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"Scii"

de Arocoun, 2012-marto-29

Mesaĝoj: 9

Lingvo: English

Arocoun (Montri la profilon) 2012-marto-29 01:34:24

From what I've seen of Esperanto, each vowel (a,e,i,o,u) gets one syllable, and each character in a word is always pronounced. So this leads to two questions of mine:

1. Is "scii" a word with two syllables? Pronounced as "sci'i?"

2. Is it proper to scrunch "sc" into one syllable? The "sts" sound is rare in English, so it feels almost like its own little syllable. As if I'm saying "s'tsi'i."

Dankon, kaj ĝis revido!

Hyperboreus (Montri la profilon) 2012-marto-29 02:49:51

Forigite

RiotNrrd (Montri la profilon) 2012-marto-29 03:28:03

It's pronounced sss-TSEE-ee. I don't think any English word starts with that combination of sounds.

I think the syllables require vowels to be counted as such, so there are only two in the word. But yes, it does feel like it's pronounced in three pieces.

Arocoun (Montri la profilon) 2012-marto-29 03:49:20

Thank you both for your help! "SC" is the only combination that has given me trouble thus far, so I've been practicing it constantly.

Nun mi scias kiel diri la vorton: scii! Dankon!

erinja (Montri la profilon) 2012-marto-29 03:53:35

No English words start with sts but of course the combination itself is common in English. The plural form of any -st word ends up with an sts.

If you can say "contests" as two syllables, then you can say "scii" as two as well. If you find the combination difficult, maybe you could practice saying those English words, as if you were interrupted mid-word. "I have some te...sts", etc.

It helps that "scii" is rarely heard all alone. "mi scias" can be rendered, for example, as "mis-cias" in rapid speech.

You do hear some workarounds from people who find it difficult to pronounce the sc combination. A pronuncation like "stii" is not unheard of among English speakers, and I've also heard it pronounced like "sii", as if the c were not present. Esperanto speakers are quite forgiving of variant pronunciations, due to the internationality of the community and its wide variety of native languages. You should try hard to get the pronunciation right (it makes it easier for others to understand you) but don't beat yourself up if you miss the mark. There are some very well-known and well-respected Esperantists with a strong accent from their native language (although this is becoming rarer, since today's Esperanto courses perhaps emphasize pronunciation more than those of the past).

At least we can be thankful that there's no Esperanto word with the equivalent sound of "ksts" - like in the English word "texts".

Mustelvulpo (Montri la profilon) 2012-marto-29 12:48:21

I agree that "sc" is difficult to pronounce, particularly at the beginning of a sentence. If I'm not careful, my pronunciation tends toward "ts" without the initial "s" sound. I really struggle with the word "sciencisto."

I wish that the sound hadn't been chosen for a word as commonly used as "scii." But as erinja pointed out, it fortunately is rarely spoken alone and it is a bit easier to blend with other sounds. "Mi ne scias" can be spoken as "Mee nest-see-ah-s" and with practice becomes easier to say.

marcuscf (Montri la profilon) 2012-marto-29 13:34:58

erinja:At least we can be thankful that there's no Esperanto word with the equivalent sound of "ksts" - like in the English word "texts".
eksciti... :-/

erinja (Montri la profilon) 2012-marto-29 14:54:03

marcuscf:
erinja:At least we can be thankful that there's no Esperanto word with the equivalent sound of "ksts" - like in the English word "texts".
eksciti... :-/
That's true! But the k and the sc are divided into two syllables, so that helps a lot.

lingvokapablo (Montri la profilon) 2012-marto-29 16:37:51

What I've found to be really helpful is to listen to Esperanto for at least 20 minutes every day. This way your mind gets use to the sounds of the language. The only trouble you may have with this is figuring out how to say less common sounds, but thankfully (or unthankfully) scii and its various forms are pretty common, so you shouldn't have any problems hearing them said. Also, you could listen to the lernu courses such as Ana Pana or Gerda malaperis. While listening, read the accompaning texts and notice how each word is said, then practice mimicing what you hear.

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