Euphrasia, Mt Cheeseman, Canterbury |
Latin is supposed to allow botanists all over the world to communicate with each other, but we pronounce names so differently that often we don't understand each other. New Zealanders say "You-frayzia" whereas Germans say "Oy-fraatzia" (Euphrasia). In Pittosporum, some emphasise the first o, others the second. Personally, I don't care too much.
Fuchsia excorticata, Port Hills, Canterbury. |
What I do try to get right is pronunciation of botanical names that are based on personal names. So I try to remember Fuchsia is named after Fuchs ("Fooksia", not "Fyoosha"); Dahlia after Dahl ("Daalia", not "Daylia"); Aristotelia after Aristotle ("Aristot'lia", not "Aristoteelia").
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