Editing Romance languages (section)

=== Digraphs and trigraphs ===
Since most Romance languages have more sounds than can be accommodated in the Roman Latin alphabet they all resort to the use of digraphs and trigraphs – combinations of two or three letters with a single phonemic value. The concept (but not the actual combinations) is derived from Classical Latin, which used, for example, ''TH'', ''PH'', and ''CH'' when transliterating the Greek letters "θ", "ϕ" (later "φ"), and "χ". These were once [[aspiration (phonetics)|aspirated]] sounds in Greek before changing to corresponding fricatives, and the ''H'' represented what sounded to the Romans like an {{IPA|/ʰ/}} following {{IPA|/t/}}, {{IPA|/p/}}, and {{IPA|/k/}} respectively. Some of the digraphs used in modern scripts are:<!--THIS TABLE SHOULD PERHAPS BE ORGANIZED BY SOUND RATHER THAN DIGRAPH?-->

:'''CI''': used in Italian, Romance languages in Italy, Corsican and Romanian to represent {{IPA|/tʃ/}} before ''A'', ''O'', or ''U''.
:'''CH''': used in Italian, Romance languages in Italy, Corsican, Romanian, Romansh and [[Sardinian language|Sardinian]] to represent {{IPA|/k/}} before ''E'' or ''I'' (including yod {{IPA|/j/}}); {{IPA|/tʃ/}} in [[Occitan language|Occitan]], Spanish, Astur-leonese and Galician; {{IPA|[c]}} or {{IPA|[tɕ]}} in Romansh before ''A'', ''O'' or ''U''; and {{IPA|/ʃ/}} in most other languages. In Catalan it is used in some old spelling conventions for {{IPA|/k/}}.
:'''DD''': used in [[Sicilian language|Sicilian]] and [[Sardinian language|Sardinian]] to represent the [[voiced retroflex plosive]] {{IPA|/ɖ/}}. In recent history more accurately transcribed as ''DDH''.
:'''DJ''': used in Walloon and Catalan for {{IPA|/dʒ/}}.
:'''GI''': used in Italian, Romance languages in Italy, Corsican and Romanian to represent {{IPA|/dʒ/}} before ''A'', ''O'', or ''U'', and in Romansh to represent {{IPA|[ɟi]}} or {{IPA|/dʑi/}} or (before ''A'', ''E'', ''O'', and ''U'') {{IPA|[ɟ]}} or {{IPA|/dʑ/}}
:'''GH''': used in Italian, Romance languages in Italy, Corsican, Romanian, Romansh and [[Sardinian language|Sardinian]] to represent {{IPA|/ɡ/}} before ''E'' or ''I'' (including yod {{IPA|/j/}}), and in Galician for the [[voiceless pharyngeal fricative]] {{IPA|/ħ/}} (not standard sound).
:'''GL''': used in Romansh before consonants and ''I'' and at the end of words for {{IPA|/ʎ/}}.
:'''GLI''': used in Italian and Corsican for {{IPA|/ʎʎ/}} and Romansh for {{IPA|/ʎ/}}.
:'''GN''': used in French, some Romance languages in Italy, Corsican, Romansh Walloon for {{IPA|/ɲ/}}, as in ''champignon''; in Italian to represent {{IPA|/ɲɲ/}}, as in "ogni" or "lo gnocco".
:'''GU''': used before ''E'' or ''I'' to represent {{IPA|/ɡ/}} or {{IPA|/ɣ/}} in all Romance languages except Italian, Romance languages in Italy, Corsican, Romansh, and Romanian, which use '''GH''' instead.
:'''IG''': used at the end of word in Catalan for {{IPA|/tʃ/}}, as in ''maig'', ''safareig'' or ''enmig''.
:'''IX''': used between vowels or at the end of word in Catalan/Aragonese for {{IPA|/ʃ/}}, as in ''caixa''/''caixa'' or ''calaix''/''calaixo''.
:'''JH''': used in Walloon for /ʒ/ or /h/.
:'''LH''': used in Portuguese and Occitan {{IPA|/ʎ/}}.
:'''LL''': used in Spanish, Catalan, Galician, Astur-leonese, Norman and Dgèrnésiais, originally for {{IPA|/ʎ/}} which has merged in some cases with {{IPA|/j/}}. Represents {{IPA|/l/}} in French unless it follows ''I'' (''i'') when it represents {{IPA|/j/}} (or {{IPA|/ʎ/}} in some dialects). As in Italian, it is used in Occitan for a [[geminate consonant|long]] {{IPA|/ll/}}.
:'''L·L''': used in Catalan for a geminate consonant {{IPA| /ɫɫ/}}.
:'''NH''': used in Portuguese and Occitan for {{IPA|/ɲ/}}, used in official Galician for {{IPA|/ŋ/}} .
:'''N-''': used in Piedmontese and Ligurian for {{IPA|/ŋ/}} between two vowels.
