Hymenocallis / Ismene
David Ehrlich (Tue, 06 Jul 2010 12:30:25 PDT)

Jim McKenney wrote --
Spanish vowels are technically divided into strong vowels (a,e, o) and weak
vowles (i, u).

How Textbook!  No one ever considers the Y.  In Spanish, the Y is a vowel.  But
when it precedes another vowel in the same syllable it is pronounced as a
palatal glide.  This is not unlike English, where the Y is considered a
semi-vowel.  In English the Y is treated as a palatal glide only when it is
[part of] the opening sound of a syllable; elsewhere it is treated as a vowel.