Aryanath Posted January 26, 2014 Posted January 26, 2014 (edited) Since a lot of the terms in the book remind me vaguely of Persian (Farsi/Dari) which has a phonological set that seems to fit in well with the names of a lot of the people/places in the Vorin nations, I use that as the basis of my pronunciation. I realize this might be a bit different than the way Sanderson himself pronounces things. However, I heard him pronounce Shallan one time as Shuh-laan (Persian: شلان if that helps anyone) which sort of got me going in that direction. Oh, I'm not Persian at all, I just have an interest in that language and use it as my default phonological set whenever I read fantasy with names that seem vaguely Middle Eastern. Although as far as I can tell, I don't know if anyone else thought "Middle Eastern languages" when they saw Vorin words. Edited January 26, 2014 by Aryanath 1
Delightful Posted January 28, 2014 Posted January 28, 2014 (edited) , I don't know if anyone else thought "Middle Eastern languages" when they saw Vorin words. I definitely did,names in particular. I think a new member this week said they thought Alethi sounded like Arabic. I seem to remember (but have no source) that Alethi was based on Semitic languages. So I tend to pronounce the guttural kh eg in kholin and kharbranth (though that sound is also similarly in German I believe). Edit: Found the source! Worldcon AMA http://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/comments/1lhf1e/worldcon_flash_ama_brandon_sanderson/cbzatlc Q: Does Alethi come from or have anything to do with the Greek word for truth or is that just a coincidence?A: Alethi is a coincidence. However, it is the sort of coincidence that happens a lot for me in langauges; as I often look for a "feel" for a language. Alethi, for example, is a semitic language mashup with some Mediterranean influence....... Edited January 28, 2014 by Delightful
Voscaia she/her Posted March 28, 2014 Posted March 28, 2014 So I tend to pronounce the guttural kh eg in kholin and kharbranth (though that sound is also similarly in German I believe). Your belief is correct, though there are differences between the regional dialects. It is strongest in Swiss German and weakest near the coast. BTW, sz is pronounced like sh in Polish, so I say Sheth. There are some Polish emigrants in my parents' neighbourhood and they are VERY nice people.
Argent he/him Posted March 29, 2014 Posted March 29, 2014 I've been trying to pronounce both the 's' and 'z' sounds in Szeth's name, but recently I just started calling him Zeth, after Brandon.
Humph Posted March 29, 2014 Posted March 29, 2014 I say Si-zeth. Probably wrong, but it's the easiest on my mind. Also, I say Aimia as Ay me Ay and Sadeas like Shardlet does. Wasn't Tyn's former apprentice "Si" ........ hmmm food for speculation here.
Odium's_Shard Posted March 29, 2014 Posted March 29, 2014 I tend to adopt what my friends call my 'foreign language accent' whereupon I ditch my native English and speak in a strange amalgamation of all sorts of accents in the vague hope that I will correctly emphasise a word (the only languages I tend to do correctly are English and French) when I speak words such as: Jah Keved -> Yah Kay-VED. Taravangian -> Tar-ah-VAN-gee-un. Dalinar/Gavilar/Jasnah Kholin -> DAH-lin-ar/ GAH-vih-lar/ YAS-nuh KO-lin (K'O' as in Y'O'KE)
Wyndrunner he/him Posted March 24, 2015 Posted March 24, 2015 Okay, here's one that's been bothering me for a while. Is it SHADES-mar or is it SHAD-is-mar?
Redbird he/him Posted March 24, 2015 Posted March 24, 2015 I say SHADES-mar, but that could be wrong.
SingTheSorrow Posted June 28, 2015 Posted June 28, 2015 I know this topic is a bit old but I have been reading Elantris and am wondering how people say "gyorn". I can't decide between GUY-orn or Gee-orn. Or perhaps its JY-orn or JEE-orn? Any thoughts??
kaellok he/him Posted June 28, 2015 Posted June 28, 2015 I know this topic is a bit old but I have been reading Elantris and am wondering how people say "gyorn". I can't decide between GUY-orn or Gee-orn. Or perhaps its JY-orn or JEE-orn? Any thoughts?? Ever had gyoza before? I pronounce it the same way, but with yorn instead of yoza.
SingTheSorrow Posted June 29, 2015 Posted June 29, 2015 Never even heard of it lol. So unfortunately I don't know how you'd pronounce that either.
