Pronunciation that makes you cringe

[Pingu]

...pronounced it like the small mammal...

How does the small mammal pronounce it?

[Wowbagger]

I don't think it matters too much whether you pronounce Shrewsbury Shrewsbury or Shroesbury. My brother has lived there for over 40 years and I think (but can't be sure) that he pronounces it as spelt.

Bobb otp may be able to confirm this, but there is a similarly silly pronunciation of Chelmsford that used to do the rounds - Chompsfud. It was quite often used when I went to school there pre-1972 but I have had little reason to go there since other than passing through.

[Andrij]

Back when I was young enough to have a girlfriend, I had a girlfriend who lived in Shrewsbury. She and all her family, who had lived there since the early Pleistocene, pronounced it like the small mammal. Just to add to the confusion, we met in the capital of the Ukraine; which back then was generally known as Kiev, is now Kiyiv and which my wife would probably call Kijów.

Would that rhyme with Lemberg? 

Or with Leopolis? <where's that Roman emoji?> Call it Stickville!*

bah!  beat me to it.

*Kij = a stick in Polish. I'm sure this has nothing to do with the actual name. Mind you I'm not really sure what connection there might be between Lvov/Lviv/Lwów/Lemberg and lions.

Kyïv (Київ) is named after Kyj (Кий), one of the founders of the city.

The lion connection of L'viv is this: King Daniel of Galicia, the founder, named it in honour his son Lev - the Ukrainian for Leo.

[Steph]

I will be back in Shrooooosbury in August for the festival. All the locals I meet there are of the insectivore persuasion in re pronunciation.

[T42]

When I was a kid, my dad used to routinely (and deliberately) mispronounce Penelope as "Penny-lope", and Persephone as "Percy-phone". Both were used regularly (family friend, name of pattern on better set of crockery), and my sister picked up on the incorrect pronunciation without realising it was wrong.
This led to considerable hilarity, not to mention embarassment on her part, when she first met her future sister-in-law, and introduced herself with "Hello Penny-lope, I'm Margaret".

That is almost how the French pronounce it - Penny-lopp. French also has the execrable habit of transliterating the Greek kappa as C and pronouncing it S; and since -es is almost always silent, a name such as Ἀλκιβιάδης comes out as Alsibiad.

[Cudzoziemiec]

Back when I was young enough to have a girlfriend, I had a girlfriend who lived in Shrewsbury. She and all her family, who had lived there since the early Pleistocene, pronounced it like the small mammal. Just to add to the confusion, we met in the capital of the Ukraine; which back then was generally known as Kiev, is now Kiyiv and which my wife would probably call Kijów.

Would that rhyme with Lemberg? 

Or with Leopolis? <where's that Roman emoji?> Call it Stickville!*

bah!  beat me to it.

*Kij = a stick in Polish. I'm sure this has nothing to do with the actual name. Mind you I'm not really sure what connection there might be between Lvov/Lviv/Lwów/Lemberg and lions.

Kyïv (Київ) is named after Kyj (Кий), one of the founders of the city.

The lion connection of L'viv is this: King Daniel of Galicia, the founder, named it in honour his son Lev - the Ukrainian for Leo.

Thanks! I think I did know, or had known, that it was named for the founder's son, but not about King Daniel of Galicia. Perhaps he used the stick in lion taming? 

[fimm]

I think I say "gee-ography". Or "Jog-graphy". Depending on which comes out of my mouth at the time.
I can't think of more than one way to say Theatre. Unless you go for some fancy "thay-atre" pronunciation.

On unpronounceable towns, come to Kirkudbright and Milngavie.
My mother says Athelstaneford should be pronounced "Elshenford" but I don't know her authority for that.

[T42]

Gee-ography here too, but with a short ee. Do the jography clan also talk about jology, jophysics or (always need three instances) jodes?

[Kim]

Do the jography clan also talk about jology, jophysics or (always need three instances) jodes?

No, of course not.  They're pronounced differently, because they're different words.  Just because they have the spelling and meaning in common doesn't mean that we can't needlessly muddle things up for the befuddlement of FOREIGNS, colonials or anyone who expects language to make sense.

