Message: "How would you pronounce Hermia?"

How would you pronounce Hermia?

by Tbird

10/26/2005, 2:12 PM

I'm not sure... It appears in Shaespear's "A Mid-Summer Night's Dream," and Shakespear would usually pron. it her-MY-uh. But it's a German name, so how would you say it properly? :)

#pronunciation

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- Satu (_satu_)

10/27/2005, 9:38 AM

Hi Tbird,

The German pronunciation is hair-mee-yah. The stress can be on the first or on the second syllable, but I think to stress the first syllable is more common.

/ Satu

http://www.nordicnames.de/

- Damis (guest)

10/27/2005, 7:18 AM

The name Hermia is actually ancient Greek, it's the feminine form of Hermes. (see www.lgpn.ox.ac.uk - more than 28,000 ancient Greek names, and also "Thesaurus of Greek names", ISBN 96-7931-65-3, 17,000 Greek names)

- Pavlos (guest) +1

10/27/2005, 1:16 AM

Like hernia, except for the fact that no operation is needed

- Chrisell

10/27/2005, 1:32 AM

*falls off chair laughing*

♦ Chrisell ♦

All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us. - J.R.R. Tolkien.

- Anneza (guest)

10/27/2005, 12:54 AM

I'm not convinced that Shakespeare would have pronounced it with the stress on the middle syllable. It fits far better into the iambic pentameter rhythm if you say HERmia - same as her old school friend is HELena, not heLEEna.

Same with (Titus) anDRONicus, indeed.

- Ylva +1

10/26/2005, 4:33 PM

I would pronounce it HERR-mee-ah. Another option is Herr-MEE-ah. But I am sure it would not be pronounced as Her-MY-uh in German.

The letter I is pronounced as EE in most languages, in fact every language I know, except English.

"You sought a flower and found a fruit. You sought a spring and found a sea. You sought a woman and found a soul. You are disappointed."
"It does not become me to make myself smaller than I am." (Edith Södergran 1891-1923)

- Tbird

10/27/2005, 10:56 AM

And the little sense of humor brightened up my day! :)

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