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Monty and his Kniphofia

GillianBCGillianBC Posts: 121
in The potting shed

I've always called it "nip-hof-ia" and the south african botanist on the show this week said it in the same way.  I have never heard anyone else except Monty Don pronounce it "nif-hof-ia".  He even said in the show that it's the wrong pronunciation then carried on with his "nif-hof-ia" malarkey.  It's named after Kniphof, a german.  We do all tend to say "fewshia" rather than "fooksia", even though they're named after someone called "Fuchs", but how do you say "kniphofia"?

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  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,138

    I'm confused image Monty explained about Kniphof and the pronunciation, and I heard him use the Nip hof pronunciation throughout - I've just been talking about it on another thread before I saw this one.


    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • UnknownUnknown

    It's a well known fact that M D has pronunciation frailties, ranging from what you describe, to downright incorrectness. 

  • happymarionhappymarion Posts: 4,591

    The BBC has people to help with pronunciation on the staff.  I have heard loads of people struggle as they strive to pronounce or spell kniphofia but Red Hot Poker readily comes to mind to save them.  I saw them grown beautifully in Keith Wiley's Garden , "Wildside".  They looked quite at home dotted in quite big clumps throught his huge wide borders.  They were mostly all yellow so needed to be called Yellow Hot Pokers really.  Having tricky names does not deter from their undoubted class however as a jewel  of a perennial.l

  • WelshonionWelshonion Posts: 3,114
    And have you heard newsreaders and Welsh place names?



    Relax, people. If you know what they mean, that's all that's important.
  • nutcutletnutcutlet Posts: 27,445

    I think what we need is a designated  thread entitled 'Whinge about GW and MD'

    Then us gardeners can ignore it and get on with the real stuff of life.image



    In the sticks near Peterborough
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,138

    image


    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • Tropical SamTropical Sam Posts: 1,488

    It depends on where you first hear the word or guess what it should be pronounced like. I always assumed Ensete were pronounced on-sett instead of eNn-setti.

  • UnknownUnknown
    nutcutlet wrote (see)

    I think what we need is a designated  thread entitled 'Whinge about GW and MD'

    Then us gardeners can ignore it and get on with the real stuff of life.image

    You're such a wag, nut!  image

  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,138
    blairs wrote (see)

    It depends on where you first hear the word or guess what it should be pronounced like. I always assumed Ensete were pronounced on-sett instead of eNn-setti.


    And of course there's those Cotton Easter's that Ma had in her garden image but then some of us learned a bit of Latin and Greek as well as other languages and sometimes apply pronunciations used in one language to a word from another image

    I doubt if any of us are right all the time and although some of us delight occasionally in a little light-hearted pedantry, I was always taught that it's bad manners to make personal remarks or correct other people's pronunciation.

    It would be awful if we discouraged people from gardening by implying that spelling or pronunciation is of huge importance - gardening is such a great leveller image


    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





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