The Royal Spanish Academy ( es, Real Academia Española, generally abbreviated as RAE) is Spain's official royal institution with a mission to ensure the stability of the

Spanish language Spanish ( or , Castilian) is a Romance languages, Romance language of the Indo-European language family that evolved from colloquial Latin spoken on the Iberian peninsula. Today, it is a world language, global language with more than 500 millio ...

. It is based in

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

, Spain, and is affiliated with national language academies in 22 other

Hispanophone Hispanophone and Hispanic refers to anything relating to the Spanish language (the Hispanosphere). In a cultural, rather than merely linguistic sense, the notion of "Hispanophone" goes further than the above definition. The Hispanic culture is th ...

nations through the

Association of Academies of the Spanish Language The Association of Academies of the Spanish Language ( es, Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española, ASALE) is an entity whose end is to work for the unity, integrity, and growth of the Spanish language. It was created in Mexico in 1951 an ...

. The RAE's emblem is a fiery crucible, and its

motto A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. Mot ...

is ("It purifies, it fixes, and it dignifies"). The RAE dedicates itself to

language planning In sociolinguistics, language planning (also known as language engineering) is a deliberate effort to influence the function, structure or acquisition of languages or language varieties within a speech community.Kaplan B., Robert, and Richard ...

by applying

linguistic prescription Linguistic prescription, or prescriptive grammar, is the establishment of rules defining preferred usage of language. These rules may address such linguistic aspects as spelling, pronunciation, vocabulary, syntax, and semantics. Sometimes infor ...

aimed at promoting linguistic unity within and between various territories, to ensure a common standard. The proposed language guidelines are shown in a number of works.

History

The Royal Spanish Academy was founded in 1713, modeled after the

Accademia della Crusca The Accademia della Crusca (; "Academy of the Bran"), generally abbreviated as La Crusca, is a Florence-based society of scholars of Italian linguistics and philology. It is one of the most important research institutions of the Italian language ...

(1582), of Italy, and the

Académie Française An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary education, secondary or tertiary education, tertiary higher education, higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membershi ...

(1635), of France, with the purpose "to fix the voices and vocabularies of the Spanish language with propriety, elegance, and purity". King

Philip V Philip V may refer to: * Philip V of Macedon (221–179 BC) * Philip V of France (1293–1322) * Philip II of Spain, also Philip V, Duke of Burgundy (1526–1598) * Philip V of Spain Philip V ( es, Felipe; 19 December 1683 – 9 July 1746) was ...

approved its constitution on 3 October 1714, placing it under the Crown's protection. Its aristocratic founder, ,

Duke of Escalona Duke of Escalona ( es, Duque de Escalona) is a hereditary title in the Peerage of Spain, accompanied by the dignity of Grandee and granted in 1472 by Henry IV to Juan Pacheco, 1st Marquess of Villena. The title refers to the village Escalo ...

and

Marquess of Villena Marquess of Villena ( es, Marqués de Villena) is a hereditary title in the Peerage of Spain, granted in 1445 by John II to Juan Pacheco, Grand Master of the Order of Santiago and later also 1st Duke of Escalona. It was originally founded as a ...

, described its aims as "to assure that Spanish speakers will always be able to read

Cervantes Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra (; 29 September 1547 (assumed) – 22 April 1616 Old Style and New Style dates, NS) was an Early Modern Spanish writer widely regarded as the greatest writer in the Spanish language and one of the world's pre-emin ...

" – by exercising a progressive up-to-date maintenance of the formal language. The RAE began establishing rules for the orthography of Spanish beginning in 1741 with the first edition of the (spelled from the second edition onwards). The proposals of the Academy became the official norm in Spain by royal decree in 1844, and they were also gradually adopted by the Spanish-speaking countries in the Americas. Several reforms were introduced in the (1959, New Norms of Prosody and Orthography). Since the establishment of the Association of Academies of the Spanish Language in 1951, the Spanish academy works in close consultation with the other Spanish language academies in its various works and projects. The 1999 Orthography was the first to be edited by the twenty two academies together. The current rules and practical recommendations on spelling are presented in the latest edition of the (2010). The headquarters, opened in 1894, is located at Calle Felipe IV, 4, in the ward of Jerónimos, next to the

Museo del Prado The Prado Museum ( ; ), officially known as Museo Nacional del Prado, is the main Spanish national art museum, located in central Madrid. It is widely considered to house one of the world's finest collections of European art, dating from the ...

