Editing Turandot (section)

==Origin and pronunciation of the name==

The title of the opera is derived from the Persian term ''Turandokht'' ({{lang|fa|توراندخت|rtl=yes}}, 'daughter of [[Turan]]'), a name frequently given to Central Asian princesses in Persian poetry. [[Turan]] is a region of Central Asia that was once part of the [[Achaemenid Empire|Persian Empire]]. It also applies to the Mongols who were emperors of China during the Yuan dynasty. ''Dokht'' is a [[Contraction (grammar)|contraction]] of ''dokhtar'' (daughter); the ''kh'' and ''t'' are both pronounced.<ref>{{cite news|title=To pronounce the 't' or not when it comes to Turando|date=2016-06-17|url=https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/column-8-to-pronounce-the-t-or-not-when-it-comes-to-turandot-20160617-gplgvq.html|newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald|access-date=2019-07-07}}</ref>

Italian pronunciation dictionaries recommend pronouncing the final ''t''. However, according to Puccini scholar Patrick Vincent Casali, the ''t'' is silent in the name of the opera and of its title character. Soprano [[Rosa Raisa]], who created the title role, said that neither Puccini nor [[Arturo Toscanini]], who conducted the first performances, ever pronounced the final ''t''. Similarly, prominent Turandot [[Eva Turner]] did not pronounce the final ''t'' in television interviews.<ref name="pronunciation1"/><ref>{{YouTube|y7w2wVBkufs|Rosa Raisa, Puccini's first Princess Turandot – How to pronounce the name 'Turandot'}}</ref> Casali maintains that the musical setting of many of Calaf's utterances of the name makes sounding the final ''t'' all but impossible.<ref name="pronunciation2"/>