Why is it that scientific names should be so hard to pronounce which are usually from Latin that is dead language rather a familiar language?
The problem is you think your standpoint is global.“Familiar language”, what is that? Familiar for who? A Chinese, Argentinian, Canadian, Arab or Zulu? I’m sorry for putting it this way but the world is more than you and your language. Familiar is a relative concept, relative to your standing point. The scientific community is global.As a Spaniard, I find Latin a LOT easier to pronounce than English… no one ever taught me how to read Latin, I always knew because it's read the same as Spanish, someone had to teach me how to read English. If I read aquila (eagle) I know it's águila, if I read lupus (wolf) it sounds familiar to lobo, if I read catus (cat) it sounds familiar to gato, if I read ursus (bear) it sounds familiar to oso, if I read catus felix (“happy cat” domestic cat) I know it's gato feliz… if I read homo sapiens (“wise man” modern humans) it sounds familiar to hombre sabio. As you can see, for me and 500 Hispanics more, and 250 million Lusophones, and 270 Francophones and, 70 million Italophones… over 1 billion Romance speakers out of 6 billion humans, a 6th of the species, Latin sounds far more familiar than English. So when you say familiar, you are assuming we all stand from your same place.Now, Latin is a million times easier to pronounce than English from a neutral stance too, not just from mine. Latin is written in its alphabet with full letter-sound equivalence and less sounds than English. English is an orthographic phonetic mess with random reading. Imagine someone who doesn't speak Latin or English, when he sees aquila he knows exactly how to read it just by knowing which sound is each letter, when he sees eagle he'd never read it right in a million years unless someone tells him because the pronounciation doesn't match the writing.Furthermore Latin is neutral and frozen because it is dead, any living language changes over time you can't have scientific names changing over the centuries, you need a frozen-in-time dead language and there is not any dead language more universal or influencial to science than Latin, Newton's work is written in Latin for example. One could argue Greek but still there would be no reason to pick Greek over Latin either.Can you find a more suitable choice than Latin? Can you find a more universal, easy to read, frozen language than Latin?
How do you tell someone he doesn't pronounce your name correctly?
It depends. I distinguish between two kinds of people, my fellow ethnic group members and other people. I expect my fellow ethnic group members to pronounce my name correctly. Therefore if they mispronounce my name, I’ll correct them. I just say: “My name is pronounced as …”However when dealing with other people and foreigners, I cannot expect them to pronounce my name correctly. Especially if their languages have different phonologies. So I let them be.For example, my surname is written as Soekatno, but it is to be pronounced as [su'katnɔ]. It would have been more accurate if it were written in Javanese orthography as ‘Sukatna’. But this name has been written in Dutch derived spelling because of historical reasons. Foreigners tend to pronounce my name as [sowe'katno] and English speakers as [so'kætno] or even [sə'kætnə].As for my forename, it is a foreign name anyway, so I let people pronounce this the way they like it. My fellow countrymen tend to pronounce it as [rɛ'pi] or [rɛ'fi], while Westerners usually pronounce this as ['refi] or ['revi]
What is the most difficult to pronounce Indian name you've ever come across?
Hello,Here are some I have come across.MragankHymavathsayKathyayiniAvul Pakir Jainilabdeen Abdul Kalam - APJ Abdul KalamMrigankaMrunmayiPenchalaiahDwaipayanMaitreyYuzuvendraEtikalpallenThekkumparambathTomanimoyTriambakAndalaiah#2,4,7,11,13 have taken me so much time to get right.Thanks,Vj
Would it be weird for parents of different ethnic backgrounds to pronounce their child's name differently?
No, the child will adjust to it. I have bilingual children (English/German) with English names and their grandparents have a hard time pronouncing their names correctly. My children don't really care and respond to both pronunciations easily. It would be the same like giving your child a nickname. It isn't really something to be worried about. Good luck!
Which ethnic groups in australia are racially targeted at?
As an Aboriginal australian I can speak from experience. Not all australians are racist, it usually tends to be the most ignorant ones. Seeing a muslim girl of german extraction (blonde blue eyed called a dirty arab)being abused on the bus for wearing the hijab, seeing african kids being called racist names usually reserved for aboriginal kids. stupid jokes about missing dogs and chinese resturaunts. calling sikhs terrorists. All this rubbish was spewed out of the mouths of ignorant white kids and adults, most without a decent education or any sort of ethics or morals. highschool kids screaming this is a christian country, then being hard pressed to say the last time they went to church. Don't get me wrong, I've been abused by arabs and africans as a n***** (which makes me laugh). stupid people do stupid things, unfortunately australia isn't immune to that sort of thing. Pick a day and pick a city/town, each one has its problems, each ethnic group has had it times at the top of the most hated list. There are aussies out there who, because of their lack of identity, hate those that celebrate their heritage openly. The great part is seeing someone call an asian a particularly racist name, then goes and gets chinese for dinner. Its funny too that the biggest porpotion of pregnant teens, drug addicts and no hopers tend to be the white working class kids in my area. not saying others don't have the same problem, its just sheer numbers. The howard govt. has turned incresingly racist towards everyone who doesn't fit the anglo-celt bill, so its become institutionalised, which is the reverse of where this country was 20yrs ago.
