"Bob Hobden" wrote in message
...

"Paul Giverin" wrote
Thanks Paul, I bought a book many years ago to help with the pronunciation
of plant names after I came across an orchid called " Coelogyne cristata"
and realised I hadn't a hope of making a reasonable stab at it. (
correctly
koy-LO-gin-ee but commonly see-LO-gie-nee KRIS-tah-ta)

Problem then is, do you pronounce it the correct Latin way, with "C" being
hard, or use the commonly accepted way with a soft "C"? :-)

Still, if everyone understands what you are on about there isn't a
problem.
--
Regards
Bob
In Runnymede, 17 miles West of London

Well as I understand it the original setting up of plant names in Latin it
was agreed internationally that the pronunciation of the Latin words would
reflect the way the locals in a particular country would pronounce the same
letter combinations.
With such huge regional variations in this country over simple words I have
no idea how that was supposed to work, I am thinking of the word water,
half the country would rhyme it with cat while I and the other half stick an
R in it and rhyme it with war! Fat chance that we were all going to agree on
Latin plant names :~)

--
Charlie, gardening in Cornwall.
http://www.roselandhouse.co.uk
Holders of National Plant Collection of Clematis viticella (cvs)