Dutch Alphabet

The letters are:

A - B - C - D - E - F - G - H - I - J - K - L - M - N - O - P - Q - R - S - T - U - V - W - X - ( Y or) IJ - Z

The ''Q'' only appears in Words Borrowed From Other Languages . The ''X'' and ''Y'' also occur mostly in loanwords, but also in some words and names which harken back to older spellings. Officially, the ''Y'' is not part of the Dutch alphabet.

Placement of the ''IJ'' is problematic: it usually replaces the ''Y'' and does so in the standard alphabet listing (the alphabet ends ''X'', ''IJ'', ''Z''). However, in some cases ''Y'' is inserted between ''X'' and ''IJ'', making ''Z'' the 27th letter. Collation is even more confused, with ''IJ'' either being sorted as a combination ''I''+''J'', among ''Y'', after ''Y'' as an additional entry. In dictionaries, ij is treated as a digraph, sorting words beginning with ij between ih and ik. Telephone directories sort the ij as if it were a y (because many surnames have nonstandard spellings: Bruijn may also be spelled Bruyn).

The vowels are:

A - E - I - O - U - and some consider IJ a vowel as well.

Because IJ consists of a vowel and a non-vowel, it is not clear whether IJ is a vowel or not.

IJ is most often written with an I and J letter as a Ligature 'IJ'. As a ligature, it is nearly always counted as a single letter, and therefore is always capitalized as one whole when needed: ''ijs'' (ice) is written ''IJs'' at the start of a sentence, and not ''Ijs''.
Note however that in some southern ( Flemish ) dialects the IJ is used as a Digraph and counted as two letters, and the capitalization rule is therefore not followed. In the southern Netherlands the capitalization rule is followed, though it is usually counted as a digraph. See IJ (letter) for more information on this letter, including status and Collation .

"E" is the mostly frequently used letter in the Dutch alphabet, usually presenting a Schwa sound. The least frequently used letters are "Q", "X", and ''Y''.

Information About

Dutch Alphabet