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Acronym

It is called acronym, in a broad sense, to the voice formed from elements of others. The process for creating these types of neologisms is called acronym.

When an acronym is formed, a new word is created with a specific and particular meaning that is not necessarily the sum of the meanings of the parts, but that evokes them, whether in a literal, figurative or ironic sense.

The term comes from the Greek acros 'extreme' and refers to the fact that such a lexical construction was originally formed with the sounds that are at the end of each of the words it contains. Nowadays, however, the mechanisms for the formation of acronyms are broader.

1 Types

More precisely, and according to the RAE Dictionary, it can refer to two concepts, although in a certain number of cases the border between the two is diffuse (as in sonar).

• In the first meaning, it is a type of acronym:

Acronym whose configuration allows its pronunciation as a word; p. eg, UFO: unidentified flying object; _ _ _ ICT, information and communication technologies. _

• In the second, it receives other names by other authors such as the word hanger, lexical crossing or combination (Mervyn Lang):

Word formed by the union of elements of two or more words, constituted by the beginning of the first and the end of the last, p. eg, ofi(cine in)matics > office automation; or, frequently, by other combinations, e.g. e.g., so(und) n(avigation) a(nd) r(anging) > sonar.

2 Acronym

2.1 Formation

In the acronym based on acronyms, the initials of the words used to create the acronym are taken, with the occasional inclusion of other letters that allow the result to be adjusted to the guidelines of the general lexicon, in writing and pronunciation. A typical case is Renfe, formed with the initials of Red Nacional de Ferrocarriles Españoles and the e of the first word, so that it is a proper name that can be pronounced /rrénfe/.

2.2 Case sensitive

Since the acronyms of acronyms are pronounced like words, that is, not spelled, they can be considered new terms and written entirely in lowercase if they are common names (laser, pyme, opa, ovni), or in lowercase with an initial capital letter if they are proper names (Unesco). Writing in lowercase would be appropriate when the acronym has spread in general use and in various fields, but in newly formed ones, especially when they have four letters or less, capital letters are normal.

They are not, however, fixed rules and it may also depend on the decision of those who coined the word, since there are acronyms that are already created directly in lowercase (such as rad, which is an acronym for radiation absorbed dose).

This rule does not affect acronyms that are not acronyms, which can sometimes generate certain inconsistencies, such as takeover bid versus IPO (which must be capitalized because it is spelled).

3 Acronym (words)

In its original form, the acronym is a type of composition that is formed by joining an initial fragment of the first word with a final fragment of the second ^[1].

Tele vision + doll > muppet

The fragments that are combined usually coincide with syllabic groups, but it is not a condition that is always fulfilled.

dulc e + mel ifluo > dulcifluo

It is also possible to find acronyms in which only one of the words is shortened while the other is kept:

bací a + yelmo > baciyelmo

The acronym of this type exists in Spanish since ancient times; for example, from Quevedo we have alcamadre (pimp + mother), from Lope de Rueda necenciados (fool + lawyer) and in Don Quixote we have baciyelmo (from basin and helmet).

3.1 Acronym series

Sometimes, series of words are formed by acronym in which the first element is common, so that it works as a prefix with a new meaning; it is a composition, often with educated bases. These series are sometimes called acronym series (GDLE, 5089). Some of them have a parallel with an already existing prefix.

Element	Original	New	examples
Photo-	light	of photography	photomontage, photogenic
TV-	far	from the television	viewer, soap opera
docu-		of the documentary	docuseries, docudrama
homo-	same	of homosexuality	homophobic
car-	itself	of the automobile	carwash
radio-	lightning, radiation	of broadcasting	radio listener, radio soap opera
euro-		Europe	eurozone, euromarket (eurofan, of Eurovision)
info-		of the information	infographic
heli-		of the helicopters	helipad, heliported
narco-		of narcotics	drug trafficking
Petro-	stone	of the oil	petrodollar
echo-	dwelling	of ecology	ecotourism, ecotax

3.2 Types of acronyms

Frequent cases.

different types of acronyms
Prototypical: initial fragment and final fragment of two words.	dramedy (<drama+comedy); feeling (<feeling+thought)
Fragment of a word combined with another complete word.	baciyelmo (<bacia+helmet); choripán (<chorizo+bread)
Topic and word fragment, in one order or another.	muppet (<television [subject: tele] + doll)
with initial elements.	modem (modulator + demodulator); hot dog (bread + sausage)