I live in [name]California[/name], and while some of the statements aren’t exactly fair (mainly because I pronounce things the way my friends/family do, not because I have some crazy idea about their origins), it was still very funny.
I can’t say I’ve ever met someone who went by SEED-ric or CHAIR-uhl instead of the more recognizable versions of [name]Cedric[/name] and [name]Cheryl[/name]. But what the author says about [name]Louis[/name], [name]Regina[/name], [name]Tara[/name], [name]Caitlin[/name], and others is very true.
The discussion about Spanish place names was also great. It’s one of the small pleasures of living here when you get to snicker at people from out of town who can’t seem to pronounce [name]Ojai[/name], La [name]Canada[/name], Yucaipa, [name]El[/name] Cajon, or San [name]Luis[/name] Obispo.
lol, the article I linked to is about how names and words are pronounced in the state of [name]California[/name]. I didn’t mean to refer to the pronunciation of the word [name]California[/name].
Thanks though I tend to pronounce the i more, [name]Cal[/name]-ih(or eh)-forn-ya
That is weird how they pronounce [name]Jaguar[/name] in the article. I have never heard anyone say it like that, and I have a lot of family all over [name]California[/name].
I pronounce [name]Cecil[/name] like seh-sul, almost like how you first start the name [name]Cecily[/name]. And I don’t get how [name]Michael[/name] can be a name given to women. Maybe [name]Michel[/name] but not [name]Michael[/name], that is an all male spelling.
Oh and one thing that annoys me is the way people pronounce Celtic. Why oh why is it sell-tic? [name]Just[/name] my opinion.
I picked up on the [name]Jaguar[/name] thing right away, and I’m really skeptical of it. Also carburettor/carburetor as “car-byou-[name]RAY[/name]-tuh” - I wasn’t aware that Californians dropped Rs like that. I thought the only U.S. accents that did that were in parts of the northeast.
Also, isn’t [name]Marion[/name] still used as a male name in [name]Wales[/name]? And when they mentioned [name]Michael[/name] being used as a female name my first thought was [name]Princess[/name] [name]Michael[/name] of [name]Kent[/name] (I know it isn’t her given name, but she’s the first female [name]Michael[/name] that popped into my head). It is completely true that Americans seem to like to give boys’ names to girls more frequently, though, in general.
The Celtic thing comes from the basketball team, who pronounce their name with a soft “c” just like Celtic FC does. I guess a lot of Americans encounter the word most frequently through the basketball team, whereas in the U.K. they encounter it more frequently for obvious reasons. It certainly isn’t universally pronounced with a soft “c”, though.
This article isn’t entirely inaccurate, but a lot of things in it strike me as seeming questionable.
[name]Jaguar[/name] (Jag-war) seems normal to me, it feels very posh to say it with 3 syllables. I can hardly do it without putting on a fake British snob accent, lol. JAG-YOU-AHHHHH!
I know someone who’s last name is [name]Cecil[/name] and they pronounce it SEE-sull. When I hear the Seh-sil pronunciation all I think is [name]Cecil[/name] B. DeMill.
I’ve met a woman named [name]Michael[/name] before, not 100% sure how she spelled it but that was the pronunciation. It’s not like it’s common, but I’ve heard it.
I have no idea where the sell-tic pronunciation came from! I’ve heard it both ways. Usually in connection with the basketball team though. When I think about like Celtic jewelry or Celtic music I pronounce it kel-tic, at least in my head
I pronounce carburetor as Car-burr-ate-err (not that I use that word…ever).
Had to look up Celtic FC wonder where that pronunciation originates.
I couldn’t finish the article because I got too annoyed. I’m from the [name]East[/name] Coast, but still it seemed that this writer used sweeping generalizations and his “research” made me wonder if he had even ever been to the States. The note about “insure” vs. “ensure” really ticked me off too because that’s not something that Americans generally do, it’s something that people who don’t know better generally do, and those of us who are more familiar with the specifics of the language (writers, copyeditors, professors, etc.) would correct them.
[name]Do[/name] people in [name]California[/name] really say “Jag-wah” with no “r”? That sounds like something I’d expect someone with a British accent to say. Although I have to admit that every time my husband and I hear a [name]Jaguar[/name] commercial (where they say “Jag-yu-ar”) we laugh at how silly it sounds.
And I’m sorry, who pronounces Celtic with a soft C? Is that a [name]California[/name] thing? Obviously, the “Celtics” (with a soft C) are an established basketball team, but that doesn’t mean the whole country doesn’t know how to pronounce Celtic. Sorry. I’m a little sensitive about this topic I guess. I think I need to stop going back and reading more of that article, or I’ll be stewing all night!
Yea, it’s obviously meant to be more for fun and laughs than a truthful discussion of how things are said, but I found it amusing.
Like I said in my first post, it bugged me a little that the author was basically saying that all Californians think words like herb and fillet are fancy French words. If I started saying her-b and fill-ette instead of 'erb and fill-aye, people would look at me like I was a crazy person!
And yes, I do pronounce the r in [name]Jaguar[/name], not sure where he got that.
