The traditional English pronunciation of Latin, and Classical Greek words borrowed through Latin, is the way the Latin language was traditionally pronounced by speakers of English until the early 20th century.
Since the Middle Ages, speakers of English (from Middle English onward) have pronounced Latin not as the Romans did, but according to a traditional scheme borrowed from France. This traditional pronunciation became closely linked to the pronunciation of English, and as the pronunciation of English changed with time, the English pronunciation of Latin changed as well.
At the end of the 19th century, this Anglo-Latin pronunciation began to be superseded in Latin instruction by a reconstructed Classical pronunciation, closer to an earlier Roman pronunciation, and with a more transparent relationship between spelling and pronunciation. By the mid-20th century, classroom use of the traditional pronunciation had all but ceased. The traditional pronunciation, however, survives in academic English vocabulary:
- In general academic vocabulary: campus, syllabus, curriculum, diploma, alumnus
- In specialized anatomical vocabulary: aorta, biceps, cranium, patella, sinus, vertebra, etc.
- In astronomical nomenclature, including the names of planets, moons, asteroids, stars and constellations, such as Mars, Io, Ceres, Sirius, Ursa Major, nova, nebula
- In a number of historical terms and names, particularly those associated with Roman culture and politics: augur, bacchanal, consul, fibula, lictor, prætor, toga, Augustus, Cæsar, Cicero, etc.
- In legal terminology and phrases: alibi, alias, de jure, obiter dictum, sub judice, subpœna etc. In many cases Classical pronunciation is used, however.
- In the specialized terminology of literary studies: codex, colophon, epitome, index, periphrasis, parenthesis, etc.
- In some mathematical terms: calculus, parabola, hyperbola, isosceles, rhombus, vector, etc.
- In medical terminology describing diseases, symptoms and treatments: anæsthesia, bacterium, coma, diarrhœa, lumbago, mucus, nausea, ophthalmia, rabies, tetanus, virus, rigor mortis etc.
- In words and names from classical mythology: Achilles, Argus, Calliope, Gorgon, Myrmidon, Sphinx, etc.
- In some religious terms: angelus, basilica, Magi, martyr, presbyter, etc.
- In certain sporting terms: gymnasium, stadium, discus, pentathlon
- In the taxonomic nomenclature of botany and zoology: phylum, genus, species, chrysanthemum, hibiscus, rhododendron, fœtus, larva, ovum, pupa, chamæleon, lemur, platypus
- In a very large body of words used every day: album, apex, area, asylum, axis, basis, bonus, camera, census, circus, dilemma, error, focus, genius, icon, insignia, junior, major, medium, murmur, onus, panacea, podium, sector, stamina, terminus, trivia; as well as such common phrases as et cetera, non sequitur, quid pro quo, status quo, vice versa, etc.
Read more about Traditional English Pronunciation Of Latin: Overview, Alphabet, Syllables, Semivowel, Endings, Sample Text, History, Other Languages, See Also, Resources
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“The traditional novel form continues to enlarge our experience in those very areas where the wide-angle lens and the Cinerama screen tend to narrow it.”
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“French rhetorical models are too narrow for the English tradition. Most pernicious of French imports is the notion that there is no person behind a text. Is there anything more affected, aggressive, and relentlessly concrete than a Parisan intellectual behind his/her turgid text? The Parisian is a provincial when he pretends to speak for the universe.”
—Camille Paglia (b. 1947)
“Americans living in Latin American countries are often more snobbish than the Latins themselves. The typical American has quite a bit of money by Latin American standards, and he rarely sees a countryman who doesn’t. An American businessman who would think nothing of being seen in a sport shirt on the streets of his home town will be shocked and offended at a suggestion that he appear in Rio de Janeiro, for instance, in anything but a coat and tie.”
—Hunter S. Thompson (b. 1939)