Re: A question for Ianthe

[Kim.Salazar@em.doe.gov]

     Corun, having met me only via the Ether, wishes to know how my name is
     pronounced:

There has of late arisen a great debate between myself, Henry Best, and a
few others here, which you may be able to lay to rest once and for all....
     Eye-an-thee
     Eee-an-thee
     Eye-auntie (though a Countess, I doubt you're as venerable as
              some alledgedly aged Dukes that do inhabit here
              and are called Grandpa by some who live a safe
                    distance away)

or perhaps the I is pronounced as the Greeks do, as a J, and you're called;
     Jan-te

I tend to favour this last one, as you have proven on more than one
occasion to have a jaunty wit and manner.
So if you please, could you clear up this small matter for us? As They
say (whoever They are), inquiring minds want to know.

In service,
Corun (fully expecting to be told it's pronounced like it's spelled)


     To Corun, from Ianthe,

     To your great relief and Duke Frederick of Holland's chagrin, neither
     my first nor last names are pronounced the way they're spelled.
     Frederick was herald at Fernando's coronation, and throughout the
     ceremony never pronounced my name the same way twice.  Each time he
     had to say it, he got redder and redder, and laughter in the room got
     louder and louder.  He still uses my name as an Object Lesson for New
     Court Heralds.

     I don't have much of a persona, preferring to be a Character, instead.
     You are correct in pointing out the Greek origin of the name.  When I
     started out, I decided to be a scholar's daughter, part of the general
     flood of intellectual refugees from Spain, around 1490-1520 or so.  A
     professor of Greek at Brandeis helped find "Ianthe" and told me the
     name meant "dark flower". My arms feature a black rose.

     He also said that it was likely in the cultural context I was looking
     at, the name would have been wildly mispronounced.  It would have been
     a "french-ified" pronounciation of the "spanish-ized" greek original;
     and an accent ague (spelling) would have popped up over the "e" (not
     on my keyboard).  He posited  "Eee-an-thay".  Sounded wonderfully
     confusing but good to me.

     As far as being venerable, I am "older" than most of your venerated
     Dukes, having been Eastern Queen in AS XII.

     To pronouce my last name, you (and Frederick) are on your own.  I'll
     give you a hint - no accents.


     Ianthe(') d'Averoigne                       kim.salazar@em.doe.gov
     (Proven in public to be older than dirt and impossible to pronounce)