather drunk]

Tal vez se esté refiriendo al nombre de la letra misma.

[Carlos_Halliwell]

The Spanish "j" (and the g before e and i) is pronounced in 3 different ways:

-Voiceless uvular fricative [ꭓ] - Spain (except for Andalusia, in the south), some regions in Peru.

-Voiceless velar fricative [x] - Mexico, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Peru. Same as the ch in Scottish word "loch" or in German "Bach".

-Voiceless glottal fricative [h] - Cuba, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Colombia, Panama, Andalusia (Spain) and Spanish-speakers living in the U.S. (I have heard Mexican-Americans pronounce it as an h). This is the way the "j "was pronounced in the Philippines too. I think Bolivian Spanish also has this phoneme, though I'm not sure.

I am missing some countries, as well as more specific dialects. I don't know about Central American dialects either.

[Serafín]

Central Americans typically use [h].

-Voiceless uvular fricative [ꭓ] - Spain only (except for Andalusia, in the south).

Some Peruvians pronounce it that way too, particularly those hailing from the northern coast. And not only have I read about it but have heard it myself.

[Carlos_Halliwell]

Central Americans typically use [h].

-Voiceless uvular fricative [ꭓ] - Spain only (except for Andalusia, in the south).

Some Peruvians pronounce it that way too, particularly those hailing from the northern coast. And not only have I read about it but have heard it myself.

Oh, I had forgotten about Peru! I had heard about that, though. Thanks! Does that region include Lima?
Also, I think Peruvians in the Amazonic region pronounce it as an [h], I'm not sure though.

[Antea]

In case it could help, there's a video I've found about the "j-g" Spanish pronunciation

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrD6L0HsI4E