# Pronunciation question: "Gemini" **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [October 8, 2026, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667 "2026-10-08T13:35:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2026, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667/1 "2026-10-08T13:35:45Z")
On the flight back from London last weekend, I watched the movie “First Man” with Ryan Gosling as Neil Armstrong. The movie was about the Gemini and Apollo missions up to and including the moon landing. One thing I couldn’t help but notice was that everyone in the movie pronounced Gemini “GEM-in-ee”. I don’t know anyone who pronounces it that way these days, it’s “GEM-in-eye”. Was Gem-in-ee the popular pronunciation back in the 50s and 60s? When did it change? ---
**Author:** ![Thumper668](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thumper668/32/20803_2.png) [@Thumper668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thumper668)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2026, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667/2 "2026-10-08T13:48:24Z")
The NY Times wondered the same thing. GEM-in-knee is the NASA prescribed pronunciation of the project. [Why Does ‘First Man’ Say Gemini as ‘Geminee’? NASA Explains. Sorta. - The New York Times](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/17/movies/first-man-gemini-nasa.html) ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2026, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667/3 "2026-10-08T13:52:12Z")
How about a brief explanation for those who don’t have or want a NYTimes subscription? ---
**Author:** ![Thumper668](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thumper668/32/20803_2.png) [@Thumper668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thumper668)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2026, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667/4 "2026-10-08T13:55:07Z")
Pretty sure the article isn’t behind a paywall, but it quoted the ‘authoritative’ 1965 newspaper article in which NASA stated that it is pronounced like Jiminy, as in Jiminy Cricket. It goes on to say that pronouncing it Jiminy is a sort of shibboleth in the space community indicating that you are ‘in the know.’ The long and short is that both pronunciations are correct and the filmmakers chose to stick with Jiminy. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2026, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667/5 "2026-10-08T14:07:28Z")
> [@Thumper668](#): > > Pretty sure the article isn’t behind a paywall It is. ---
**Author:** ![Thumper668](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thumper668/32/20803_2.png) [@Thumper668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thumper668)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2026, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667/6 "2026-10-08T14:09:34Z")
> [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > It is. Sorry about that. I neither have nor want a subscription and I got to it without being prompted, but I clicked on the citation in the Wikipeda article about Gemini (which has a section on pronunciation that directly mentions _First Man_). [Project Gemini - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Gemini) ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2026, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667/7 "2026-10-08T14:18:45Z")
Because that was NASA’s official pronunciation. –Houston UPI, April 7, 1965 No reason was given. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2026, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667/8 "2026-10-08T14:21:39Z")
OK, so it wasn’t ever the popular pronunciation, just the one NASA decided to go with. Interesting. ---
**Author:** ![Thumper668](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thumper668/32/20803_2.png) [@Thumper668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thumper668)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2026, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667/9 "2026-10-08T14:45:38Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > it wasn’t ever the popular pronunciation I don’t know what qualifies as popular pronunciation, but this news report from 1965 uses the NASA pronunciation. [CBS News Coverage of Gemini 6 Part 1](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dm36-Lq3s3I&list=PL2_XrWZBCVKKy1Vk4OZEegJhFMzlTp1w1) ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2026, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667/10 "2026-10-08T15:08:24Z")
Only way I’ve ever heard it pronounced is JEM-i-nye. ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2026, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667/11 "2026-10-08T15:11:49Z")
Maybe I’m weird, but I put the _M_ in the second syllable. ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2026, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667/12 "2026-10-08T15:14:20Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > Was Gem-in-ee the popular pronunciation back in the 50s and 60s? When did it change? In any movies, newsreels, or historical documentaries, the only way I’ve ever heard it pronounced is “Gem-in-eye”. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2026, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667/13 "2026-10-08T15:22:36Z")
Anyone happen to know how it would be pronounced in the actual Greek? I wouldn’t be surprised if someone at NASA actually knew, and pronounced it that way. Or it could be the usual American English mangling of foreign words. (how _do_ you get “Man-shack” out of Manchaca Rd. in Austin anyway?) ---
**Author:** ![Thumper668](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thumper668/32/20803_2.png) [@Thumper668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thumper668)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2026, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667/14 "2026-10-08T15:26:58Z")
> [@bump](#): > > in the actual Greek? Gemini is Latin. In Latin it is pronounced with a hard G and ee instead of eye at the end. ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2026, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667/15 "2026-10-08T15:27:44Z")