[hellymedic]

I mostly say jeeography but have said jography when rushed or sloppy.

Geological words like geode or geophysics ar always jeeo...

[citoyen]

The 'o' sound is different in geophysics and geology*, so I see no reason why it can't be different again in geography. If you're taking the view that the pronunciation of geography should follow other geo- compounds, it would be more like 'gee-oh-GRAPHy' rather than 'gee-OGG-raphy'.

Also: a nomination for POTD for Kim.




*cue for classics pedant to say it isn't.

[mattc]

The 'o' sound is different in geophysics and geology*, so I see no reason why it can't be different again in geography. If you're taking the view that the pronunciation of geography should follow other geo- compounds, it would be more like 'gee-oh-GRAPHy' rather than 'gee-OGG-raphy'.

I think the bold version would be an excellent way to wind up pronunciation pedants. I shall try it out ..

[T42]

The 'o' sound is different in geophysics and geology*, so I see no reason why it can't be different again in geography. If you're taking the view that the pronunciation of geography should follow other geo- compounds, it would be more like 'gee-oh-GRAPHy' rather than 'gee-OGG-raphy'.

Also: a nomination for POTD for Kim.




*cue for classics pedant to say it isn't.

The sound isn't different, the emphasis is. That's no reason to totally elide the ee sound, though.

[citoyen]

This is not a hill I'm prepared to die on but what the heck...

The 'o' sound is different in geophysics and geology*, so I see no reason why it can't be different again in geography. If you're taking the view that the pronunciation of geography should follow other geo- compounds, it would be more like 'gee-oh-GRAPHy' rather than 'gee-OGG-raphy'.

The sound isn't different, the emphasis is. That's no reason to totally elide the ee sound, though.

geophysics: dʒiːoʊfɪzɪks - https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/geophysics
geology: dʒiɒlədʒi - https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/geology

The first O sound is clearly different in those two words, as you can see from the phonetic transcription.

geography: dʒiɒgrəfi - has the same phonetic transcription as geology for the geo part, but if you listen to the audio clip on the Collins website, the first syllable is somewhat clipped - not totally elided, but definitely shorter than in geology.
https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/geography

It's the overlong pronunciation of the first E in geography and theatre, that I was getting at when I brought this up (William G Stewart, when he was quizmaster on 15 to 1, was a prime culprit for this).

If you're arguing for consistent pronunciation, the graph part of geography should sound different too - grɑːf (for southerners) or græf (for northerners).

[T42]

Aye well, the woman in their video was pronouncing geography differently from the bloke under their wee red symbol beside the phonetics. But yes, the O is different in Collins examples, but not when I pronounce them, which is of course the correct way.

BTW, Chambers gives:

geology: ʤɪˈɒləʤi
geography:ʤɪˈɒgrəfi

And so do this bunch: https://tophonetics.com/

Go ˈfɪgə.

[citoyen]

Chambers is Scottish. Nuff said. 

I didn't watch the video, only listened to the audio clip. Interesting.

[T42]

Surprise, surprise:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Collins,_Sons

Murdoch-owned these days.

[citoyen]

Ha! I didn't know that (neither the Scottish origins nor the Murdoch ownership - I didn't realise Harper was American either).

 

[pcolbeck]

Vase - it's vars not vaze. I know they use vaze in the US but the guy on the program about Ikea last night was middle class English.

[hubner]

The Oxford English Dictionary gives both JOGraphy and jeOGraphy:

/dʒɪˈɒɡrəfi/, /ˈdʒɒɡrəfi/.

Both are "correct".

The same goes for "geometry":

/dʒɪˈɒmᵻtri/, /ˈdʒɒmᵻtri/

Note the different stress between each pair.

[Steph]

Watching C5's 'WWI In Colour'

No, you flangebracket, it is either Eeper, or Eeprrrrrrr. It is NOT Ippress.

[hellymedic]

or Wipers...

[nicknack]

or Wipers...

The Ypres Arms in Sittingbourne is usually Wipers.

[citoyen]

Same goes for the Ypres Castle in Rye.

[clarion]

or Wipers...

In hte context of WWI, it can be 'Wipers'.