Thursday, January 31, 2008

Why Correct Pronounciation is So Important

If you live in or near a diverse metropolitan area such as Washington, DC, you'll hear more than your share of weird names. By "weird," of course I mean "difficult to figure out how to say." However (at least here in the DC metro area), it is way more unusual to run into an easy-to-pronounce English, Jewish, or Latino name (such as Williams, Cohen, or Lopez) than it is to run into those harder-to-pronounce names of the rest of the world. Names are things each of us takes very seriously, especially when it comes to our own. It can be a source of great frustration if your name isn't easily pronouncable; I know that my North African last name isn't common, but it's not that hard to get correct, and I am very grateful when my name is pronounced correctly on the first try.

Of course, I can forgive people not being able to get my name right away. After all, my last name is unique to a family originally from the coastal town of Hammam-Sousse, Tunisia. But when it comes to names that we, as Americans, should all know how to pronounce correctly, I get very picky. I know I'm not the only one. On January 18, 2008, Michelle Obama's mispronounciation of Nevada elicited some dismayed reactions from her audience. To her credit, Ms. Obama immediately and fervently corrected her pronounciation.


It may sound elitist to criticize the pronounciation of certain words, but it is extremely difficult to take someone seriously when that person pronounces the word nuclear as "noo-kyuh-luhr." Or when "jaguar" is pronounced "jag-wire." "Birff-day," "ex-scape," and nowadays, "eye-rack" for "Iraq" are other examples.

But why bother? You might wonder who cares about the difference between saying "neh-VAAH-duh" (incorrect) or "nuh-VAD-uh" (correct)? Well, for starters, Nevadans do. Learning how to pronounce names as they should be pronounced shows a degree of consideration to others. Not bothering to care about what may seem small to one person is the antithesis to equivocation. In the end, it's about caring and respect.

Here are some places that I've learned how to pronounce correctly:
  • Helena, Montana. It's HEL-luh-nuh, not huh-LAY-nuh. I actually called the city to confirm. Coincidentally, it's the way my daughter's name should be pronounced.
  • Worcester or Gloucester, Massachusetts: It's "wuss-ster" or "gloss-ster." Think of the "worce-" or "glouce-" as one syllable. Ironically, citizens of those cities can't pronounce "Harvard" correctly.
  • Concord, New Hampshire. Pronounced exactly like "conquered."

Any other names or things you wish people would pronounce correctly?

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Let's see... You forgot Oregon, which I can never remember how to pronounce correctly and inevitably get wrong. What about Missouri? I've heard it two different ways. Which one is correct? But, I do know how to correctly pronounce Regina (the one in Saskatchewan) and it's now how an American would initially attempt pronunciation unless they are a middle-school boy. Omar, maybe you have a book to write using this concept.

In terms of names, it always upset me when people would "Americanize" their names. I remember introductions on move-in day freshman year. Shimon told me he'd answer to Simon. Giddipong answered to Eddie. They thought their names were to "ethnic" for New Hampshire girls like me!

One other comment, my last name (Luke) is as easy as pie. I can't tell you how many people, on first attempt, call me Ms. Luck. Maybe mispronunciation is an aspect of laziness and lack of comprehensive reading skills.

Omar said...

Having served with someone from Oregon, I can say it's closer to "organ" than "ore-GONE." What was funny was he had a curious way of emphasizing double-t's in words like "mitten," or "button," or "kitten." For Missouri, the proper pronounciation is with a long "e" sound at the end; saying "uh" at the end "sounds hickish" according to native Missourians.

A great site for correct pronounciations is inogolo.com.