. The Center for the Studies of the Royal Spanish Academy, opened in 2007, is located at Calle Serrano 187–189.

Fundamentals

According to Salvador Gutiérrez, an academic numerary of the institution, the Academy does not dictate the rules but studies the language, collects information and presents it. The rules of the language are simply the continued use of expressions, some of which are collected by the Academy. Although he also says that it is important to read and write correctly. Article 1 of the statutes of the Royal Spanish Academy, translated from Spanish, says the following:

Composition

Members of the Academy are known as ( en, Academic Numerary), chosen from among prestigious people within the arts and sciences, including several Spanish-language authors, known as The Immortals (Spanish: ), similarly to their

French Academy French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

counterparts. The numeraries (Spanish: ''Números)'' are elected for life by the other academicians. Each academician holds a seat labeled with a letter from the

Spanish alphabet Spanish orthography is the orthography used in the Spanish language. The alphabet uses the Latin script. The spelling is fairly phonemic, especially in comparison to more opaque orthographies like English, having a relatively consistent mapping ...

, although upper and lower case letters denote separate seats. Países con Academia de la Lengua Española

The Academy has included Latin American members from the time of

Rafael María Baralt Rafael María Baralt y Pérez (3 July 1810 - 4 January 1860) was a Venezuelan diplomat and one of the country's most famed writers, philologists, and historians. He was the first Latin American to occupy a chair at the Real Academia Española. B ...

, although some Spanish-speaking countries have their own academies of the language.

Current members

Notable past academicians

Niceto Alcalá-Zamora Niceto Alcalá-Zamora y Torres (6 July 1877 – 18 February 1949) was a Spanish lawyer and politician who served, briefly, as the first prime minister of the Second Spanish Republic, and then—from 1931 to 1936—as its president. Early life ...

Vicente Aleixandre Vicente Pío Marcelino Cirilo Aleixandre y Merlo (; 26 April 1898 – 14 December 1984) was a Spanish poet who was born in Seville. Aleixandre received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1977 "for a creative poetic writing which illuminates ma ...

Dámaso Alonso Dámaso Alonso y Fernández de las Redondas (22 October 1898 – 25 January 1990) was a Spanish poet, philologist and literary critic. Though a member of the Generation of '27, his best-known work dates from the 1940s onwards. Early life and ed ...

* " Azorín" * Vicente Bacallar y Sanna *

Pío Baroja Pío Baroja y Nessi (28 December 1872 – 30 October 1956) was a Spanish writer, one of the key novelists of the Generation of '98. He was a member of an illustrious family. His brother Ricardo was a painter, writer and engraver, and his nephew ...

Jacinto Benavente Jacinto Benavente y Martínez (12 August 1866 – 14 July 1954) was one of the foremost Spanish dramatists of the 20th century. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1922 "for the happy manner in which he has continued the illustriou ...

Carlos Bousoño Carlos Bousoño Prieto (9 May 1923 – 24 October 2015) was a Spanish poet and literary critic. His work is frequently associated with the post-Spanish Civil War literary group. Bousoño was a recipient of both the National Prize for Spanish Lite ...

Manuel Bretón de los Herreros Manuel Bretón de los Herreros (19 December 17968 November 1873) was a Spanish dramatist. Biography He was born in Quel ( Logrono), and was educated at Madrid. Enlisting on 24 May 1812, he served against the French in Valencia and Catalonia, a ...

