Pronouncing Names
- Thread starter NomadMike
- Start date
Pal - ann - tie - dees
Tess - fon
Thoth - am - on
would be how I'd pronounce them. It is fair to point out that other pronounciations would be just as legitimate - we don't know how Howard pronounced them himself and historians often pronounce historical names in different ways (some would pronounce, I n English, Cyrus as sigh - russ, others as Ky - roos).
So long as how you pronounce it is consistent and doesn't sound silly to you or your players, it'll be right.
Tess - fon
Thoth - am - on
would be how I'd pronounce them. It is fair to point out that other pronounciations would be just as legitimate - we don't know how Howard pronounced them himself and historians often pronounce historical names in different ways (some would pronounce, I n English, Cyrus as sigh - russ, others as Ky - roos).
So long as how you pronounce it is consistent and doesn't sound silly to you or your players, it'll be right.
Clovenhoof
Mongoose
I'd rather pronounce Thoth like Tot, sort of like you also don't pronounce Thomas with <th>.
LucaCherstich
Mongoose
Apple said:
I know you are joking....
Thos names are supposedly pseudo-Ancient names and they should be pronounced (at least) with a sound recalling some ancient Mediterranean Language...not bloody modern English...
Sorry if I speak this way but, since I'm an Italian who studied classics in UK, I'm very upset when I hear Latin propounced in a strong Enlish way.
Those names are pseudo-Greek (Pallantides), psuedo-Parthian with Greek pronunciation (Ctesphon) and pseudo-Egyptian (Thoth Amon).
So look at those ancient languages to find out how to pronounce those names.
My opinion (which is of course biased....) is that "Pallantides" should be pronounced as IT IS (that is how a Greek, or a Spaniard or an Italian should read the same name in a text written in his own language).
I mean the vowels "A" and "E" should be read "A" and "E" and not "EI" and "I" or in the 10000 different ways in which English-speaking persons read "A" and "E".
LucaCherstich
Mongoose
decker423 said:
OK, but those names (Pallantides, etc..) are supposedly CLEAR references to particular ancient names in Latin and Greek (or Egyptian...but even the Egyptian or Parthian names are usually known by their Greek or Latin versions, and not by tehir original sounds).
REH was CLEARLY refering to names which sounded like Greek and Latin....the only problem is that we will never know whether he really knew how those names should have been properly pronounced...
Now we can see two scenarios:
1) REH reading these names as they were really read in ancient reality (I would say PALLANTIDES = PALLANTIDES)
2) REH reading those names in one of the numerous deviations which English speakers do of Latin/Greek names (for example PALLANTIDES = PELLENTAIDIS or PALLENTIDIS or whatever sounds better for you).
Whatever the reality, I prefer Hypothesis no.1.
This is easier for me (as for any Italian or Spanish speaking player).
I agree that Americans and English people (and REH was American...) could choose whether they use Latin pronunciations or different pronunciations.
I once heard a Professor saying that Latin Alphabet (the one we are using HERE and everywhere), was supposed to be used for Latin, where vowels have just one sound.
Germanic languages (e.g. English) have other sounds which where not included in a Latin alphabet, but the alphabet was more or less adapted.
This is the reason why the same syllabs and vowels can be read in English in different ways while for us (Italians, Spaniards, etc..) "A" is always pronounced as "A".
In conclusion, I do not think there is really an official, correct answer.
For me it's No.1...but maybe for you it's no.2!
LucaCherstich
Mongoose
yes off course, but differences between Classical Latin and Medieval Latin (or Church Latin) regards more gramatics and, in terms of pronunciation, more the consonats than the vowels.
My first complain is about vowels which in German and English are used in ways which are completely different from Spanish and Italian.
In any case, I think we will never know how those names were supposed to be pronounced by REH, whether he prefererred an original pronunciation or an English one.
Any in any case we are dealing with a fictional AGE when multiple names coming from multiple histrocial contexts intermix, so wrong pronunciations can happen!
At the end, even if I prefer an Italian-like pronunciation, I think than anybody is allowed to pronouce those names as he likes!
My first complain is about vowels which in German and English are used in ways which are completely different from Spanish and Italian.
In any case, I think we will never know how those names were supposed to be pronounced by REH, whether he prefererred an original pronunciation or an English one.
Any in any case we are dealing with a fictional AGE when multiple names coming from multiple histrocial contexts intermix, so wrong pronunciations can happen!
At the end, even if I prefer an Italian-like pronunciation, I think than anybody is allowed to pronouce those names as he likes!
Well, they are not Greek or Egyptian words. 
Natheless, here is my somewhat educated crack at it:
Pallantides - pal-an-TEE-dess or -dayss depending on dialect, Aquilonian or Nemedian.
Ctesphon - ka-TESS-fone although the CT may represent a strange phoneme unpronounceable to all but serpents.
Thoth-Amon - thoth - a - MOAN or thoth - A - moan, south Stygian versus north Stygian dialect.
Natheless, here is my somewhat educated crack at it:Pallantides - pal-an-TEE-dess or -dayss depending on dialect, Aquilonian or Nemedian.
Ctesphon - ka-TESS-fone although the CT may represent a strange phoneme unpronounceable to all but serpents.
Thoth-Amon - thoth - a - MOAN or thoth - A - moan, south Stygian versus north Stygian dialect.
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