The prosody of Spanish acronyms

This paper presents a first attempt to formally characterize the prosodic properties of Spanish acronyms. Based on the examination of a dataset and the results of a written questionnaire and perception test administered to native speakers, the stress patterns and prosodic size of Spanish acronyms are investigated. We show that stress in acronyms follows the regular stress patterns of the language. We further claim that acronyms are restricted to an upper limit of three syllables, which we explain by resorting to layered feet. Additionally, we show that an interesting minimality requirement applies exclusively to acronyms, one that must be expressed not in terms of syllable weight, but rather in terms of the number of segments.

Automated summary

This paper presents a formal characterization of the prosodic properties of Spanish acronyms for the first time. The stress patterns and prosodic size of Spanish acronyms are investigated through an examination of a dataset and the results of a questionnaire and perception test. The study shows that stress in acronyms follows regular stress patterns and that acronyms are limited to three syllables, which is explained by the theory of layered feet. Additionally, an interesting minimality requirement that applies exclusively to acronyms is discussed.