[Taxacom] pronunciation of Latin, concluding remarks

[Richard Zander]

Amen. When I see a sign of confusion on a Spanish-speaking person's face
after mention of a Latin name (in English, as usual in the US), I say it
again in Spanish pronunciation. This is a joy, because knowing stuff is
a joy. 

I do know American scientists who cannot pronounce Spanish in anything
but English pronunciation. This could be attributed to some
developmental aberration but I think it is psychological and should be
fixed. 

Sure, it is impossible to pronounce the Spanish v or g, but that is a
burden on English speakers that is part of the fabric of reality. It is
also impossible for an English speaker to pronounce any word in French
without attaching a rubber band between your lower incisors holding your
tongue down. But tourists in Paris are able to spend money in spite of
this. 

This topic is largely advice for world travelers or those with grad
students from other lands. There is no general solution. Precision is
the enemy of accuracy. We all struggle to be understood, except those
that don't care.
 

* * * * * * * * * * * *
Richard H. Zander
Missouri Botanical Garden, PO Box 299, St. Louis, MO 63166-0299 USA  
Web sites: http://www.mobot.org/plantscience/resbot/ and
http://www.mobot.org/plantscience/bfna/bfnamenu.htm
Modern Evolutionary Systematics Web site:
http://www.mobot.org/plantscience/resbot/21EvSy.htm
UPS and FedExpr -  MBG, 4344 Shaw Blvd, St. Louis 63110 USA

On 3/20/2012 10:35 AM, Roger Burks wrote:
> It is not greatly surprising to me to find North American individuals 
> expressing helplessness here, with Europeans expressing empowerment.

 From the posts here on Taxacom, I get exactly the opposite sense: that
it is the Europeans who whine about the way Anglophones pronounce Latin,
and how they can't possibly be expected to learn it, whereas the
Anglophones are willing to learn new pronunciations and adapt to their
audiences, as long as others don't tell them that their centuries-old
rules for pronunciation in their native language are an aberration.

-- 
Curtis Clark        http://www.csupomona.edu/~jcclark
Biological Sciences                   +1 909 869 4140
Cal Poly Pomona, Pomona CA 91768