Re: Latin names (was APD V3 #1478

[George Slusarczuk <yurko at warwick_net>]

Hello Mark,

You are right that "gnatos" = "jaw" is of Greek origin. But the "g" is
not silent in the Greek language either. Furthermore, all binomial names
are pronounced as if they were Latin names. So ....

It is a mystery to me why many people insist on pronouncing Latin (or
latinized) names as anglicised, while the same person would not dream to
do that to, say, French words!

Best,

George



> Date: Tue, 28 Dec 1999 09:42:19 -0600
> From: Mark Fisher <Mark.Fisher at tpwd_state.tx.us>
> Subject: Re: Saying it correctly
> 
> >And why a silent "g" in "Gnathochromis = Nath-o-CHROME-iss"
> >It's silent in English, not Latin.
> 
> Gnatho is Greek, not Latin.  Not all scientific names are pure Latin, even
> though they are often referred to as "Latin names".  For example, swordtails
> belong to the genus Xiphophorus, which comes from the Greek Xiphos, meaning
> "sword".  Other names can come from "Latinized" surnames (e.g., Echinodorus
> horemanii), geographic names (Aponogeton madagascariensis) and native
> American words (Salvelinus namaycush), etc.
> 
> Regards,
> 
> Mark

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