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I agree with the substance of this article but not some of the
details. Undoubtedly pronunciation of latin genus/species names has
become slipshod over the years, but some scholarship in the 20th century
has gotten us to a better understanding of how the latin should be
pronounced. Dificile is an easy one, as it is simply DIFF-EE-KILL-EH.
Note that the final 'e' is as in 'bet', not as in 'bit'.
As this word is not in the english language it is an easy case. The
word 'facile' would be harder, but an adherence to latin pronunciation
emphasizes the fact that this is a scientific name and not a description,
so that one as a species name would be FAK-ILL-E, not FASS-ISLE!
I see no problems with reserving a rigid discipline of pronunciation
with scientific names. This includes pronouncing 'v' as in 'wine' and not
as in 'vine' too.
Further comments on pronunciation
I agree with the substance of this article but not some of the
details. Undoubtedly pronunciation of latin genus/species names has
become slipshod over the years, but some scholarship in the 20th century
has gotten us to a better understanding of how the latin should be
pronounced. Dificile is an easy one, as it is simply DIFF-EE-KILL-EH.
Note that the final 'e' is as in 'bet', not as in 'bit'.
As this word is not in the english language it is an easy case. The
word 'facile' would be harder, but an adherence to latin pronunciation
emphasizes the fact that this is a scientific name and not a description,
so that one as a species name would be FAK-ILL-E, not FASS-ISLE!
I see no problems with reserving a rigid discipline of pronunciation
with scientific names. This includes pronouncing 'v' as in 'wine' and not
as in 'vine' too.
Competing interests:
None declared
Competing interests: No competing interests