:'''NN''': used in [[Leonese dialect|Leonese]] for {{IPA|/ɲ/}}, in Italian for geminate {{IPA|/nn/}}.
:'''NY''': used in Catalan, Aragonese and Walloon for {{IPA|/ɲ/}}.
:'''QU''': represents {{IPA|/kw/}} in Italian, Romance languages in Italy, and Romansh; {{IPA|/k/}} in French, Astur-leonese (normally before ''e'' or ''i''); {{IPA|/k/}} (before ''e'' or ''i'') or {{IPA|/kw/}} (normally before ''a'' or ''o'') in Occitan, Catalan and Portuguese; {{IPA|/k/}} in Spanish (always before ''e'' or ''i'').
:'''RR''': used between vowels in several languages (Occitan, Catalan, Spanish) to denote a [[trill consonant|trilled]] {{IPA|/r/}} or a [[guttural R]], instead of the [[flap consonant|flap]] {{IPA|/ɾ/}}.
:'''SC''': used before ''E'' or ''I'' in Italian, Romance languages in Italy as {{IPA|/ʃ/ or /ʃʃ/}}, in European Portuguese as {{IPA|/ʃs/}} and in French, Brazilian Portuguese, Catalan and [[Hispanic America|Hispanic American]] Spanish as {{IPA|/s/}} in words of certain etymology (notice this would represent {{IPA|/sθ/}} in standard peninsular Spanish)
:'''SCH''': used in Romansh for {{IPA|[ʃ]}} or {{IPA|[ʒ]}}, in Italian for {{IPA|/sk/}} before ''E'' or ''I'', including yod {{IPA|/j/}}.
:'''SCI''': used in Italian, Romance languages in Italy, and Corsican to represent {{IPA|/ʃ/ or /ʃʃ/}} before ''A'', ''O'', or ''U''.
:'''SH''': used in [[Aranese dialect|Aranese]], Spanish (almost only in foreign words), Occitan and Walloon for {{IPA|/ʃ/}}.
:'''SS''': used in French, Portuguese, Piedmontese, Romansh, Occitan, and Catalan for {{IPA|/s/}} between vowels, in Italian, Romance languages of Italy, and Corsican for long {{IPA|/ss/}}.
:'''TS''': used in Catalan for {{IPA|/ts/}}.
:'''TSH''': used in Walloon for /tʃ/.
:'''TG''': used in Romansh for {{IPA|[c]}} or {{IPA|[tɕ]}}. In Catalan is used for {{IPA|/dʒ/}} before ''E'' and ''I'', as in ''metge'' or ''fetge''.
:'''TH''': used in Jèrriais for {{IPA|/θ/}}; used in Aranese for either {{IPA|/t/}} or {{IPA|/tʃ/}}.
:'''TJ''': used between vowels and before ''A'', ''O'' or ''U'', in Catalan for {{IPA|/dʒ/}}, as in ''sotjar'' or ''mitjó''.
:'''TSCH''': used in Romansh for {{IPA|[tʃ]}}.
:'''TX''': used at the beginning or at the end of word or between vowels in Catalan for {{IPA|/tʃ/}}, as in ''txec'', ''esquitx'' or ''atxa''.
:'''TZ''': used in Catalan for {{IPA|/dz/}}.
:'''XH''': used in Walloon for /ʃ/ or /h/, depending on the dialect.
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While the digraphs ''CH'', ''PH'', ''RH'' and ''TH'' were at one time used in many words of Greek origin, most languages have now replaced them with ''C/QU'', ''F'', ''R'' and ''T''. Only French has kept these [[etymology|etymological]] spellings, which now represent {{IPA|/k/}} or {{IPA|/ʃ/}}, {{IPA|/f/}}, {{IPA|/ʀ/}} and {{IPA|/t/}}, respectively.

==== Double consonants ====
[[Gemination]], in the languages where it occurs, is usually indicated by doubling the consonant, except when it does not contrast phonemically with the corresponding short consonant, in which case gemination is not indicated. In [[Jèrriais]], long consonants are marked with an apostrophe: {{lang|nrf|s's}} is a long {{IPA|/zz/}}, {{lang|nrf|ss's}} is a long {{IPA|/ss/}}, and {{lang|nrf|t't}} is a long {{IPA|/tt/}}. The phonemic contrast between geminate and single consonants is widespread in [[Italian language|Italian]], and normally indicated in the traditional orthography: {{lang|it|fatto}} {{IPA|/fatto/}} 'done' vs. {{lang|it|fato}} {{IPA|/fato/}} 'fate, destiny'; {{lang|it|cadde}} {{IPA|/kadde/}} 's/he, it fell' vs. {{lang|it|cade}} {{IPA|/kade/}} 's/he, it falls'. The double consonants in French orthography, however, are merely etymological. In Catalan, the gemination of {{lang|ca|l}} is marked by a {{lang|ca|[[punt volat]]}} ("flying point"): {{lang|ca|l·l}}.