> [@bump](#): > > Anyone happen to know how it would be pronounced in the actual Greek? It’s Latin, /ˈɡɛ.mɪ.niː/. That’s a “hard _g_” like in _get_, with a “short _e_”, “short _i_”, and “long _ee_” at the end. > **[Latin - gemini - Wiktionary, the free dictionary](https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/gemini#Latin)** > > Nominative masculine plural of geminus (“twinborn, twin”). Edited to add: These divine twins are originally Sumerian. > **[Lugal-irra and Meslamta-ea](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lugal-irra_and_Meslamta-ea)** > > Lugal-irra (𒀭𒈗𒄊𒊏) and Meslamta-ea (𒀭𒈩𒇴𒋫𒌓𒁺𒀀) were a pair of Mesopotamian gods who typically appear together in cuneiform texts and were described as the "divine twins" (Maštabba). They were regarded as warrior gods and as protectors of doors, possibly due to their role as the gatekeepers of the underworld. In Mesopotamian astronomy they came to be associated with a pair of stars known as the "Great Twins", Alpha Geminorum and Beta Geminorum. They were both closely associated with Nergal, and could... ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2026, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667/16 "2026-10-08T15:38:27Z")
Ah… so the ‘ee’ is actually more accurate than the 'eye" pronunciation, even if the “Gem” part at the front is mispronounced? ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2026, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667/17 "2026-10-08T15:38:40Z")
> [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > > [@Thumper668](#): > > > > Pretty sure the article isn’t behind a paywall > > It is. Here’s a gift link for those who want to read the whole explanation. [https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/17/movies/first-man-gemini-nasa.html?unlocked\_article\_code=1.HFE.lv8g.N2eqvQPu6IYH&smid=url-share](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/17/movies/first-man-gemini-nasa.html?unlocked_article_code=1.HFE.lv8g.N2eqvQPu6IYH&smid=url-share) ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2026, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667/18 "2026-10-08T16:08:32Z")
> [@bump](#): > > Ah… so the ‘ee’ is actually more accurate than the 'eye" pronunciation, even if the “Gem” part at the front is mispronounced? Depends on what you mean by “authentic.” It’s how it would have originally been pronounced, but Latin pronunciation changed over time, and even diverged as new languages developed. The palatalization of the G happened in late Latin. Latin continued being spoken as a scholarly language long after it had been dead, and that pronunciation diverged in various language. The English Great Vowel shift even affected scientific Latin and Greek. The usual scientific pronunciation (in English) at the time would have used the “eye” vowel. NASA bucked the trend. Those who actually worked on it used the “Jiminy” pronunciation. And I note that it’s “Jiminy, not Jeminy” which aligns with one explanation I found: that most who actually worked on the project had Southern accents, hence the PIN-PEN merger (im and em pronounced the same). It would not be hard for the usual pronunciation to also lose the -I for efficiency. Other ideas were an attempt to distance it from astrology, or having it sound similar to Mercury. But at the end of the day, it became more of a shibboleth. They could tell you actually were affiliated with the project if you used the “correct” Jiminy pronunciation. ---
**Author:** ![XOldiesJock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/ec9cab/32.png) [@XOldiesJock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XOldiesJock)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2026, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667/19 "2026-10-08T16:19:19Z")
The thought just occurred to me that I’ve said it both ways, depending on the circumstances. When associated with the space missions I’ll say it with the “ee” sound because that’s how I recall it being said on TV at the time. Yet if someone asks me about me and my wife’s birthdays (within 3 days of each other, in May) I would say that we’re both Gemineyes. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2026, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667/20 "2026-10-08T17:26:26Z")
Interesting sidelight here: Among the Romans there were “mild” oaths, judged suitable for children and for women, just as we have “gosh” and “golly” in place of “god”, or “Gee Whiz” and various others in place of “Jesus”. Two such “minced oaths” were “Edepol” and “Ecastor”, which were oaths to Pollux and Castor, respectively. Apparently it was OK to swear by the sons of a god, rather than saying “By Zeus!” and swearing by the god himself. Fast forward several centuries. People still revere the Classics, and scholars still have knowledge of Greek and Latin and use them. Some of these wise guys evidently re-introduced swearing by Castor and Pollux, but using “Gemini” rather than the earlier forms. Linguists claim that this can be traced back to about 1800. “Gemini” got corrupted to “Jiminy”, which suggests that popular usage had the pronunciation of “Gemini” as “JIM -in-knee” rather than “JIm -in-EYE”. Somewhere along the line someone added, for emphasis, or maybe just because of the initials, an extra word, “Jiminy Christmas” or “JIminy Crickets” (“J.C.” = “Jesus Christ”, you see\_So a minced oath based on Graeco-Roman mythology gets an upgrade to become a minced Christian oath. It must’ve stayed in use, because you find it used up to the present. Google N-gram has “Jiminy Christmas” going back before 1880, while “Jiminy Crickets” starts up then. It’s used by Dorothy in the 1938 movie _Wizard of Oz_ and by John Darling in the 1951 Disney _Peter Pan_. But the biggest change came when Disney made a movie out of Carlo Collodi’s children’s book _Pinocchio_ in 1940, and they decided to give the otherwise un-named “Cricket” the name “Jiminy Cricket” (The character had no forename before that, in any edition). After that point, “Jiminy Chricket” gets equal footing with the plural “Jiminy Crickets” on Google n-gram. It wasn’t until the Disney cartoon that the singular form got established. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-gemini/1033667.md?page=2)