diakritter

A diacritical mark, often called a diacritic or simply a diacriton, is a glyph added to a letter or character. It is used to indicate a phonetic difference, distinguish between similar words, or to specify pronunciation. Diacritics are common in many languages, though their specific forms and uses vary widely. For instance, the acute accent (´) above a vowel can indicate stress or a specific vowel sound, as seen in languages like Spanish (e.g., "café"). The grave accent (`) can also indicate pronunciation or distinguish words.

Other common diacritics include the umlaut or diaeresis (¨), which can signal a change in vowel sound or indicate that a vowel is pronounced separately from a preceding one (e.g., in German "München" or in English "naïve"). The circumflex accent (ˆ) is used in languages like French to indicate a historical vowel sound that has been dropped or to distinguish between homographs. The tilde (˜) can modify pronunciation, as in Spanish "niño" (ñ), or indicate a different sound altogether.

The cedilla (¸), typically placed under a letter like 'c', softens its sound to an 's' before certain vowels, as in French "français". The macron (¯) over a vowel often signifies a long vowel sound, found in languages like Latin or Māori. The hook or caron (ˇ) is used in some Slavic languages to indicate palatalization or a distinct consonant sound. While these are just a few examples, the vast array of diacritics demonstrates their crucial role in accurately representing the sounds and nuances of written language across different cultures and linguistic traditions.