Home › Glossary › Letter E

Evangeline

Historical Figure
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Heroine of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s epic poem Evangeline, based on the real Acadian expulsion (Le Grand Dérangement) of 1755.

Detailed Definition
Though fictionalized, Evangeline embodies the Acadian people’s suffering and enduring love. In American poetry, she symbolizes tragic separation, faithful love across time and distance, and the human cost of colonial conflict. Longfellow’s work made her a cultural icon for themes of exile, resilience, and romantic devotion.
Example
Example in poetry:
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's epic Evangeline immortalizes the Acadian heroine as a symbol of faithful love enduring separation and exile after the 1755 expulsion.; Poets use Evangeline to represent tragic resilience and romantic devotion amid colonial conflict.; A poet might invoke her to explore themes of cultural displacement and the human cost of imperial policies.; In American verse, she embodies patient hope and the search for lost loved ones across vast landscapes.; Poets draw on her story to meditate on exile, memory, and the enduring power of affection.; Evangeline serves as a cultural icon for meditations on loss, reunion, and the romanticization of historical suffering.
Additional Notes
Evangeline, the heroine of Longfellow’s epic, embodies faithful love and cultural resilience drawn from the real Acadian expulsion of 1755. Though fictionalized, she symbolizes tragic separation and patient hope amid colonial displacement. Usage tip: use her journey across landscapes to explore themes of exile, memory, and romantic devotion; the dactylic hexameter of Longfellow’s poem offers a model for narrative rhythm in long-form verse. In American poetry she represents the human cost of imperial conflict and the ideal of enduring affection. Related concepts include Le Grand Dérangement and Romantic nationalism. Professors might assign comparisons with other exiled heroines, encouraging students to write responses that reclaim or critique her romanticization. Her story provides rich material for meditations on loss, reunion, and the poetic elevation of historical suffering into mythic endurance.
Also Known As
Evangeline Bellefontaine (Longfellow's heroine)
Skip to main content