| Ecclesiastical Latin refers to the
pronunciation and usages of Latin by the Catholic Church. In some
respects, such as pronunciation, it differs from the Latin spoken by
Caesar, Seneca and Cicero, called Classical Latin. Classical Latin
is what classics departments in major universities teach, and is
also the Latin taught on language tapes, unless Ecclesiastical Latin
is specified. A characteristic difference would be the pronunciation
of regina coeli. In Classical Latin the "g" is hard and the
"c" sounds like "k". In Ecclesiastical Latin, which is defined as
Latin spoken as Italian would be pronounced in Rome, the "g" is soft
and the c has a "ch" sound.
The following pronunciation table is adapted from the Liber
Usalis, one of the former chant books for Mass and Office. Its
introduction to Gregorian Chant is also invaluable.
Vowels
| A |
A is pronounced as in the word
Father, never as in the word can. We must be
careful to get this open, warm sound, especially when A
is followed by M or N as in Sanctus,
Nam, etc. |
| E |
E is pronounced as in Red,
men, met; never with the suspicion of a second
sound as in Ray. |
| I |
I is pronounced as ee in
Feet, never as i in milk or
tin. |
| O |
O is pronounced as in For, never
as in go. |
| U |
U is pronounced as oo in
Moon, never as in custom. |
| Y |
Y is pronounced and treated as the Latin
I. (see above) |
| |
The pronunciation given for i,
o, u, gives the approximate quality of the
sounds, which may be long or short; care must be taken to
bring out the accent of the
word. e.g. mártyr =
márteer. |
| Double Vowels |
As a general rule when two vowels come together
each keeps its own sound and constitutes a separate
syllable.
e.g. diéi is di-é-i ; fílii is
fíl-i-i ; eórum is e-ó-rum. |
OU
AI |
The rule of each keeping its own sound applies
to OU and
AI.
e.g.
prout is pro-oot ; coutúntur =
co-oo-toón-toor ; áit is ah-eet. |
AE
OE |
However, AE and OE are pronounced
as one sound, like E
above.
e.g.
caelum |
AU
EU
AY |
The two vowels form one syllable but both vowels
must be distinctly heard. The principle emphasis and interest
belongs to the first which must be sounded purely. If on such
a syllable several notes are sung, the vocalization is
entirely on the first vowel, the second being heard only on
the last note at the moment of passing to the following
syllable. |
| EI |
EI is similarly treated only when it
occurs in the
interjection:
Hei = Hei , otherwise, Mei =
mé-i, etc. |
QU
NGU |
U preceded by Q or NG and
followed by another vowel as in words like qui and
sanguis, keeps its normal sound and is uttered as one
syllable with the vowel which follows : qui,
quae, quod, quam, sanguis. But
notice that cui forms two syllables, and is pronounced
as koo-ee. In certain hymns, on account of the metre,
this word can be treated as one
syllable. |
Consonants
| C |
C coming before e, ae, oe,
i, y is pronounced like ch in
Church
e.g.
caelum = che-loom ; Cecília = che-cheé-lee-a |
CC before the same vowels is pronounced
T-ch.
e.g.
ecce = et-che ; síccitas = seét-chee-tas. |
SC before the same vowels is pronounced like
Sh in shed
e.g. descendit = de-shén-deet |
Except for these cases C is always pronounced like
the English K
e.g. cáritas =
káh-ree-tas |
CH is always like K (even before
E or I)
e.g. Cham = Kam, máchina = má-kee-na |
| G |
G before e, ae, i, y,
is soft as in generous
e.g. mági ,
génitor ,
Regína |
GN has the softened sound given to those letters in
French and Italian.
e.g. (French) agneau , signor ,
monsignor
The nearest English equivalent would be
N followed by
y.
e.g.
Regnum = Reh-nyoom ; Magnificat
= Mah-nyeé-fee-caht |
| H |
H is pronounced K in the two words nihil
(nee-keel) and mihi (mee-kee)
and
their compounds. In ancient books these words are often
written
nichil and michi. In all other
cases H is mute. |
| J |
J, often written as I (e.g. juris or
iurus), is treated as Y, forming one sound with
the vowel which follows
it.
e.g. jam,
iam = yam ; alleluia = allelóoya ; major = ma-yor |
| R |
When with another consonant, care must be taken not to
omit this sound. It must be slightly rolled on the tongue
(carnis). Care must be taken not to modify the quality
of the vowel in the syllable preceding the
R.
e.g.
Kyrie: Say Kée-ree-e
not
Kear-ee-e
sapere: Say sáh-pe-re not
sah-per-e
diligere: Say dee-lée-ge-re not dee-lee-ger-e |
| S |
S is hard as in the English word sea, but is
slightly softened when coming between two vowels. e.g.
misericórdia |
| T |
T is like the English T, except as
below. |
TI standing before a vowel and following any letter
(except S, X, T) is pronounced
tsee.
e.g.
patientia = pa-tsee-én-tsee-a
gratia = grá-tsee-a
constitutio = con-stee-tú-tsee-o
laetitia = lae-tée-tsee-a |
| TH is always simply T. e.g.
Thomas, catholicam |
| X |
X is pronounced ks, slightly softened when
coming between vowels.
e.g. exércitus |
XC before a, ae, oe, i,
y =
KSH.
e.g.
excélsis =
ek-shél-sees |
Before other vowels XC has the
ordinary hard sound of the letters composing
it.
e.g.
excussorum =
eks-koos-só-room |
| Y |
A Latin vowel, pronounced like I. |
| Z |
Z is pronounced dz. zizánia. |
| B, D, F, K, L, M, N, P, Q and V:
Pronounced as in English |
| Double consonants must be clearly
sounded. bello = bel-lo ; terra =
ter-ra |
|