Is it too late to add to the controversy? My humungous Webster's Third
New International Dictionary gives BRASSavola as the 1st pronunciation
& BrasSAvola as the 2nd. It's an American dictionary; maybe the 2nd
pronunciation is British? Sometimes they put different accents on
syllables than we do in North America. I've heard "conTROVersy", for
example. I was trying to think of others but my brain is blank.
It also says A.M. Brassavola lived in the 1500s.
I too was going to suggest maybe someone here who speaks Italian could
say what the most likely pronunciation is.
I just thought BrassaVOla sounds better, but what do I know

Alison

"Ray" wrote in message
...
Time to jump back in after a marvelous week soaking up the rays at the NC
Outer Banks...

According to orchidspecies.com, the genus was named after an Italian, Dr.
A.
M. Brassavole. How would that be pronounced in Italian?

When I first read your post I thought I had the answer (my Dad sang in
Italian, and also taught it). If I were to see that name, BrassAHvole would
come immediately to my lips. However, I can hear the emphasis on the vol,
too. I do think it would be SAH, though.

Diana

That's right, Alison, add a *third* pronunciation! LOL! I don't know. The
master gardeners in our Society have pronounced it BrassaVOLa. The judges
here say otherwise. Personally, now that I've used it a couple of times, I
kind of like the sound of BrasSAHvola. Who knows??

Diana

Duh. I meant, BRASSaVOLa. It gives the accent on both stressed
syllables. I realized after I'd sent the message that I'd forgotten to
capitalize the VOL.
I guess you shouldn't get into these discussions when you are
distracted & in a hurry, as I was.

Alison

Ray wrote:
Time to jump back in after a marvelous week soaking up the rays at the NC
Outer Banks...

According to orchidspecies.com, the genus was named after an Italian, Dr. A.
M. Brassavole. How would that be pronounced in Italian?

Hi!

I'm not Reka, but I'm Italian :-)
There's no real 100% rule for Italian surnames accent (my own surname
gets often misread).
I say BrassAvola since it sounds more "natural" to me, but I can't
totally exclude BrassavOla, expecially if Dr Brassavole was from
Southern Italy (it sounds somewhat as a Southern Italy surname, but I
don't know for sure).
I made a research and the surname must be really rare, since there are
no Brassavole or Brassavola on the Italian phone directory.

All the best!

Anna Maria

I guess you shouldn't get into these discussions when you are
distracted & in a hurry, as I was.

Why not? Everyone else here does! G

Diana

Anna Maria,

Thanks for doing the research. I agree that BrassAHvola is easier on the
tongue. But then, Alison mentioned that she found the name with two stressed
syllables, and I can relate to that, too. My maiden name is Signorelli, with
the emphasis on both the first and third syllables.

Diana

I was "raised" on BrassaVOLa and will probably always say it that way --
creature of habit. But if folks want to say BrassAvola, I'll know what they
mean and it will be OK. I've almost stopped flinching when people ask me
for Cattle-lay-as or Denbrobia G.

"British" is indeed one possible explanation -- my QMB professor in college
was from India, and it took me nearly half the quarter to figure out that
when he said RAYsiprocal, he meant reCIProcal ... lowered my GPA, he did,
with that and a few others, all spoken very rapidly G. Kenni

wrote in message
oups.com...
Is it too late to add to the controversy? My humungous Webster's Third
New International Dictionary gives BRASSavola as the 1st pronunciation
& BrasSAvola as the 2nd. It's an American dictionary; maybe the 2nd
pronunciation is British? Sometimes they put different accents on
syllables than we do in North America. I've heard "conTROVersy", for
example. I was trying to think of others but my brain is blank.
It also says A.M. Brassavola lived in the 1500s.
I too was going to suggest maybe someone here who speaks Italian could
say what the most likely pronunciation is.
I just thought BrassaVOla sounds better, but what do I know

Alison

Ray wrote:
Time to jump back in after a marvelous week soaking up the rays at the NC
Outer Banks...

According to orchidspecies.com, the genus was named after an Italian, Dr. A.
M. Brassavole. How would that be pronounced in Italian?
Hmm? What? Oh...I must have been asleep.
No, actually, my mom is here, the temps in the valley have been up, so
we escaped to our mountain cabin. No computer there.

It would then be BRAS-sah-voh-la. As far as I know.
I will still say bras-sah-VOH-la! :-)

--
Reka

This is LIFE! It's not a rehearsal. Don't miss it!
http://www.rolbox.it/hukari/index.html

Diana Kulaga wrote:
Anna Maria,

Thanks for doing the research. I agree that BrassAHvola is easier on the
tongue. But then, Alison mentioned that she found the name with two stressed
syllables, and I can relate to that, too. My maiden name is Signorelli, with
the emphasis on both the first and third syllables.

You are very welcome, Diana!

Cheers,

Anna Maria Canepa (with the emphasis on the first syllable :-)

Here is what I find in:An Orchidist's Glossary, American Orchid Society,
1974.
Brassavola (bra-SAH-voh-la). A genus of tropical American orchids closely
allied to Cattleya and Laelia, described by Robert Brown in 1813 and
dedicated to Sr. Antonio Musa Brassavola, a Venetian nobleman and botanist.
Ciao, Ed Cormier
"Anna MCM" wrote in message
news:vdYwe.30$Q14.23@amstwist00...


Diana Kulaga wrote:
Anna Maria,

Thanks for doing the research. I agree that BrassAHvola is easier on the
tongue. But then, Alison mentioned that she found the name with two
stressed
syllables, and I can relate to that, too. My maiden name is Signorelli,
with
the emphasis on both the first and third syllables.

You are very welcome, Diana!

Cheers,

Anna Maria Canepa (with the emphasis on the first syllable :-)

Kenni, there was an article in the NY Times the other day, about college
students being unable to understand the PAs. In a couple of cases the PA
literally did not speak English. For this, tuition is skyy high?

Diana

It would then be BRAS-sah-voh-la. As far as I know.
I will still say bras-sah-VOH-la! :-)

Reka, I can't wrap my tongue around that emphasis. The first syllable only?

Diana

Diana Kulaga wrote:
It would then be BRAS-sah-voh-la. As far as I know.
I will still say bras-sah-VOH-la! :-)


Reka, I can't wrap my tongue around that emphasis. The first syllable only?

Diana


Well, I guess there is a bit of a secondary emphasis on the "voh" as well.

--
Reka

This is LIFE! It's not a rehearsal. Don't miss it!
http://www.rolbox.it/hukari/index.html

Apparently so ... although I was not talking about PAs, I was talking about
the actual _professors_. Dr. Veejay (sp? -- it's been a while) for QMB was
the worst, but Dr. Chakravarti for Marketing was a close second.

The PAs present what to me appears a more difficult issue, since those jobs
are often awarded on a GPA basis -- I know, b/c I got one of them that way,
as a "Matherly Scholar" [one of top ten in first year MBA class]. So if the
student with the unintelligible accent can get straight As -- how do you
avoid the award? But the Universities should be able to use "understandable
English speech" as a job qualification for hiring actual _teachers_ ...
Kenni


"Diana Kulaga" wrote in message
ink.net...
Kenni, there was an article in the NY Times the other day, about college
students being unable to understand the PAs. In a couple of cases the PA
literally did not speak English. For this, tuition is skyy high?

Diana