Re post below: some people think "Jingiz" (simplest spelling) is pretentious- also the other variations like Jengiz, Jengis, even "Chingiss". Look, I'll grant that English vowels for this name are arbitrary, and which you use are up to you. But if you look at old pronunciations, frickin' "GENGHIS" is supposed to be pronounced with a soft initial consonant.
Nobody will fight you on "Khan" except possibly the Moslem fanatics who object to the name of the president's guard dog. Hey guys: "Khan" is not exclusive to Moslems as a title or name. Jingiz was an animist, who prayed to the Great Blue Sky...
1 comment:
I blame Chaucer for hardening that initial consonant. From a purely calligraphic standpoint, I'm partial for some reason to Chinggis. I have no time at all for anyone who considers learning how to pronounce Mongolian (or any language) pretentious: screw them.
Though, I do recall fondly Kent Maiden's old quote, "You know when you laugh and milk comes out your nose? That's a word in Mongolian!"
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