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Attention Native Brit Speakers!


Amo Aero

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It makes me cringe when (mostly London-based) broadcasters attempt to pronounce the UK's largest lake, Lough Neagh

It's "Nay" ffs!!!

And when I worked in Coventry for a while, I used to hear about this fella who would call in every so often from what I believed to be Ulster, and I never seemed to meet him even though I listened out for the accent.

Turns out he was from Alcester......

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  • 1 month later...

At the end, a very interesting and confusing bit of mental & lingusitic gymnastics. Too bad the "sci-fi" artiface of a "Basic" language has not yet come to pass in the form of a standardized phonetic symbology... that way, everyone would at least have the *opportunity* of getting it right "out of the mouth".

Three for the road:

Why do English speakers rename certain cities from the "native"? (As in "Napoli" becoming "Naples" - not even close!)

and

Growing up in lower Appalachia (Marion, North Carolina) the next town (aka 'village') over was named "Rutherfordton". Pronounced by locals as "Rough-ton". (To me, just pure oral laziness...)

and lastly

My current hometown is named "Norfolk". You can tell a 'townie' because they say "Nore-fuk".

Regards to all fellow squishy bits,

Robert, adopted Virginian

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Why do English speakers rename certain cities from the "native"? (As in "Napoli" becoming "Naples" - not even close!)

No-one knows, but it's hardly unique to the English. After all, in Italy it's Londra and in France it's Londres, but we know it as The Smoke*.

* cor lumme, strike a light, etc

My current hometown is named "Norfolk". You can tell a 'townie' because they say "Nore-fuk".

And the rest call it ... ? Not Nor-foke, I hope?

Edited by pigsty
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No-one knows, but it's hardly unique to the English. After all, in Italy it's Londra and in France it's Londres, but we know it as The Smoke*.

* cor lumme, strike a light, etc

And the rest call it ... ? Not Nor-foke, I hope?

Yes, that is what I hear all the time. Just less sexy, I suppose ;^)

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Why do English speakers rename certain cities from the "native"? (As in "Napoli" becoming "Naples" - not even close!)

Robert, adopted Virginian

I suspect we got it from the French, who also use "Naples" but pronounce it in their own way.

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Im originally from Oxnard, California. American TV late night host Johnny Carson used to quip, "Just how DO you pronounce that - and what IS an ox-nard, anyway?"

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Anybody from outside Britain/England/UK/British Isles (delete as apprpriate) like to have a go at Cholmondeley, Between the A49 & A41 in South cheshire....

Over to you !

Ian

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How about...

Twatt (Orkney or Shetland)

Isle of Islay

Penistone (North of Sheffield)

Clitheroe (Lancashire)

Sodom (North Wales)

Shatton (in Hope Valley west of Sheffield)

Wetwang (North Yorkshire)

Knob End (Bolton)

Upperthong (near 'Uddersfield)

Scalby (near Scarborough)

:sorry:

about lowering the tone!

Cheers

Mac

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Don't get me started! I live in South Africa, and you should hear the way people mangle some of the African and Afrikaans names.

Try these on for size! African names -

Tokyo Sexwale - Tokyo Se-kwa-leh - the kwa part is made up of a clicking sound with the toungue like <tsk> but with the side of the toungue not the middle, immediately followed by -wa. My daughter thought it was sex-whale a few years ago, much to the absolute amusement of the family!

Ndabaningi Sithole - Nn-da-ba-ning-gi Sit-hole-leh

Ndaba Qinisile - Nn-da-ba <click of the toungue from the roof of the mouth>-in-is-see-leh

Afrikaans words -

Kragdadige - Kra-<gutteral German-type G>-daa-deh-<gutteral German-type G>-eh

Onderwyser - On-der-vase<American pronunciation>-er

I could go on all night ... :)

Wayne

Not to mention how the English language gets mutilated on the national broadcaster, including the use of words so archaic they belong in the middle ages (Often wrongly used I might add)

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Naaa............ I like my lamb spread out on a plate with some mint sauce and yorkie puds, at no time have I fancied it spread eagled........... :P

I thought that was an Antipodean habit? Sharing sheep I mean ..................... :rolleyes::deadhorse::handbag::coat::door:

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This is Dutch. Actually it's "Onderwijzer", but the 'y' and 'ij' are somewhat interchangeable, and I'll forgive you the 's' instead of 'z'. This is a teacher by the way and is a very simple word... in Dutch :D

Afrikaans is full of word derived from Dutch.

Actually more Flemish than proper Dutch, and the Afrikaans spelling was correct - being pedantic :smartass::handbag::coat::door: (again)

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Anybody from outside Britain/England/UK/British Isles (delete as apprpriate) like to have a go at Cholmondeley, Between the A49 & A41 in South cheshire....

Over to you !

Ian

Chumley?

Cheers,

Pete M (NZ).

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For all non-Coventrians. Have a go at:

Foleshill

Cheylesmore

Stivichall/Styvechale

Allesley

Wyken

Keresley

Foals-Hill

Charles-Moor

Sty-Chorl

Alls-Lee

Kers-Lee

How did I do ? :innocent:

Regards Simon

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has anyone metioned Piddle? Upper & Lower? Between Stratford and Gloucester (sort of anyway)

And talking of Upper and Lower Piddle, close by on the A422 is Flyford Flavell. The pub there, (The Flyford Arms) has one of the best real ales I've ever tasted in England, Flyford Ale.

Mmmmm, beer!!!! :drink:

Pete M.

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