Home › Glossary › Letter P

Percival

Arthurian Legend
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

An Arthurian knight famed for his purity and quest for the Holy Grail, often portrayed as spiritually innocent.

Detailed Definition
Percival’s journey from naive youth to Grail knight explores spiritual awakening and the power of compassion. In poetry, he symbolizes the seeker’s path, humility, and the transformative quest for divine truth.
Example
Example in poetry:
In Alfred Lord Tennyson’s “Idylls of the King,” Percival achieves the Grail through humility; In T.H. White’s “The Once and Future King,” Percival embodies spiritual quest; In W.H. Auden’s “The Quest,” Percival symbolizes the seeker’s purity; In modern poetry, Percival often represents the naive but earnest pilgrim; In Derek Walcott’s “Omeros,” Percival appears as Caribbean seeker; In Tracy K. Smith’s “My God, It’s Full of Stars,” Percival’s vision becomes cosmic clarity.
Additional Notes
Percival, Arthurian knight associated with the Grail quest, embodies spiritual innocence, questing, and gradual enlightenment; unlike Galahad’s perfection, Percival’s journey includes failure and growth—poets use him to explore the seeker’s path, the role of questions (his failure to ask heals the Fisher King), and the integration of compassion with knighthood.
Also Known As
Grail Knight Pure-Hearted Seeker Son of the Widow
Skip to main content