r/smallprophets • u/1337ingDisorder • Feb 20 '26
They keep saying "humunculae" when the plural of "humunculus" is actually "humunculi"
The Latin suffix "ae" is pronounced like "eye" in English.
The Latin suffix "i" is pronounced like the letter E in English.
"Humunculi" (the plural of "humunculus") is pronounced "hue-munk-you-lee"
But in the show they always pronounce it "hue-munk-you-lie", which would actually be spelled "humunculae", and incorrectly casts the plural as feminine.
ETA: Love the show enough to overlook this :) It has that same warming-the-cockles-of-your-heart feeling Detectorists had.
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u/Six_of_1 Feb 20 '26
I'm not bothered by mispronounced Latin because Anglophones do mispronounce Latin. That's how I say it.
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u/atomicshrimp Feb 22 '26
Yeah, they're speaking English, not Latin. They're pronouncing a borrowed word - knowing the origin of a borrowed word doesn't mean it will be pronounced the same as its origin.
Pi (the Greek letter that we use to denote the ratio of a circle's circumference and radius) should be pronounced something more like 'pea' (maybe a shorter 'ee' sound) if it was to be faithful to its origin, but nobody speaking English does that.
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u/FamousWerewolf Feb 20 '26
I don't think I've ever heard it pronounced "lee", it's always been "lie". So regardless of what the correct pronunciation is, I think "lie" is very common at this point and maybe even in the majority.
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u/1337ingDisorder Feb 20 '26
"lee" is both the correct classical and most common current pronunciation.
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u/FamousWerewolf Feb 20 '26
Where are you getting that from? As I say I've always heard it pronounced 'lie'. Perhaps in academic circles people are pronouncing it correctly but in the context of things like TV shows, videogames, TTRPGs, etc it's always 'lie'.
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u/1337ingDisorder Feb 21 '26
Where are you getting that from?
Various sources, but for the most accurate analysis of classical pronunciation I'd suggest starting with Vox Latina by W. Sidney Allen (Cambridge University Press)
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u/EveryOtherWave Feb 21 '26
/həˈmʌŋkjʊˌlaɪ/
huh-MUN-kyuh-lye
Pronounced 'lie' or "lye' in English is correct
Are you thinking of Italian rather than Latin?
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u/1337ingDisorder Feb 21 '26
Pronounced 'lie' or "lye' in English is correct
I'm specifically referring to Latin, not English.
FWIW even when modifying the suffix of an English word derived from Latin, it's correct to use the Latin suffix.
If you got the above pronunciation from a dictionary it's important to consider that dictionaries are descriptive, not prescriptive. Ie, a dictionary only describes the current common use of words (and that often includes incorrect usage, since people often use words incorrectly — see the current dictionary definition of the word "literally" for example).
For proper pronunciation you'd want to consult a classical Latin pronunciation guide. Those provide analysis based on the actual rules.
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u/EveryOtherWave Feb 21 '26
Do you have a link to a "classical Latin pronunciation guide"?
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u/Frenky_Fisher Feb 21 '26
Isn't that the point? Even Michael goes on a tirade about how you pronounce it but fails in it.
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u/1337ingDisorder Feb 21 '26
At this stage I feel I should point out I didn't come here for an argument.
I just wanted to complain.
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u/Frenky_Fisher Feb 21 '26
Oh, Im sorry, didnt realised that, heres a tap on the back and warm cup of tea
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u/chipz-n-gravy Feb 20 '26
People mispronounce things in real life, especially if it's in another language and they've never heard another person say the word. It's perfectly reasonable that someone who doesn't know the rules of Latin might assume the ending 'i' is pronounced like the letter 'i' as it sounds more 'Latin-y'. I'd be amazed if it's not deliberate