I've just started reading the New Frontier novels and I was wondering how to pronounce Xenex? Thanks.
I usually pronounce it as "zee-nex", sort of like how you say Xerox when you are talking about the photocopier company.
Me too. That's the thing about Peter David, though, he doesn't give you any hints about these things. Like, how do you pronounce Si-Cwan?
The official pronunciation is Suh Kwan. I use See Swan, because I always thought the character was named after Curt Swan, the legendary artist of Silver/Bronze Age Superman and PAD's own Star Trek Annual #2.
I've always gone with "zen-ecks," rhymes with "Gen X," though "Xenexian" throws me a bit. I suppose it's probably supposed to be "zen-ecks-ee-an," but I can't help thinking it should rhyme with "Venetian." I've always tended to interpret "Si Cwan" as "see kwahn" -- naturally, since I took three years of Spanish in high school. Though sometimes I read it more as "sih kwahn," almost like "sick wan" -- which seems pretty close to the "official" pronunciation given above.
'zen-ecks' sounds like a medication. "Have you had a problem with oppressive alien overlords? Talk to your doctor about Xenex. Side effects include purple eyes and facial scars..."
My pronunciation is probably off since my first language is Italian, but I just say "KSEH-neks" (emphasis on the first syllable) and "kseh-NEH-ksian" (emphasis on the second): in Italian it's not unusual for derivative words to change the position of accent. Also, "sih kwahn".