RE: paleonet Latin (written/pronounced)

["Judith Harris" <harrisj@xxxxxxx>]

Just pronounce it in a way that satisfies yourself. The written word is the
stable part here. If you like the spoken word, I do, then satisfy yourself
with what makes sense to say. I think that I will take up Arkeeo terix in
the saying, not in the writing.

Judith Harris

-----Original Message-----
From: paleonet-owner@nhm.ac.uk [mailto:paleonet-owner@nhm.ac.uk]On
Behalf Of D.Mclean
Sent: Monday, July 29, 2002 3:15 AM
To: paleonet@nhm.ac.uk
Subject: paleonet Latin (written/pronounced)


Archaeopteryx has always bugged me, not because I know any
Latin, but because the (mis) pronounciation obscures the message
that is in the name. More so in cases where the taxon has been
named in honour of somebody, and that name is mispronounced. A
particular example is the extant plant genus Fuchsia, named after
an eminent German botanist, and which in England (at least) is
pronounced "Fyu-sha" sinply because it just not done to pronounce
the German Fuchs in public. What!
However, I suggest that there are pretty slim odds on getting a. the
taxonomic community, b. the wider palaeontological community
and c. the public at large to change their favoured pronounciations
in favour of a correct standard. Maybe we should resign ourselves
to ensuring that the names always appear on the Powerpoint
screen. That way, no matter how wayward our attempts at Latin
may be, they can always be understood. Coming, as I do, from the
northeast of England where the accent (when speaking in English
never mind Latin) is unintelligible to most other Britons, I can
recommend this from experience.

Duncan McLean