Pronunciation of brachypelma smithi

[barabootom]

Is this the correct pronunciation for brachypelma smithi? Thanks for your input.

http://www.spanishspanish.com/aaaasounds/b_smithi.mp3

 

[Zoltan]

Hey,

There's a DVD/lecture from Andrew Smith: "In search of Mexico’s Brachypelma Red Leg Tarantulas in the Sierra Madre Mountains", a sample can be viewed here (bottom of page). In this video, the name is pronounced like SMITH-I while yours is more like SMITH-E. If you listen to the video you'll know what I'm talking about. AFAIK species names that are named after people or locations (these are the ones that end with "i" after the name of the person/location) are pronounced with "I" in the end rather than "E" (I'm not 100% percent sure that this is true for all of them though).

 

[Bill S]

If you are going to stick with traditional Latin, smith-ee. But then, "Smith" isn't governed by the rules of traditional Latin.

Languages evolve, just like plants and animals do. Even while Latin was a living language it was evolving, and of course after the empire fell it mutated into several different languages. Some groups (notably the Catholic church) tried to keep it alive - but church Latin evolved into something slightly different from classical Latin (more of a dialect than a separate language). Scientists have also tried to keep Latin alive (to an extent), but have hybridized it with Greek and infused a few other languages into the mix. Rules for scientific Latin allow for things that Classical Latin doesn't.

Smith-ee might be the current "correct" pronunciation, but I suspect that smith-eye might be gaining as a popular corruption.

 

[Bill S]

There's a DVD/lecture from Andrew Smith: ...... In this video, the name is pronounced like SMITH-I while yours is more like SMITH-E. If you listen to the video you'll know what I'm talking about.

There are similar recordings of G.W. Bush pronouncing "nuclear" as Nu-kyu-ler. Doesn't mean he spoke English.

But getting back to your reference - Just because someone is a famous field biologist it doesn't mean they speak Latin. In fact, I'd say (at least among the people I know) most field biologists tend to use the most common and widely acceptable mispronunciations and don't worry much about correct Latin. There are only a very few people I know who really try to use correct pronunciations.

 

[Paramite]

Otherwise close to correct, but "r" is pronounced wrong.

 

[barabootom]

Thanks for the video clip. I'd be very interested in knowing what the dealers are using at the swaps and what the scientific community in general is using. I would not necessarily trust one lecturer. I have watched many Spanish documentaries produced by the likes of Discovery and others where they slaughter Spanish pronunciation even when talking about Spanish history. Spanish is a living language where Latin is not. It would be nice to have some consensus and clarify for everyone once and for all what is correct.

Hey,

There's a DVD/lecture from Andrew Smith: "In search of Mexico’s Brachypelma Red Leg Tarantulas in the Sierra Madre Mountains", a sample can be viewed here (bottom of page). In this video, the name is pronounced like SMITH-I while yours is more like SMITH-E. If you listen to the video you'll know what I'm talking about. AFAIK species names that are named after people or locations (these are the ones that end with "i" after the name of the person/location) are pronounced with "I" in the end rather than "E" (I'm not 100% percent sure that this is true for all of them though).

 

[Travis K]

It is up to interpretation at this point. Though it would be nice to have some entomologist and linguist get together and post information on the "correct" form of speaking the most common scientific names of our beloved inverts.

As for smithi i have heard it both ways and at this point don't believe either to "wrong". But is is nice to not sound like an idiot in person when both people are saying the same thing just slightly differently.

 

[Kirk]

You're close. The prefix, brachy-, has the a pronounced as in back. The specific epithet, smithi, is pronounced to sound like smith-eye.

 

[Paramite]

If you are wondering what I meant about the "r" being pronounced wrong, you all know what it sounds like when a russian speaks in a hollywood movie. That's what you want to practice.

 

[Vidaro]

Im not sure but i believe the ch in brachypelma is pronounced as a simple h. That is if the original word is greek which i think it is and not latin.

Chone1 are u a biologist? I have seen you post some very intersting things.

 

[Kirk]

Im not sure but i believe the ch in brachypelma is pronounced as a simple h. That is if the original word is greek which i think it is and not latin.

The 'ch' in Brachypelma has a hard k sound, like my name, Kirk.

Chone1 are u a biologist? I have seen you post some very intersting things.

Yes, I'm a biologist.

 

[Anansis]

Maybe this will help you.

http://www.atshq.org/articles/beechwp1.html

And as a bonus:

http://www.atshq.org/articles/beechwp2.html



Ollie Meidinger
Public Relations Officer
American Tarantula Society

 

[Vidaro]

The 'ch' in Brachypelma has a hard k sound, like my name, Kirk.

Well i guess the original pronunciation gets lost in the translation then coz in actual Greek it would sound Vrahi-pelma

Awesome thats what i wanted to do but i hate to study so i would never had made it

 

[barabootom]

Maybe this will help you.

http://www.atshq.org/articles/beechwp1.html

And as a bonus:

http://www.atshq.org/articles/beechwp2.html



Ollie Meidinger
Public Relations Officer
American Tarantula Society

I appreciate the links. They pages are written by the same person but unless I don't understand what is being said I think they contradict each other.

i = i of "bit"
smithi (SMITH-ee)

smithi (proper name + i)

In his first post he says smithee and in the second post says smith-eye, right? Or should it be more like smith-eh?

 

[barabootom]

You're close. The prefix, brachy-, has the a pronounced as in back. The specific epithet, smithi, is pronounced to sound like smith-eye.

So it appears a better pronunciation would be brake-e-pell-ma smith-ee according to an English professor and brake-e-pell-ma smith-eye according to a biologist. Are there any other biologists out there?

 

[Kirk]

So it appears a better pronunciation would be brake-e-pell-ma smith-ee according to an English professor and brake-e-pell-ma smith-eye according to a biologist. Are there any other biologists out there?

brak (rhymes with back) -e-pel-ma smith-eye. Just like the crab group, Brachyura, is brak-e-u-ra. In my Webster's dictionary, the prefix brachy- has the a pronounced as in back.

 

[Anansis]

I appreciate the links. They pages are written by the same person but unless I don't understand what is being said I think they contradict each other.

i = i of "bit"
smithi (SMITH-ee)

smithi (proper name + i)

In his first post he says smithee and in the second post says smith-eye, right? Or should it be more like smith-eh?

The first page is on pronunication while the second page is for the meanings of the words. smith-ee is the pronunciation while smith+i is the orgin of the word ( proper name + i ).

Follow me, eh?

 

[Kirk]

The first page is on pronunication while the second page is for the meanings of the words. smith-ee is the pronunciation while smith+i is the orgin of the word ( proper name + i ).

Follow me, eh?

This site might be useful, albeit, it indicates that for a name ending in a vowel, that vowel is pronounced as is. Smithi should be pronounced smith-eye, not smith-ee.

 

[Anansis]

I see what you mean but then near the end it states "Some naturalists apply classical sound values to scientific names, and some employ hybrid pronunciations such as "fun-jee" for fungi. The English pronunciation is "funj-eye" and the classical is ~"foongh-ee."

Almost seems like anything goes.

 

[barabootom]

That's a great site chone1. Thanks. So the new sound according to that site should sound like this.

http://www.spanishspanish.com/aaaasounds/b_smithi2.mp3