I was debating on the actual pronunciation of the name “Cthulhu,” a primordial chaos deity invented by writer H P Lovecraft in his story Call of Cthulhu.
Since Lovecraft used Latin letters to render the sound, it’s hard to say how the name actually sounds in the original Elder God language. Presumably it would be easier to say if you had a squid mouth, but we will just have to make do with tongues and teeth.
So: in the International Phonetic Alphabet, it would be
xɮɤˠɬuˠ
I really like the precision of the IPA… it’s cool. Here is a quick guide on how to pronounce what these symbols imply:x ɮ ɤˠ ɬ uˠ
| IPA symbol | description | sounds like |
|---|---|---|
| x | unvoiced velar fricative | Hiss with the very back of your mouth like you have swallowed something you are allergic to that itches. Don’t hawk phlegm, just hiss. Should sound like the german “ch” in the pronoun “ich,” also known as a hard H. |
| ɮ | voiced dental lateral fricative | shape your mouth and tongue like you are about to say the L in “LIKE.” Now, without changing the shape of your mouth or tongue at all, make a shwa sound, like the “uh” sound in “LOVE.” It should sound like a wet moan. I chose this one instead of the unvoiced because it seems unlikely to me that squid mouths would be able to easily lead words with voiced fricatives, but the word needs to lead into the vowel. There is probably a more technical way of saying that, but I have never taken a phonology class. I chose it for aesthetic reasons, basically. |
| ɤˠ | velarized half-closed back vowel (unrounded) | this was the most uncertain letter. Here I have a sort of “oh” sound with the lips pushed forwards… but it could just as easily be a schwa sound- the “uh” sound. For bonus points, “velarize” the vowel by almost touching the back of your tongue to the top of your throat, like you are hawking up phlegm. Hiss that way while pronouncing the vowel. |
| ɬ | unvoiced dental lateral fricative | shape your mouth and tongue like you are about to say the L in “LIKE.” Now, without changing the shape of your mouth or tongue at all, exhale through your mouth, like saying the “H” in “HARRY.” It should sound like a wet hiss. |
| uˠ | velarized closed back rounded vowel | the “oo” in “YAHOO.” That was an easy one! For bonus points, “velarize” the vowel by almost touching the back of your tongue to the top of your throat, like you are hawking up phlegm. Hiss that way while pronouncing the vowel. |
“The actual sound – as nearly as human organs could imitate it or human letters record it – may be taken as something like Khlul’-hloo, with the first syllable pronounced gutturally and very thickly.”
“The best approximation one can make is to grunt, bark, or cough the imperfectly formed syllables Cluh-Luh with the tip of the tongue firmly affixed to the roof of the mouth. That is, if one is a human being. Directions for other entities are naturally different.”
woah, if that’s the real pronunciation, then why did he spell it so wrong?!