Editing IJ (digraph) (section)

{{Short description|Latin-script digraph}}
[[File:Latin ligature IJ.svg|thumb|IJ digraph]]
{{Dutch grammar}}
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< Richardw NL / 2007-10-15T0717                                                   >
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'''IJ''' (lowercase '''ij'''; {{IPA|nl|ɛi|nl|Nl-IJ.ogg}}; also encountered as [[Unicode compatibility characters]] Ĳ and ĳ) is a [[Digraph (orthography)|digraph]] of the letters ''i'' and ''j''. Occurring in the [[Dutch language]], it is sometimes considered a [[Ligature (writing)|ligature]], or a letter in itself. In most fonts that have a separate character for ''ij'', the two composing parts are not connected but are separate [[glyph]]s, which are sometimes slightly [[Kerning|kerned]].

An ''ij'' in written Dutch usually represents the [[diphthong]] {{IPA |[ɛi]}}, similar to the pronunciation of {{angbr|ay}} in "p'''ay'''",<ref>{{Citation | first = GE | last = Booij | title = The Phonology of Dutch | publisher = Oxford University Press | year = 1995 | page = 4 | isbn = 9780198238690 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=LT6E6YdAh-MC&q=phonology-of-dutch&pg=PP12 | format = Google Books}}</ref> and is preserved in such Dutch spellings as the place-name [[IJsselmeer]]. In standard Dutch and most Dutch [[dialect]]s, there are two possible spellings for the diphthong {{IPA|[ɛi]}}: ''ij'' and ''ei'', with no clear usage rules. To distinguish between the two, the ''ij'' is referred to as the {{Lang|nl|lange ij|italic=yes}} ("long ''ij''"), the ''ei'' as {{Lang|nl|korte ei|italic=yes}} ("short ''ei''") or simply ''E – I''.<ref>{{Citation | title = Woordenlijst Nederlandse Taal | language = nl | pages = 22–23}}.</ref> In certain Dutch dialects (notably [[West Flemish]] and [[Zeelandic]]) and the [[Dutch Low Saxon]] dialects of [[Low German]], a difference in the pronunciation of ''ei'' and ''ij'' is maintained. Whether it is pronounced identically to ''ei'' or not, the pronunciation of ''ij'' is often perceived as difficult by people who do not have either sound in their native language.

The ''ij'' originally represented a 'long i'.<ref name="IJ origins">{{cite web |url=https://onzetaal.nl/taaladvies/advies/ij-oorsprong-van-de-lange-ij |title=IJ: oorsprong van de lange ij |work=Genootschap Onze Taal |language=nl}}</ref> It used to be written as ''ii'', as in [[Finnish language|Finnish]] and [[Estonian language|Estonian]], but for orthographic purposes, the second ''i'' was eventually elongated, which is a reason why it is called {{lang|nl|lange ij}}. This can still be seen in the pronunciation of some words like {{lang|nl|bijzonder}} ({{IPA|bi.zɔn.dər}}), and the etymology of some words in the Dutch form of several foreign placenames: [[Berlin]] and [[Paris]] are spelled {{Lang|nl|Berlijn}} and {{Lang|nl|Parijs}}. Nowadays, the pronunciation mostly follows the spelling, and they are pronounced with {{IPA |[ɛi]}}. The ''ij'' is distinct from the letter ''[[y]]''. Particularly when writing capitals, Y used to be common instead of IJ in the past. That practice has long been deprecated, since 1804. In scientific disciplines such as [[mathematics]] and [[physics]], the symbol ''y'' is usually pronounced ''ij'' in Dutch.<ref name="IJ in alphabet Onze Taal">{{cite web |url=https://onzetaal.nl/taaladvies/advies/ij-plaats-in-alfabet |title=IJ: plaats in alfabet |work=Genootschap Onze Taal |language=nl |access-date=3 January 2015}}</ref>

To distinguish the ''Y'' from ''IJ'' in common speech, however, ''Y'' is often called {{Lang|nl|Griekse ij|italic=yes}} (meaning "Greek ''Y''"), a literal translation of ''{{Lang|fr|i-grec}}'' (from [[French language|French]], with the stress on ''grec'': {{IPA|nl|iˈɡrɛk|}}) or alternatively called ''[[Ypsilon]]''. In modern Dutch, the letter ''Y'' occurs only in [[loanword]]s,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://onzetaal.nl/taaladvies/advies/y-klinker-medeklinker |title=Y (klinker / medeklinker) |work=Genootschap Onze Taal |language=nl |access-date=3 January 2015}}</ref> proper nouns, or when deliberately spelled as Early Modern Dutch. The spelling of [[Afrikaans]] (a [[daughter language]] of early modern Dutch) has evolved in the exact opposite direction and ''IJ'' has been completely replaced by ''Y''. 

However, the ancient use of Y in Dutch has survived in some personal names, particularly those of [[Dutch diaspora|Dutch immigrants]] in the [[United States]], [[Canada]], [[Australia]] and [[New Zealand]] where as a result of [[anglicization]], the ''IJ'' became a ''Y''. For example, the surname ''{{Lang|nl|Spijker}}'' was often changed into ''Spyker'' and ''Snijder'' into ''[[Snyder (surname)|Snyder]]''.
[[File:IJ (letter).svg|thumb|The words ''{{Lang|nl|ijsvrij}}'' and ''yoghurt'' in various forms. Depending on the form of handwriting or font used, the IJ and Y can look either nearly identical or very different.]]
[[File:Comparison of normal and italic of ij and ÿ.svg|thumb|Apt to confusion: (1) i + j, (2) ligature ij, (3) y with diaeresis, (4) y; all in [[Garamond]] typeface]]
[[File:Logo Rijksmuseum.svg|thumb|Logo of the [[Rijksmuseum]] in Amsterdam.]]
[[File:Station Rijssen.jpg|thumb|Two signs of [[Rijssen railway station]], each using a different format]]
[[File:Spandoek Hengelo.jpg|thumb|IJ here is written as one letter.]]
[[File:Graffiti viaduct boven A1.jpg|thumb|Here, IJ is written as Y.]]