Literation

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The repeated use of the same starting letter or sound in several words placed close together in a phrase or line
2. Placing identical opening letters on successive words so that they echo one another, as in alliteration
3. A stylistic device in which the same initial consonant recurs across neighboring words to create a patterned sound

Etymology: The root of "alliteration" is the Latin "littera," meaning "letter," which also gave English "letter" and "literature." The word in question is a compound: "al-" is a form of "ad-" ("to"), which assimilated to "al-" before the "l" of "littera," so the whole thing reads as "to the letter," or the repetition of a letter at the start of words. The formation follows the same pattern as other English words built on Latin "littera," which is why the sound-repetition sense sits so close to the literal idea of letters.