Richard, Names evolve considerably over generations, depending on dialects, countries of origin, countries of destination, languages used, and many other factors. I don't believe there is one easy answer, although, there may be many opinion's on why it should be done a particular way. Personally, I prefer a method similar to transcription i.e. "record information as found in the records." In other words, how did the people who had those surnames pronounce them at that time in history, and what is the particular country and language of origin in which they spoke. The two examples that you cite "Noel" and "Barron" linguistically and etymologically originated in the Old French language, and being familiar with French both surnames have a definite "Nasal" quality or tone to them. However, having said that, both surnames could possibly be traced back prior to the Norman conquest of 1066, and on into Latin variants.
For example, my surname is "Apple" and the surname originated in Germany. Even between dialects in Germany, I have found approximately 40 different variant spellings and pronunciations among the German people. When my ancestors came to the United Sates, their surname was recorded "Phonetically" so again, in the English language there are approximately 35 variant spellings and pronunciations. I don't believe there is one single best answer to your question, nor do I believe there is a dictionary or lexicon that can provide an adequate answer. Perhaps, in a particular time, place, language, and country, however, beyond that the surname evolves into different spellings and pronunciations. As previously stated, I prefer to record the name as it was spelled and pronounced at the time, language, and country in which it was used. Charles From: Richard Van Wasshnova [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Sunday, January 22, 2012 3:50 PM To: [email protected] Subject: [LegacyUG] Surname pronunciation Any suggestion on how to record proper pronunciation of a surname? My mother was always correcting us on her grandmother's surname of NOEL must be pronounced Newel not like Christmas. Also her aunt and cousins BARRON must be pronounced nasally, sort of like Bahra. (They sometimes appeared in census as BARROW) I considered AKA but tend to prefer a name source. I don't know how to create a source for oral preaching. Any suggestions please? -- Richard Van Wasshnova Legacy User Group guidelines: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Etiquette.asp Archived messages after Nov. 21 2009: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ Archived messages from old mail server - before Nov. 21 2009: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ Online technical support: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Help.asp Follow Legacy on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/LegacyFamilyTree) and on our blog (http://news.LegacyFamilyTree.com). To unsubscribe: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/LegacyLists.asp
