Here's the full breakdown, folks. Pronunciation of Latin letters in the Classical and Ecclesiastical/Medieval/Late dialects. Off the top of my head:
A - [ɑ], as in p
ot.
Ā - [ɑ
![:]](http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/devious.png "Devious :]")
, as in f
ather, held half again as long as the short vowel.
B - {b} as English. In Classical Latin, /bs/ are /bt/ is devoiced and pronounced [ps] and [pt] (
urbs, "city", is pronounced [ʊrps] in Classical Latin, but [urbs] in Late Latin).
C - [k]. A /c/ is always prounounced [k] in Classical Latin. In Late Latin, /c/ is pronounced [k] before back vowels (/a/, /o/, and /u/), and as [ʧ] (like English
chur
ch) before front vowels (/i/, /e/, /y/, /æ/, and /œ/). In Scientific Latin, the /c/ softens even further before front vowels, to [ts] in German pronunciation and simply
in British and French pronunciation.
D - [d], as in English.
E - [ɛ] in Classical Latin, as in English get. [e] in Late Latin, as in English date.
Ē - [e, as in English make.
F - [f], as in English.
G - [g] as in give. A /g/ is always pronounced [g] in Classical Latin. In Late Latin, /g/ is prounounced [g] before back vowels, and [ʤ] as in English gem before front vowels.
H - [h]. In Classical Latin, the /h/ is always sounded, as is typical in American English. In Late Latin, an /h/ is often silent, as in British English, except in mihi and nihil, when it's pronounced as [x], the voiceless velar fricative of Scottish loch or German ich.
I - [ɪ] in Classical Latin, as in English pit. {i} in Late Latin, as in Frech sit.
Ī - [i, as in English speed.
J - [j], as in English yes. A /j/ is simply a consonantal /i/, and /i/ is always pronounced this way when it begins a word and is followed by a vowel; or when it is the second part of a dipthong and is followed by a vowel: iaceo/jaceo, iuris/juris, cuius/cujus, eius/ejus.
K - [k], used in Latin only for transcribing Greek words, and even then, the Romans much prefered to use /c/ or /q/. In very early Latin, the Romans followed the same rule that the Etruscans pretty much made up, using "c" (gamma) before /i/, /e/, and /o/, "k" (kappa) before /a/, and "q" (qoppa) before /u/, but by the Classical period, /c/ was the standard spelling, /q/ was relegated to instances of the /qu/ diconsonant, and /k/ was hardly used at all.
L - [l], as in English.
M - [m], as in English, but in Classical Latin, a final -um was probably pronounced [ũ], nasalizing the vowel and dropping the consonant, like in modern French bon [bõ].
N - [n], as in English.
O - [ɔ] in Classical Latin, as in caught. [o] in Late Latin, as in English go.
Ō - [o, as in boat.
P - [p] as in English.
Q - [k], and as in English, is typically followed by a consonantal /u/, pronounced [kw].
R - [ɾ] in Classical Latin, a tongue flap, as in the way Americans say letter or ladder. If written double, /rr/, the pronunciation was a velar trill, [r], as in Spanish and Italian /r/ (not French, which is a uvular trill). In Late Latin, /r/ is always trilled.
S - , as in English.
T - [t], as in English.
U - [ʊ] in Classical Latin, as in English put. {u} in Late Latin, as in English do.
Ū - [u, as in English pool.
V - [w] in Classical Latin, and [v] in Late Latin. As with i/j, u/v are actually the same letter.
W - Never occurs in Latin, except as a /uu/ ligature.
X - [ks] in Classical Latin. Sometimes voices to [gz] between vowels in Late Latin.
Y - [y] in Classical Latin, as in German ü or French u. In Late Latin, always treated just like /i/.
Ȳ - [y in Classical Latin, as the German and French sounds held half again as long. In Late Latin, treated as /ī/.
Z - [dz]. Only prounoucned [z] in modern Scientific Latin.
CH, PH, TH - In Classical Latin, they represented Greek chi, phi, and theta and were simple aspirated consonants, pronounced [kh], [ph], and [th]. In Late Latin, /ch/ and /ph/ can be pronounced [x] and [f], but /th/ is still pronounced [th], not [θ].
AE, OE - Classical Latin dipthongs, pronounced [ɑj] and [oj], like English pie and oil.
Æ, Œ - Late Latin simple vowles, treated as /e/.
AU, EI, EU - Dipthongs appearing in both Classical and Late Latin, pronoucned [ɑw], [ej], and [ew].
UI - Dipthong pronounced [uj], and only appears in huius/hujus, hui, cuius/cujus, cui, & huic..
SC - Always [sk] in Classical Latin. In Late Latin, [sk] before back vowels and [ʃ] (as English sh) before front vowels.
XC - Always [ksk] in Classical Latin. In Late Latin, [ksk] before back vowels and [kʃ] before front vowels.
GN - [ŋn] in Classical Latin, as in hangnail (magnus sounds like "mang-nus"). In Late Latin, [nj], as in modern French and Italian (magnus sounds like "man-yoos").
TI - Always [ti] in Classical Latin. In Late Latin, [ti] after an /s/ or /x/, but [tsi] after all other letters.
