Quote:
Originally posted by DeltAlum
If I remember correctly (and it was a long time ago that I learned the Greek alphabet), it is pronounced "zee" if it follows a vowel, and "Zi" otherwise.
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Greek urban legend. Unlike the pronunciations of
sounds represented by letters, the pronunciations of
letter names do not change depending on what other letters may precede or follow. That would be like saying that the English letter "T" is called "Tee," except when it follows a vowel, in which case it is called "Tie" (as in, "eat" is spelled "Ee," "Ay," "Tie" instead of "Ee," "Ay," "Tee")
The Greek name of the letter
X is spelled
Xi and pronounced "KSee." That's right -- both the "K" and the "S" are pronounced. It's the sound represented by the English "X."
The names of many Greek letters, however, have been anglicized in the US, and to a lesser extent in Britain. We English-speakers are not used to beginning a word with a "ks" sound. And we English-speakers are not used to pronouncing the single letter "i" as "ee." So, most Americans (at least most Americans who have reason to say the name of the letter
X in a context other than learning the read and speak Greek) call
X (Xi) by the anglicized name "Zie." Some Americans, including some GLOs, split the diffence by saying "Zee."
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