Iarwainiel I she/her Posted June 29, 2015 Posted June 29, 2015 OK, jumping into this thread late... Most of these I'd say like everyone else, but there are a few differences: Sadeas suh-DAY-uss Shadesmar SHADD-ess-marr Gyorn gee-ORN Aimia EYE-mee-uh Raoden RAH-oh-denn ("Rao" sounds like "Tao" from the Taoism religion/philosophy.) The "J" in Jasnah and Jah Keved are regular American J's, not Y's, in my brain's ear I've never done the audiobooks, and I guess I'd better not start now: I'd have trouble knowing who they were talking about! :-) 2
emilylime she/her Posted June 29, 2015 Posted June 29, 2015 Shallan Shall-un? Shuh-lawn? When my cousin met Brando sando, she told me he said it was shuh-lawn. Fortunately, she also told me about Yaz-nuh, otherwise I'd still be saying Jazz-nuh. And now I say Yezrien and Yah KeVED. Also, I read Sadeas as suh-DAY-iss, but everyone I know who has read SA pronounces it in different ways. His name is the one that bothers me most. I have no idea how to pronounce it, and when I say it out loud it's different every time. do we know how Brandon pronounces it? Also, how do you pronounce Sarene's nickname, 'Ene? I say een but that doesn't sound right to me. It's kind of an awkward nickname. 1
natc Posted June 29, 2015 Posted June 29, 2015 (edited) It's just the Aon Ene no? Not that I can pronounce that either. Edited June 29, 2015 by natc
SingTheSorrow Posted June 29, 2015 Posted June 29, 2015 When my cousin met Brando sando, she told me he said it was shuh-lawn. I know this is the correct pronunciation but I've never liked it personally, sounds too much like I'm saying "shalom" (means peace in Hebrew if anyone is unaware). Instead I've always thought of it as Shay-lan. I know its wrong but for some reason I really like how it sounds. 1
FeatherWriter she/her Posted June 29, 2015 Posted June 29, 2015 When my cousin met Brando sando, she told me he said it was shuh-lawn. Fortunately, she also told me about Yaz-nuh, otherwise I'd still be saying Jazz-nuh. And now I say Yezrien and Yah KeVED. Also, I read Sadeas as suh-DAY-iss, but everyone I know who has read SA pronounces it in different ways. His name is the one that bothers me most. I have no idea how to pronounce it, and when I say it out loud it's different every time. do we know how Brandon pronounces it? Also, how do you pronounce Sarene's nickname, 'Ene? I say een but that doesn't sound right to me. It's kind of an awkward nickname. Oh man! Other people who say suh-DAY-us! That one I've never been sure of but I'm to tired to change it now. I've also heard SAD-ee-us but it never felt right for me. I've complained lightly about Aons before, in that I feel like it would make sense for them to have cardinal vowels. I believe the E in Aonic is an "ee" like "see" which makes Sarene's name suh-REE-NEE and the Aonic nickname "Eenee." I still use cardinal though and, with cardinal vowels E is "eh" like the first vowel in "day." So Sarene for me is almost like suh-RAY-NAY and her nickname is "ay-nay." 1
emilylime she/her Posted June 29, 2015 Posted June 29, 2015 I know this is the correct pronunciation but I've never liked it personally, sounds too much like I'm saying "shalom" (means peace in Hebrew if anyone is unaware). Instead I've always thought of it as Shay-lan. I know its wrong but for some reason I really like how it sounds. Same, it sounds too similar to 'salon' to me. As in like, nail salon or hair salon. I still pronounce it that way, though. Oh man! Other people who say suh-DAY-us! That one I've never been sure of but I'm to tired to change it now. I've also heard SAD-ee-us but it never felt right for me. I've complained lightly about Aons before, in that I feel like it would make sense for them to have cardinal vowels. I believe the E in Aonic is an "ee" like "see" which makes Sarene's name suh-REE-NEE and the Aonic nickname "Eenee." I still use cardinal though and, with cardinal vowels E is "eh" like the first vowel in "day." So Sarene for me is almost like suh-RAY-NAY and her nickname is "ay-nay." AYYY. Same!! Okay, if it's pronounced suh-REE-NEE, then her nickname sounds a lot more natural. Eenee. yes. 1
The Tenth Pancake Posted July 28, 2018 Posted July 28, 2018 Here's how I pronounce them: Adolin: AH-doe-lin (A as in apple) I just feel like the alternate AY-doe-lin kind of makes him sound like he's a boring snob, when he's a kind, adorable goofball. Jasnah: JAZZ-nuh Jasnah just sounds way more cool and confident. Yasnah sounds kind of weird to me, Idk. Shallan: SHAH-lohn (uh sound like mustard) Renarin: REH-nare-in (re as in "recollection" nare rhyming with stare) Sadeas: SAD-ee-us The sad is obviously stressed, because he is a sadistic jerk. Szeth: I kind of just say both the s and the z, so it kind of ends up being suh-zeth. 1
Fanghur Rahl he/him Posted July 30, 2018 Posted July 30, 2018 (edited) I’ve always pronounced ‘Sadeas’ the way the audiobooks do, namely Sa-dee-as(s). Without the two brackets. Seriously guys? You censor those three letters? lol. Edited July 30, 2018 by Fanghur Rahl 1
CosmicSieve Posted August 2, 2018 Posted August 2, 2018 (edited) Sadeas: Sah DAY chull (there's apparently a filter that doesn't approve of the way I say it!) Shallan: SHALL n Jasnah: JAZZ nuh Kholin: KHOH lin Szeth: Szeth Aimia: AY MEE uh Edited August 2, 2018 by CosmicSieve 2
Guest Posted August 4, 2018 Posted August 4, 2018 Personally, I ignore the silent J issue for Jasnah. I like the harder J sound, so that's what I use. Jazz instead of Yazz.
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