Perhaps everyone who had to watch films about sailors or pirates paid attention to the presence of a certain slang among the sailors. The same can be said in direct contact with people who have devoted themselves to the marine business.
In particular, the professional pronunciation of the word “compAS” is noteworthy - with a catchy emphasis on the second syllable. Although in everyday life, most people are used to saying “kOmpas”.
How, then, will it be more correct where to put the stress? And why do sailors say that, with an emphasis on A?
The origin of the word “compass”
According to most literary sources, the word “compass” is of Latin origin. It arose from the merger of two concepts: COMES, which can be translated as a travel companion, and PASSUS - a step. In Latin, in the late version, it sounds like COMPASSUS, literally - “coming together”. According to the rules of the Latin language, the vowel that is in front of the double consonant, in any case, will be shock. That is, if you rely on literary, vocabulary justice, the sailors will be right, and you need to say “compass”. But in practice the situation is somewhat different.
The word “compass” in modern Russian
Today the accent on the first syllable is considered general literary and correct, the word should sound like “kOmpas”. The second syllable can be stressed, a similar phenomenon is allowed when it comes to jargon.Paradoxically, in this situation, everything is just that way - the natural stress of a word borrowed from a foreign language is considered as jargon, and the modified one is considered as a literary version. However, such a phenomenon is quite trivial for foreign borrowing, because each language has its own norms, own decisions, convenient for its speakers.
Interesting fact: before the word “compass” came into use of Russian sailors, the device was called differently - the uterus. Replacement occurred only subsequently. Probably, Russian sailors heard how the device is called by English-speaking and other foreign sailors, and therefore it was the original sound of the word that was rooted in the fleet.
What is kOmpas, and what is compass?
It is worth noting another interesting fact. Professionals may note that “kOmpas” and “compAS” are two completely different words. This version is worth exploring in more detail, it has its own truth.
So, experts can indicate that there is a device called “kOmpas”, which is needed to orientate to the cardinal points; it has a magnetic arrow that points to the north. And there is also “compAS” - this is the name for a single magnetic needle located on a hairpin equipped with a card - usually made of paper, where either countries of the world (sides, directions) or 32 winds are marked. The simplest device is the same orientation device, only in an older version. It can be used for the same purpose.
After reviewing the information presented, we can draw conclusions about why sailors emphasize the second syllable. It happened historically, this option corresponds to the original sound of the word that came from Latin. As for the general modern literary norms, “kOmpas” will be more competent to say, because today it is such sounding that is considered literate. Even more than that: modern sailors do not too often emphasize the second syllable, trying to speak correctly, not to flaunt their vocation. The sound of "compAS" today can be heard only in narrow circles, or in films, cartoons.
