However, it raises some problems for the pronunciation of
Latvian geographical and personal names. In this poem, all such
words start with a stressed syllable, as is usual in spoken
Latvian. However, stressing every second syllable may offend
against some readers' understanding of correct Latvian usage, I ask
for forgiveness in advance. The work is, however, a poem in the
English language, and the pronunciation suggested here and in the
Glossary is essential for preserving the iambic metre of the
English poetry.
The notes on pronunciation that follow are solely for the purposes
of reading this poem, and are not meant as a general guide to
pronunciation of the Latvian language. The syllable represented
phonetically as "-a" should be pronounced as in "bad",and "-ah" as
a very long "bad". The syllable represented as "-e" should be
pronounced as in "bed", "-o" as in "hot", "-oh" as in "throw", "oo"
as in "zoo", "ow" as in "bough", "-u" as in "hut" and "uh" as in
"book". Syllables in boldface should be stressed.
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