> I am trying to determine the correct pronunciation for the ON origin of
> my name, "Roderic." I understand the Old Norse origin of "Roderic"
> would be spelled approximately Hroerekr, or Hrothrekr, or Hrodhrekr, but
> the correct pronunciation eludes me.

I'll take a stab at it. I may be way off, but I don't think so.

> 1) Is the "h" in the "hr" pronounced distinctly before the "r," or is
> the sound more like an "r" with aspiration, but without a preceding "h"
> sound?

Neither. In this instance, the /h/ is pronounced hard like /k/ or like 'ch'
in "challah".

> 2) Is the "o" hard as in "rope," or soft as in "rot""

This depends. The /oe/ (if I am not mistaken) is the equivalent of an
umlatted /o/ which makes it almost like a /u/ (to my american ears). The
plain /o/ would be like "cot" (with a slight slur towards "coat").

> 3) Is the ON character "edth" pronounced like the "th" in "Thor," or
> more like the "th" in "then," with a vibration in the vocal cords?

'Edth' (/dh/) is pronounced like 'th' in "the" and "feather". The character
'thorn' is pronounced like /th/ in "thistle" and "with".

> 4) Which r's, if any, are trilled?

Only the final /-R/ would be 'trilled'. Using your examples, the names are
made up each of two roots. The second root begins with a proper /r/ and ends
in a final /-R/.

hroe+rekR
hro[th]+rekR
hro[dh]+rekR

Finally, don't forget that the /e/ isn't pronounced like an English /e/
exactly (e.g., as in "pet"). It's closer to the /a/ in "skate" or "plate".

Obviously, speakers of different dialects and languages will have different
opinions of sounds. Listen to an argument between a Bronx-born Yankees fan
and a Boston-born Red Sox fan and you'll be hard pressed to believe they're
speaking the same language.

-Laz