Saturday, January 09, 2016

American pronunciations are more correct

Eugene Volokh writes:
English pronunciation of place names is a question related to the English language, not to the foreign language — that Kiribatese say “Kiribas” means very little to what is linguistically correct in English. ...

Just as we have our own English words for “cat” and “house,” so we have our own English words for “Russia,” “Spain,” “Sweden,” and “Kiribati.” And this isn’t some peculiar English thing. It’s certainly true in Russian (“Angliya” for “England,” “Frantsiya” for “France,” “Shvetsiya” for “Sveriye,” “Germaniya” for what the natives pronounce as “Doychland”).
Yes, and I would say the same for personal names, business names, foreign foods, and everything else.

Often someone tries to correct me, and tell me that some word is pronounced differently by foreigners in some other language like Spanish or Arabic. I have to explain that I am speaking American English.

Update: Here is a Mexican-American news anchor in Phoenix lecturing her audience to justify her mispronunciations.

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