Camilo José Cela Camilo José Cela y Trulock, 1st Marquess of Iria Flavia (; 11 May 1916 – 17 January 2002) was a Spanish novelist, poet, story writer and essayist associated with the Generation of '36 movement. He was awarded the 1989 Nobel Prize in Literat ...

Miguel Delibes Miguel Delibes Setién Medal of Merit in Labour, MML (; 17 October 1920 – 12 March 2010) was a Spanish novelist, journalist and newspaper editor associated with the Generation of '36 movement. From 1975 until his death, he was a member of the ...

José Echegaray José Echegaray y Eizaguirre (19 April 183214 September 1916) was a Spanish civil engineer, mathematician, statesman, and one of the leading Spanish dramatists of the last quarter of the 19th century. He was awarded the 1904 Nobel Prize in Li ...

Wenceslao Fernández Flórez Wenceslao Fernández Flórez (1885 in A Coruña, Galicia – 1964 in Madrid) was a popular Galician journalist and novelist of the early 20th century. Throughout his career, he retained an intense fondness for the land of his birth. Early l ...

Gaspar Melchor de Jovellanos Gaspar Melchor de Jovellanos (born Gaspar Melchor de Jove y Llanos, 5 January 1744 – 27 November 1811) was a Spanish neoclassical statesman, author, philosopher and a major figure of the Age of Enlightenment in Spain. Life and influence of ...

Antonio Machado Antonio Cipriano José María y Francisco de Santa Ana Machado y Ruiz (26 July 1875 – 22 February 1939), known as Antonio Machado, was a Spanish poet and one of the leading figures of the Spanish literary movement known as the Generation ...

Salvador de Madariaga Salvador de Madariaga y Rojo (23 July 1886 – 14 December 1978) was a Spanish diplomat, writer, historian, and pacifist. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature, and the Nobel Peace Prize. He was awarded the Charlemagne Prize in 197 ...

Julián Marías Julián Marías Aguilera (17 June 1914 – 15 December 2005) was a Spanish philosopher associated with the Generation of '36 movement. He was a pupil of the Spanish philosopher José Ortega y Gasset and member of the Madrid School.A. Pablo I ...

Francisco Martínez de la Rosa Francisco de Paula Martínez de la Rosa y Cornejo (March 10, 1787 – February 7, 1862) was a Spanish statesman and dramatist and the first prime minister of Spain to receive the title of ''President of the Council of Ministers''. Biography He ...

Ramón Menéndez Pidal Ramón Menéndez Pidal (; 13 March 1869 – 14 November 1968) was a Spanish philologist and historian."Ramon Menendez Pidal", ''Almanac of Famous People'' (2011) ''Biography in Context'', Gale, Detroit He worked extensively on the history of t ...

Armando Palacio Valdés Armando Palacio Valdés (4 October 185329 January 1938) was a Spanish novelist and critic. Biography Armando Francisco Bonifacio Palacio y Rodríguez-Valdés was born at Entralgo in the province of Asturias on 4 October 1853, eldest son of Silver ...

José María de Pereda José María de Pereda (born 6 February 1833, Polanco, Cantabria – died 1 March 1906, Polanco) was a modern Spanish novelist, and a Member of the Royal Spanish Academy. Life Pereda was educated at the Institute Cántabro of Santander, whence ...

Benito Pérez Galdós Benito Pérez Galdós (May 10, 1843 – January 4, 1920) was a Spanish Spanish Realist literature, realist novelist. He was the leading literary figure in 19th-century Spain, and some scholars consider him second only to Miguel de Cervantes ...

Manuel José Quintana Manuel José Quintana y Lorenzo (April 11, 1772 - March 11, 1857), was a Spanish poet and man of letters. Life He was born at Madrid. After completing his studies at Salamanca he was called to the bar. In 1801 Quintana produced a tragedy, ''El D ...

Gonzalo Torrente Ballester Gonzalo Torrente Ballester (13 June 1910 – 27 January 1999) was a Spanish writer associated with the Generation of '36 movement. Life He was born in Serantes, Ferrol, Galicia, and received his first education there, subsequently attendi ...

