Latin pronunciation

[Elizabeth86]

I decided to get song school latin for my sons to do together next year.  I do not know latin.  It says in the teachers manual you can choose between classical or ecclesiastical pronunciation.  Which pronunciation you choose to teach your children and why?

[eagleynne]

It largely depends on what the student's goals are. If the student has their eyes on seminary or reading the writings of the church fathers or other early theologians then we would do ecclesiastical. However, if the student has plans to read more ancient authors or to take Latin classes anywhere other than a religious school we would do classical as that is what's used in most schools. If pressed to choose only one I would probably choose the classical pronunciation as it would make for an easier transition to a high school or college class later. That being said, the differences aren't that dramatic so one could teach both successfully if one wanted to.

[carriede]

Ecclesiastical here. We're Catholic, so my kids will be hearing and speaking Latin at church (sporadically, we don't have Latin Mass here). I'd like for them (and me) to only worry about one type of pronunciation for the time being. I don't imagine it will be difficult to adjust to classical if/when the time comes. 

[Bluegoat]

Honestly it doesn't make much difference.  I tend to use classical, because that is what I learned in university (except, no "w"s for "v".)

However, if your interest is more in church Latin,  liturgical use, or for singing, it might be best to use the Italian pronunciation.

If you don't care, classical might be simpler for English speakers.

[Bluegoat]

It really is very easy to learn both once you get started - and Latin student is going to if they carry on with it, and maybe even some others.

[HomeAgain]

My kids started with Classical and moved to Ecclesiastical.  They didn't have any problems with it.  Personally, I prefer Classical but it was harder to find materials after a certain point.

[Holly]

We use Ecclesiastical because that's what our program uses (Memoria Press).  We've used classical pronunciation in the past because that's what the program we were using followed (we've done Minimus and Visual Latin in the past).  I think it's easier just to go with your program, especially if it has a CD/DVD component.  My kids haven't had trouble switching back and forth. 

[Targhee]

Classical. Though it’s not terribly relevant because Latin is predominantly a written language now.  We chose classical because it is the pronunciation of academia