Spanish (Castilian) is spoken in central and northern regions of Spain including areas where other languages are also official (Galicia, Basque Country, Catalonia, Valencia, and Balearic Islands). There are many varieties, namely Western, Eastern, Northern, and Southern Castilian, and Castilian in bilingual areas. It consists of 19 consonants, 5 vowels, 14 diphthongs, 3 triphthongs, and 13 consonant clusters (tautosyllabic). The writing system shows orthographic transparency. There are several studies of children’s typical acquisition of Spanish (Castilian) that indicate early acquisition of vowels, nasals, and plosives, and later acquisition of the remaining consonants, consonant clusters, and diphthongs. Researchers have focused on children with speech sound disorders, childhood apraxia of speech, dysarthria, cleft lip and palate, genetic syndromes, hearing loss, and cochlear implant. Common speech assessments include: Registro Fonológico Inducido, Prueba de Lenguaje Oral Navarra (PLON), Evaluación Fonológica del Habla Infantil, and Análisis del Retraso del Habla (A-RE-HA). Interventions include speech processing, phonological processes, minimal pairs and auditory discrimination, oral motor exercises, and MetaVox.

Key words: 
Spanish, Castilian, multilingual, communication, speech, language, children’s development, interdisciplinary, international communities, assessment, intervention

Book chapter:
Diez-Itza, E., & Vergara, P. (2025). Spanish (Castilian) speech development. In S. McLeod (Ed.). The Oxford handbook of speech development in languages of the world. Oxford University Press.

Language overview presentation:

• Diez-Itza, E., & Vergara, P. (forthcoming). Spanish (Castilian): Multilingual children’s speech development. Charles Sturt University, Australia. https://www.csu.edu.au/research/multilingual-speech/languages

This presentation relates to the following United Nations Sustainable Development Goals:

• SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being
• SDG 4: Quality Education
• SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities
• SDG 17: Partnerships to Achieve the Goals