Learn Hardcore Spanish (Latin America): Empiezo a estudiar español por la mañana.

Empiezo can only be yo (I) in the present tense.
Adding yo is only needed for emphasis or contrast:
- Yo empiezo a estudiar español por la mañana, pero ella estudia por la noche.
  I start studying Spanish in the morning, but she studies at night.

So Empiezo a estudiar español por la mañana is perfectly natural and actually more typical than Yo empiezo… in neutral, everyday Spanish.

Why do we say empiezo a estudiar and not empiezo estudiar?

With verbs like empezar and comenzar, Spanish normally uses the pattern:

empezar a + infinitive
(to start / begin to do something)

So:

Empiezo a estudiar. = I start to study.
Empieza a trabajar. = He/She starts to work.
Empezamos a leer. = We start to read.

Using empiezo estudiar (without a) is generally incorrect in standard Spanish.
Think of a here as part of the construction empezar a + verb.

What’s the difference between empezar and comenzar? Could I say Comienzo a estudiar español por la mañana?

Empezar and comenzar both mean to begin / to start and are often interchangeable.

Empiezo a estudiar español por la mañana.
Comienzo a estudiar español por la mañana.

Both are correct and sound natural. Some notes:

Empiezar is more common in everyday spoken language in much of the Spanish-speaking world.
Comenzar can sound a little more formal or neutral, but the difference is small and depends on region.

Grammatically, they work the same way:

empezar / comenzar a + infinitive

Why is it por la mañana and not en la mañana?

Both por la mañana and en la mañana are heard in Latin America, but:

por la mañana = most common and most widely accepted way to say in the morning in a general sense.
en la mañana = very common in some Latin American countries (for example, Mexico and parts of the Andes), but less common in Spain.

In this sentence, por la mañana sounds completely natural everywhere and is the safest choice if you want broadly understood Spanish.

What does por add here? How is por la mañana different from saying a specific time like a las ocho de la mañana?

Por la mañana expresses a general time period, not a specific clock time.

Por la mañana = in the morning (sometime during the morning, generally)
A las ocho de la mañana = at 8 in the morning (exact time)

So:

Empiezo a estudiar español por la mañana.
I start studying Spanish in the morning (no specific hour).
Empiezo a estudiar español a las ocho de la mañana.
I start studying Spanish at 8 a.m. (precise time).

Use por + [part of day] for approximate / habitual time, and a las + [hora] de la mañana for a specific time of day.

Why is it por la mañana and not just por mañana?

In Spanish, parts of the day almost always take a definite article:

la mañana (the morning)
la tarde (the afternoon / evening)
la noche (the night)

So the usual expressions are:

por la mañana – in the morning
por la tarde – in the afternoon / evening
por la noche – at night

Por mañana alone is not used to mean in the morning. Without context, mañana alone usually means tomorrow.

How do I know when mañana means morning and when it means tomorrow?

Context and surrounding words tell you:

Mañana = morning when used with an article or time expression:

la mañana – the morning
por la mañana – in the morning
esta mañana – this morning
mañana por la mañana – tomorrow morning

Mañana = tomorrow when it appears without an article and refers to a future time:

Mañana estudio español. – I study Spanish tomorrow.
Nos vemos mañana. – See you tomorrow.

In your sentence, por la mañana is clearly in the morning, not tomorrow.

Why is español not capitalized here? In English we write Spanish with a capital S.

In Spanish:

Languages are written with a lowercase letter:
- español, inglés, francés, alemán
Nationalities as adjectives are also lowercase:
- soy español, soy mexicana

They are only capitalized when they are part of a proper name or a title:

Departamento de Español
Facultad de Lenguas: Español e Inglés

So in your sentence, español is correctly lowercase.

Shouldn’t it be el español (with el) since we’re talking about the Spanish language?

Both forms are possible, but they are used slightly differently:

Without article (more common in this type of sentence):
- Empiezo a estudiar español.
  I’m starting to study Spanish (the language, in general).
With article:
- Empiezo a estudiar el español.
  Grammatically correct, but it can sound more specific or academic in many contexts, like talking about the language as an object of study (linguistics, grammar, etc.).

In everyday speech about learning the language, most speakers say simply:

Estudio español.
Estoy aprendiendo español.

So your sentence Empiezo a estudiar español por la mañana is the most natural version.

Why is the verb empiezo spelled with ie instead of e like the infinitive empezar?

Empezar is a stem-changing verb (also called a boot verb or shoe verb) of type e → ie in the present tense.

The e in the stem changes to ie in most present-tense forms:

yo empiezo
tú empiezas
él / ella / usted empieza
nosotros / nosotras empezamos ← no change
vosotros / vosotras empezáis ← no change
ellos / ellas / ustedes empiezan

So empiezo is the correct yo form in the present tense.

Can I say Me empiezo a estudiar español por la mañana?

No. Empezar is not reflexive in this sentence.

Empiezo a estudiar español. = I begin to study Spanish.

Using me empiezo would imply a reflexive meaning like I start myself, which doesn’t fit here.

There is a reflexive form empezarse in some expressions, but it’s not used with this meaning. Stick to:

Empiezo a estudiar español por la mañana.

Could I change the word order and say Empiezo por la mañana a estudiar español?

Yes, that word order is grammatically correct, but it sounds a bit less neutral and more marked or stylized. The most natural and common order is:

Empiezo a estudiar español por la mañana.

Alternative orders are possible, depending on what you want to emphasize:

Por la mañana empiezo a estudiar español.
Slight emphasis on por la mañana (In the mornings, I start studying Spanish).

All of these are correct, but the original is the most typical everyday pattern.

Does empiezo here mean I start (right now) or I usually start (a habit)?

In Spanish, the simple present can express both:

Habitual actions:
- Empiezo a estudiar español por la mañana.
  I start studying Spanish in the morning (as a routine / habit).
Actions happening now (less common with empezar, but possible with context):
- Ahora empiezo a estudiar español.
  Now I’m starting to study Spanish.

In your sentence, with no extra time marker, it most naturally means a habitual action: something you usually do in the mornings.

How would I say I’m going to start studying Spanish in the morning instead?

To express a near future intention, you can use:

Ir a + infinitive

So:

Voy a empezar a estudiar español por la mañana.
I’m going to start studying Spanish in the morning.

Here:

Voy = I’m going
a empezar = to start
a estudiar = to study

Your original sentence is present tense (habit).
This new one is near future (intention).

How would I say I start studying Spanish every morning?

You can add an expression of frequency:

Empiezo a estudiar español todas las mañanas.
I start studying Spanish every morning.

Notes:

todas las mañanas = every morning (literally: all the mornings).
You keep the same structure empiezo a estudiar español and just modify por la mañana into todas las mañanas to show repetition.