Some of those are quite bizarre. American’s don’t know what a ground floor or what a 5 cent coin is? Funny…I always managed to get to the first floor when I pressed that “alien” G in elevators…
And of course the Brits think they are right on a lot of the other things. Can’t merely chalk it up to regional differences (heck, we don’t even call things in various parts of the US the same!).
I had to laugh about the “Marin” thing for the Bay Area. One of my friend’s lives in Marin County and you bet I picked up on that immediately!! lol When we went wine tasting I’d say “oh, we’re staying in MahrIN County…” (SCORE!!! I’m a kewl New Yorker
Kind of thought it was funny that he was bashing the use of the US “i” (eye vs eee). I worked through college at a very touristy hotel in the southwest. I can’t tell you how many people from the UK (and other places of course) and would pronounce things like “Zuni” (pueblo or the street). ZoonEYE.
Hmmm, I am an Australian who lived in [name]America[/name] for over a year and while there are differences in words and pronunciations (of course), it isn’t nearly as extreme as this person is making out. I say ‘jaguar’ jag-you-are, ‘Hyundai’ is high-un-day, ‘[name]Tara[/name]’ is tar-ah, etc. I’ve never had anyone, American or Australian, explain that fillet or herb are French words (?)
I believe that beret does have a silent t on the end though, like ‘ballet’.
The biggest problem I had in [name]America[/name] was ordering coke in restaurants. Could not get people to understand me at all! And asking for a toilet. Took me a while to realise that Americans don’t say toilet, they say restroom or bathroom. I probably sounded pretty uncouth. Oops!
That was an interesting article!
I’ve wondered for years what a housing project was!
I’m from the UK,[name]Wales[/name], and am a stickler for names being pronounced correctly. However in terms of words used in [name]America[/name] but not in the UK,it doesn’t bother me,though I am occasionally rendered confused lol!
I noticed the 'erb not herb thing in particular when I was visiting friends in [name]Texas[/name]. I was so confused initially! But they explained it essentially as [name]Herb[/name] is name,'erbs are what you season your food with.
I would probably do well do remember how accents can make pronounciations sound when discussing how to pronounce names!
He’s definitely making it very extreme. The toilet thing is funny. I don’t necessary think of it as uncouth as very specific. It’s like going in a store and asking if you can use their sink. The sink is in the restroom and they don’t care what part of the facilities you’re making use of
yes, I’m with little_cupcake, I’ve always pronounced it with a SHHH sound at the beginning not a hard ch as in chip. I’ve never even heard it pronounced another way.
Hm… this is an interesting article. Some of it I didn’t really get because I don’t live in Cali, so it doesn’t really apply to me. But some pronunciation things I noticed:
Jaguar - I say it more like jayg-wire.
Carburetor - (is that spelled right? Maybe I’ve never written it out lol) The pronunciation they have is totally weird to me… I say car-burr-ay-ter.
Cedric - Who actually says seed-rik? Ok, now that I think about it, I’ve heard it, but that’s not how I say it. It’s sed-rik to me.
Kevin - Who says kee-vin?!
Janice - jane-iss? I say jan-iss.
Cheryl - Has more of a “sh” sound than a “ch” sound.
Tara - I’m sorry, I had to laugh that they said this rhymes with “fairer”. terr-ah and fair-er to me. Not the same.
A lot of the things I pronounce differently might just be regional, I dunno. I also laughed about the Spanish pronunciations! No offense meant to any Brits/Aussies out there, it’s funny but really interesting how differently we speak and how uptight people get about it!
ETA: Just remember someone mentioned the Celtics - I always like to call them the kell-ticks, not the sell-ticks! Where DID that come from?
@jennipea382- I think [name]Tara[/name] and “fairer” would rhyme in a British accent. Britberries feel free to correct me on this if I’m wrong! I tried it out in my fake British accent and it’s sort of similar…
I didn’t know that the Celtics team pronounced it sell-tics! I always pronounced it kell-tics.
I’m Canadian and it’s interesting how we use some of both the British and American words/pronounciations. E.g. here no one would call their car their “auto” or “automobile” but we do say “hood” rather than “bonnet”, etc.
And Versailles as ver-sales?! That literally made my heart skip a beat… how did THAT come about? It comes from French which would make it a “y” sound, no?
I’m from the US (north east) and always call my “turn signal” either a blinker or a directional, never a turn signal. I think that [name]Cara[/name]-mel vs. Car-mel pronunciation differs from person to person, if I’m not mistaken. But it might be a regional thing in other places. I believe the article is saying that [name]Colin[/name] is pronounced like [name]Colon[/name]? It says KOH-lin… Haha!
I’ve never heard anyone call their car an auto. I think it’s just on the freeway/highway/interstate, it says Autos instead of Cars because it includes small trucks, minivans, SUV’s etc. it’s just to exclude large trucks.
I call my turn signal my blinker as well, never heard “directional” though. Turn signal would only be in like the driving test or more formal settings. I agree that carmel vs. caramel pn varies by region.
I tend to pronounce the i more, [name]Cal[/name]-ih(or eh)-forn-ya 