Pseudacorus, the last word (cross fingers)
- To: i*@Rt66.com
- Subject: Pseudacorus, the last word (cross fingers)
- From: t*@Rt66.com (Tom Tadfor Little)
- Date: Sat, 13 Apr 96 13:01:10 MDT
A few subscribers remarked that although "pseudacorus" comes
from "pseud(o)" + "Acorus", my conclusion about pronunciation
depends on how "Acorus" itself is pronounced. (Some say "a-KOR-us",
apparently.)
This is a good point, so I thought I should research it a bit
more before replying.
It turns out that the correct pronunciation for Acorus has the
stress on the first syllable. It is a Latin word taken from the
Greek "akoros". The first "o" is short in both Greek and Latin.
In Latin, the placement of stress is completely determined by
the spelling (wheter certain vowels are long or short, for
example). In fact, my unabridged dictionary lists "ACK-or-us"
as the only pronunciation. I did find "a-KOR-us" in Coombes's
_Dictionary of Plant Names_, but I don't find that compelling
because that book has some real oddities in its pronunciation
listings, and in any case the rules for placement of stress are
well known to all students of Latin and not subject to interpretation.
I'd like to take mild exception to the opinion that *any*
pronunciation of botanical names is correct, or that the correct
pronunciation can be decided by a popularity poll. In truth,
classical Latin is a phonetic language: pronunciation is determined
by spelling with few or no exceptions. Botanical Latin is a little
different because there are some sounds that may be "Anglicized"
by English speakers; just as English speakers pronounce "Caesar"
as "SEE-zer" where a Roman would have said "KEYE-sar", so we may
anglicize Iris (Roman "EE-ris") to "EYE-ris". However, the flexibility
with respect to some sounds does not make any arbitrary variation in
pronunciation correct. In particular, the placement of stress is
determined by the Latin spelling; it is not at the speaker's discretion.
The point is that there are rules for pronouncing botanical Latin
names in English; some pronunciations are correct, others are not.
To take a more familiar example from everyday English, many people
say "nucular" for "nuclear", but it is not correct, even though it
is common (and even though president Eisenhower said it).
In practical terms, of course, both "SUE-duh-KOR-us" and "Sue-DAK-or-us"
are both widely used; a person can say either one and be understood. I
think it's rude and counterproductive to go around correcting
people about it. However, some people (myself included) do have an
interest in learning the standard rules of pronunciation for species;
those people are entitled to more than "say it however you want".
Happy irising (and happy pronouncing!), Tom.
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Tom Tadfor Little telp@Rt66.com -or- tlittle@LANL.gov
Telperion Productions http://www.rt66.com/~telp/
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