What are some female white names similar to my ethnic name?
Despite what everyone is saying, I don’t really blame you for feeling you want to change your name. I’m white, Anglo-Saxon, Australian with ancestors from the UK but my parents decided to be creative and make up a name for me that is kind of faux-French, sounds like a boy’s name and is hard to pronounce.(Although when FB began I learned it was quite a common girl’s name in Belgium, not that it helps me!)Anyway, so most of my life I have struggled with getting people toBelieve it’s my real name,Not comment on it being a boy’s name,Understand me when I say it, andPronounce it correctly.I usually spend the first minutes of a conversation with a stranger mentally preparing to say my name and explain it all (and I become so preoccupied I often forget other people’s names!)So since my nephew was born, I’ve adopted the short-name Didi (which was originally for his benefit, but now makes me feel better too!) and use it the majority of the time. It just makes life easier.I totally feel for you, and it is sad if there is a recognisable bias based on names, but if it makes you feel better or more confident to change yours - good for you!Now, for a few suggestions:People are saying that ‘Chris’ names are strictly Christian - that may have been the case once but it’s not really anymore (not in my opinion or experience - maybe it depends on the country you’re in). So here’s a few I can think of:KrisKristyKirstyKristen/KristinKristine/ChristineKirsten/KirstinKrissy/ChrissyKara/CaraAs far as I know, the Cara- based names mean ‘Cherished One’ or something similar.Karine/Karina/Carine/CarinaKarissa/CarissaCassandra/Kassandra ( Cassie/Kassie )So those are some sort-of-similar sounding names I can think of. But maybe you could also find a name that means something in connection with Krishna? There are heaps of baby name, and name meaning sites that might be useful for you.Good luck in your search, I hope you find your perfect name, and moreover, your perfect job!
How does the name Nilay sound for a boy?
Nilay is a Indian origin name pronounced as Nil-ay for a boy meaning heaven. We are considering that name for our boy to have indian culture in name even though we are living in usa. Please dont write comments such as give him American name. I am mostly interested in knowing if it sounds good and is easy to pronounce and sounds like a boy's name.
Should parents not call their kids with weird and hard to spell names?
Interesting question….and my answer depends a lot on who you are and what you would consider weird. Many names may sound weird to you because they have an ethnic origin. Perfectly acceptable and it would be your responsibility to learn how to spell and pronounce it. Some black communities have developed unique names that I find interesting and clever. There’s also names that may seem weird or maybe old-fashioned but they have a rich history within a family or religious tradition. But there are limits to everything. I wonder why any parent would chose to name a child Hilter. I also just read a news article where a little girl’s name was Abcde which I will admit is a head scratcher.
Should I go by an English name when I start studying abroad in the UK? My name being very hard to pronounce and very Muslim.
If that’s what you like, of course. I go by the nickname Rio. Also, the pronunciation reason is valid.But if you get an English name to avoid discrimination, I guarantee you it won’t work. No matter what you do, people will always know where you’re from. Your origin is embedded in everything you have or do. Your skin’s color, your accent, your habit, routine and religious practices - you can’t and shouldn’t hide them.One more thing: the world is more complex than you might imagine. When I was in college, I was discriminated by a VIETNAMESE-American gay guy. Yep! The person whose origin is the same with mine, who might also belong to a minority group. I didn’t know why he gave me such attitude, but I guess it was because of my broken English.He even kicked me out of the project group. And do you know who came in the rescue? A white guy.I still remember when I was walking down the stairs, tears streaming down on my face (no cliche, I swear). That guy waved at me, told me to sit down and asked why I was crying. I couldn’t even speak up. After patiently listening to my story told in that same broken English plus the sobbing, he offered me a spot in his group even though it had been half way through the semester. He even asked me if I needed him to go to the teacher and proved to her that I was not a lazy ass whom that Vietnamese guy accused me of being. (The white guy and I were in a project group in another class, so he kinda knew my attitude)That straight white guy came from a very Christian family. He has everything to belong to the entitled majority. And on that day, he cared about a Vietnam international female student who was fucked up by her own people.That’s the lifetime lesson I will never forget.P/s: in case anyone suspect, I was (and still am) an obesed chick with messy hair and baggy clothes, so I’m pretty sure the nice guy was really a nice guy without any intention.