This page was updated to add a section on Plural and Singular.
A single Noahide is not called “a Bnei Noach” - see below.
Here’s a short primer on pronouncing transliterated Hebrew words.
Hopefully this will give the Bnei Noach clarity when reading English Torah materials in print or on the web. You can link to this page with the following URL: http://www.iheartnoahides.com/2008/12/pronouncing-hebrew-words-bas-or-bat-noah-or-noach/
Pronunciation: Sepharadic or Ashkenazic
Sepharadic = Spanish & Middle Eastern Jewry
Ashkenazic = European Jewry
Yemenite = Yemenite Jewry (very isolated)
Over the past 2,000 years of exile, the pronunciation of certain Hebrew letters and vowels has split between 2 major camps and a third smaller camp, as listed above.
It should be noted that even prior to our exile from the Land of Israel, there were inter-tribal differences in certain pronunciations.
Today, modern Hebrew in Israel follows the Sephardic rules. However, Ashkenazic Jews within Israel still study Torah, pray, and use phraseology with the Ashkenazic pronunciations and accents. This practice is in line with Jewish tradition, which does not so easily dismiss the ways of our fathers, including their pronunciations.
The differences in pronunciation can be broken down into three categories:
- Letters
- Vowels
- Placement of Accents
I will only talk about Letters and Vowels for now, since that’s the only area that I think might be confusing for Bnei Noach.
Letters
כ – ח – Ch/Kh/h
This is the letter that has no English equivalent.
It’s that harsh, grinding sound that American’s usually can’t make right away.
“challah” “chanukah” “chumus” are mistakenly pronounced as
“hallah” “hanukah” “hummus” (said as “hoomoos” - although my grocery store clerk called it “hum-us” which is quite funny, really.)
Hence, we see the name Noach is pronounced “Noah” in English. “Bnei Noach” (Children of Noah) therefore goes from Noachite (like Israelite, Levite, etc.) to Noachide to Noahide. Noahide is the most commonly used written form I see on the internet. The most common term I hear spoken is “Noachides” and “Bnei Noach.”
This “ch” sound is also written as “kh” - as in TaNaKh (Hebrew Bible: Torah, Nevi’im, Ketuvim)
ת – T vs. S
Ashkenazic Jews say that this letter ת, when lacking a dot in it (as here), is pronounced with an ‘S’ sound.
“Good ShAbbos”
“I’m a Bas Noach” (daughter of Noah)
Sephardic Jews say that this letter ת, when lacking a dot in it (as here), is pronounced with a ‘T’ sound.
“ShabbAt Shalom”
“I’m a Bat Noach”
Yemenite Jews say that this letter ת, when lacking a dot in it (as here), is pronounced with a ‘Th’ sound.
“ShabbOth Shalom u’mevorach!”
“I’m a Bath Noakh” (the yemenite “kh” is a bit softer and further back in the throat)
Linguists that I know maintain the yemenite rules as most accurate. However, Jews should maintain the tradition of their father, who keeps his father’s tradition, who keeps his father’s tradition. Following one’s father’s tradition is our practice and it has kept our tradition in tact thus far.
If you are Jewish and you don’t know what your father’s tradition is, you should follow either
A) what you grew up around, or
B) what your heritage is, such as Ashkenazic, Sephardic, or Yemenite.
We’ll see what happens linguistically when Moshiach comes.
Vowels
A - as in “park the car” (non-Bostonian). An “h” is often added after the “a”. This doesn’t change the sound; it represents a nearly-silent Hebrew letter.
E - as in “don’t eat bread in your bed”
I - as in “you can’t ski Israeli style…you just ski”
I - as in “If I lick the floor I feel sick.” some people just write “e” since they sound similar and it avoids confusion over which “i” sound you intend.
If you read the name “Daniel” using the vowels we’ve learned so far (first version of “i” sound), you will be pronouncing the name “Daniel” as is properly done in Hebrew.
Abraham now becomes “Avraham”
Sarah now becomes “Sarah”
O - as in “Oh Canada, my home and native land…”
O - also can be as in “coffee” (New York accent), like Moshiach, which is not Mo- as in “mow the lawn”
U - as in “Superman and Spider-man were created by Jewish immigrants to America.”
Y - some people write a “y” instead of an “i” to make the first “i” sound
Y - as in “Yo! Look at those yellow yardsticks over there!” used in “Yisrael”
ei/ai/ay - as in “let’s play a game!” used in Bnei Noach & Bnai Noach.
Joshua now becomes “Yehoshuah”
Samuel now becomes “Shmuel”
Obadiah now becomes “Ovadyah”
And if you were given a biblical name, you might want to look it up to see how it’s transliterated since you now have the tools to pronounce Hebrew transliteration. 
Enjoy!
If there are areas you would like further clarified, write a comment or send me an email.
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Singular & Plural
This section was suggested by a Ben Noach named Andy. Thanks Andy!
In English you add an “s” to make things plural. “Thing” becomes “Things.”
Additiionally, an “ies” can be added to the end. “Berry“ becomes “Berries.”
Similar rules apply in Hebrew. But they are a bit more complex because there is the masculine and feminine factor in the Hebrew language. There is nothing that is gender-nuetral in Hebrew. Whether it’s a chair, or it’s a body part, or it’s a mountain, or it’s G-d - everything is either masculaine (male) or feminine (female). Hence, there is no such word as “it” in Hebrew. There is either “he” or “she”. So the previous sentence would read “Whether she’s a chair, or he’s a body part, or he’s a mountain, or He’s G-d.”
Masculine Plural
Masculine words that become plural get an “-im” added to the end, just like in English we add an “s” to the end. So “tribe” which is “sheivet” becomes “shvatim.” Another example is “child” which is “yeled” becomes “yeladim.” And finally, the more relevant example for you is “son/child/descendent” which is “ben” in plural becomes “banim.” So why don’t we say call “Children of Noah” Banim Noach?
We don’t say “Banim Noach” because that would translate as “Children Noah.” To say “Children of Noah” in Hebrew, you would say “Banim shel Noach.” So why don’t we say that? What’s this “Bnei Noach” business?
“Bnei Noach” is simply the shortened version of “Banim shel Noach.” They are both correct. One is simply the shortened form that is used and accepted. It’s kind of like the difference between saying “Children of Noah” and “Noahides.” Similarly we don’t say “Banim shel Yisrael” - we say “Bnei Yisrael.”
The mechanical explanation: In Hebrew, when you have a plural noun, such as “banim” (sons/children/descendents) attached to another noun (”Noach”), the plural noun, which is the subject of the sentence, drops the “m” and becomes “bnei.”
Feminine Plural
There’s no shortening for feminine plural like there is for masculine plural. (Thank G-d!)
Whereas masculine words that become plural receive a suffix of “-im”, feminine plural words receive a suffix of “-ot” (or “-os” or “-oth” via Ashkenaz and Yemenite respectively).
So the word “poem” which is “shirah” becomes “shirot.”
The word “song” is “shir” - So how do you think we say “The Song of Songs” in Hebrew?
Masculine & Feminine Together
In Hebrew, any group of people or objects that comprises both masculine and feminine people or objects acquires masculine grammar. So a group of 5 male Noahides and 5 female noahides would be a group of 10 “Bnei Noach.” If it were just the 5 women, they would be a group of 5 “Benot Noach.”
Summing It Up
One male Noahide - “Ben Noach”
One female Noahide - “Bat Noach”
Two or more male Noahides - “Bnei Noach”
Two or more male and female Noahides - “Bnei Noach”
Two or more female Noahides - “Bnot Noach” (this rhymes with “fur coat”)
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