* Juan Valera *

José Zorrilla José Zorrilla y Moral () was a Spanish poet and dramatist, who became National Laureate. Biography Zorrilla was born in Valladolid to a magistrate in whom Ferdinand VII placed special confidence. He was educated by the Jesuits at the Real Se ...

Publications

;Joint publications of the RAE and the Association of Academies of the Spanish Language *

Diccionario de la lengua española The ''Diccionario de la lengua española'' (DLE; ; en, Dictionary of the Spanish language), previously known as ''Diccionario de la Real Academia Española'' (DRAE; en, Dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy), is produced, edited, and publish ...

(Spanish Language Dictionary). The 1st edition was published in 1780, the 22nd edition in 2001 and the 23rd edition in 2014, which since 2001 can be consulted online for free as of October 2017 and was published in Spain and other Spanish-speaking countries to mark the tricentennial of the founding of the RAE. ** The ''Diccionario esencial de la lengua española'' (Essential Dictionary of the Spanish Language) was published in 2006 as a compendium of the 22nd edition of the Dictionary of the Spanish Language. * Ortografía de la lengua española (Spanish Language Orthography). The 1st edition was published in 1741 and the latest edition in 2010. The edition of 1999 was the first spelling book to cover the whole Hispanic world, replacing the ''Nuevas normas de prosodia y ortografía'' (New Rules for Prosody and Spelling) of 1959. * Nueva gramática de la lengua española (New Spanish Language Grammar, 1st edition: 1771, latest edition: 2009). The latest edition is the first grammar to cover the whole Hispanic world, replacing the prior ''Gramática de la lengua española'' (Grammar of the Spanish Language, 1931) and the ''Esbozo de una Nueva gramática de la lengua española'' (Outline of a New Grammar of the Spanish Language, 1973). The ''Nueva gramática de la lengua española'' is available in 3 different versions: The ''Edición completa'' (Complete Edition) includes 3,800 pages in two volumes to describe morphology and syntax (published December 4, 2009) plus a third volume of phonetics and phonology and a DVD (early 2010). ** The ''Manual'' edition is a single 750-page volume, which was presented at the 5th Congress of the Spanish Language which convened virtually in Valparaíso, Chile, due to the

earthquake An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from ...

, and was released on April 23, 2010. ** The ''Gramática básica'' (Basic Grammar) is a 305-page volume directed to people who received secondary education, and which can be adaptable for school use; it was first published in 2011. ** The RAE has also published two other works by individual editors: ''Gramática de la lengua española'' (Grammar of the Spanish Language, by Emilio Alarcos Llorach, 1994) and ''Gramática descriptiva de la lengua española'' (Descriptive Grammar of the Spanish Language, 3 volumes, directed by Ignacio Bosque and Violeta Demonte, 1999). *

Diccionario panhispánico de dudas The ''Diccionario panhispánico de dudas'' (Pan-Hispanic Dictionary of Doubts) or ''DPD'' is an elaborate work undertaken by the Real Academia Española (RAE – Royal Spanish Academy) and the Association of Spanish Language Academies with the goal ...

(Pan-Hispanic Dictionary of Doubts, 1st edition: 2005). Resolves doubts related to the use of the Spanish language. Can be consulted online since 2006. * ''Diccionario del estudiante'' (Student's Dictionary, 1st edition: 2005). Directed to students in secondary education between 12 and 18 years-old. ** ''Diccionario práctico del estudiante'' (Student's Practical Dictionary, 1st edition: 2007) is an adapted version for Latin America of the Student's Dictionary. * ''Diccionario de americanismos'' (Dictionary of Americanisms) is a listing of Spanish language terms of the Americas and their meaning. First edition published in 2010.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Real Academia Espanola 1713 establishments in Spain Bien de Interés Cultural landmarks in Madrid Language regulators

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

Organizations established in 1713 S Spanish language academies