How do you pronounce things?

[NaH2O]

Hmmm....they're good to impress non-reefing friends? "Yeah, and if you look over there you can see my peppermint shrimp....see the coloring?" "OOooooo - neat! Just like Christmas!", the friends reply

 

[CarlaW]

OK here's a test. How many of us can say Nassarius(sp.?) 3 times real fast?

 

[Johnny]

Heck, I live in Mississippi we never say things right. jeet yet (did you eat yet)

 

[Curtswearing]

jeet yet (did you eat yet)

What a riot!!!

 

[CarlaW]

sand bug,sand bug, sand bug............ aaaaaahhhhhh..........

 

[Alice]

I've heard a well-known proponent of DSB's pronounce "gonipora" two different ways - multiple times in the same segment of a speech.

Latin is dead, or so they say.

 

[CarlaW]

You kind of wonder why"ron" (oops") didn't just say flower pot.
Must have been to easy.
I'm just goin back to sand bug...............

 

[NaH2O]

so is it gon - i pera or goni - poura

 

[CarlaW]

according to Delbeek and Sprung, it should br gon-i-o-pora. At least that is how it is spelled. It should probably be spelled, don't buy me!

 

[plumber_bob]

Latin is dead, so really there are two ways you can pronounce things. One is the old latin way and the other is the new american way.

 

[Scooterman]

And then there is the Cajun way, "Dat Dare thinggy over Yonder", can we eat it?

 

[NaH2O]

Hey Scott...your statement started almost Chicago like: Da Bears, Da Bulls, pass Da Brats anD Beer.

 

[Scooterman]

I know a DeBare, he lives down the road! LOL

 

[OneOfDaZZZ]

Zooanthid always kills me...I am never sure if I am saying it right. Then, if I am saying it right are you saying it wrong?

 

[ScottT1980]

I have heard actinic pronounced a number of colorful ways:

A-tin-ic
An-tic-nic
Ac-tic-nic
etc...

And then there is Caluerpa...

Oh, and the zoanthid thing...I learned my lesson from my zoology professors (not zoo-ology).

Take er easy
Scott t.

 

[NaH2O]

Zoanthid and Caulerpa - good ones Scott!

 

[NaH2O]

Hey, after discussing this with a friend I found it interesting that:

Nudibranch isn't really nudibranch(like the branch of a tree), but the pronunciation = noo'de-brangk'

LOL, the only thing about using proper pronunciations is if no one says it the proper way, and you do... everyone will wonder what you're talking about.

 

[ScottT1980]

Sounds german, good to know Nikki

 

[MCSInc]

The one I want to know about is: palythoa

MCSInc~Candy

 

[Curtswearing]

The only thing about using proper pronunciations is if no one says it the proper way, and you do... everyone will wonder what you're talking about.

Yup...Reedman will understand this but probably no one else. Bon-zie is the word used by Japanese Zero pilots before killing themselves in American movies about WWII.

As a result, people use the term Bon-zie for trees grown in pots. The correct pronunciation of bonsai trees is Bone-sigh. I often use the wrong pronuciation so people have a clue what I'm talking about.

Here is a great post IMO about this topic that I copied from The sea slug forum.

Scientific names are based on Latin and Ancient Greek. These are both 'dead' languages and it seems even last century when many 'educated' people were taught classical languages, there were differences of opinion over pronunciation.

Even the example you ask about "Ceras" is pronounced Serass and Kerass by different people, just as Cephalopod is pronounced both Sephalo- and Kephalo-.

I would have replied a couple of days ago but I have been trying to find an article published not so long ago in a Shell Club magazine/newsletter with some handy hints on pronunciation. I can't find it, but hopefully someone reading this will know of something which could help you out.

The most important rule is to be tolerant of other people's pronunciation. A few years ago I went on a field trip with an esteemed colleague from the US (not an opisthobranch worker) who was very keen on finding a particular snail alive. He kept on telling me about its fabulous attributes etc etc and I promised to keep my eyes open for it - but I had no idea what he wanted - I just hoped he'd find one quickly so I could find out what he was talking about! I had asked him about 10 times in different ways about its name and each time was no better - I couldn't understand what he was talking about. Each day I would say I hadn't found any. It was 4 days before he found the animal and proudly showed me. It was something I had passed over many times in the last 4 days - and even when I knew what he was talking about I thought the snail must have had a name change because is pronunciation was so different.

I know this doesn't help you too much but I am sure someone reading the Forum wil be able to point us towards a relatively simple guide to pronunciations.

If you are new to opisthobranchs, can I say that much more exciting than their names, are the mysteries concerning their biology and natural history, where they live, what they eat, what the eggs look like etc. Photos and observations are always welcome on the Forum. In return for sharing photos and observations with us, the participants in the Forum can pretty much guarantee to give you a name, (if there is one), and some basic information, for any of your finds.

Best wishes,
Bill Rudman.