Diakritiikka

Diakritiikka refers to marks placed above, below, or within a letter to indicate a difference in pronunciation, meaning, or grammatical function. These diacritical marks, also known as diacritics, are used in many alphabets to represent sounds not found in the basic form of the letter or to distinguish between homographs. For example, in many European languages, an accent mark like the acute (´) or grave (`) can alter the vowel sound or indicate stress.

Common diacritics include the acute accent, grave accent, circumflex (ˆ), umlaut or diaeresis (¨), tilde (~), cedilla (¸), and various hooks or dots. The tilde, for instance, appears over the 'n' in Spanish 'ñ' to signify a distinct palatal nasal sound. The umlaut in German, as in 'ä', 'ö', 'ü', indicates a change in vowel pronunciation, often by moving the tongue forward.

Diacritical marks are essential for the correct reading and understanding of many languages, including French, Spanish, German, Portuguese, and many others. They help to maintain phonetic accuracy and can be crucial for distinguishing between words that would otherwise be spelled identically. Without diacritics, the meaning of many words could be lost or misinterpreted, making them a vital component of written language in numerous cultures.