February 6, 2010
by Graham
1 Comment
Here are two place names whose pronunciation history converged for a time and then diverged again. Wymondham is, in my experience, always pronounced /ˈwɪndəm/. I don’t have access to either of the Engish Place Name Society (EPNS)’s volumes on Norfolk, … Continue reading
February 3, 2010
by Graham
13 Comments
I thought Uttoxeter deserved a post of its own, because it also raises a transcription and dialect question. Both /ʊ/ and /ʌ/ have been quoted, by Michael Lamb and John Maidment, as possible pronunciations of the initial sounds, and I … Continue reading
February 1, 2010
by Graham
13 Comments
John Wells was mentioning (here) the unpredictability of the pronunciation of British place and family names from their spellings, and some are recorded in the Dictionary of Blunders. The fact that they are mentioned at all must mean that in … Continue reading
January 30, 2010
by Graham
8 Comments
Jack Windsor Lewis has mentioned (here) the frequently different pronunciation in BE of the /t/ in hospital and orbital. I wonder if part of the reason for the /t/ of hospital becoming voiced in British English, while that in orbital … Continue reading
January 22, 2010
by Graham
7 Comments
Most of the pronunciations given in the Dictionary of Blunders are what one would expect for 1880, and show that the arguments about what is ‘right’ and what is ‘wrong’ are very much the same as today: ab-do’-men, not ab’-dŏm-ěn … Continue reading
January 16, 2010
by Graham
16 Comments
Is it because of the enormity of the tragedy playing out in the western part of the island of Hispaniola that the pronunciations being used by the BBC have been standardised so quickly? Has the management sent down an edict … Continue reading
January 13, 2010
by Graham
4 Comments
In all aspects of culture, the leaders who introduce innovations, whether consciously or not, are gradually followed by the rest of the population who wish to emulate them. This is most obvious in clothes, where before the instant communications of … Continue reading
January 11, 2010
by Graham
8 Comments
A few more interesting entries from the Dictionary of Blunders: “ABSQUATULATE (introduced from America) means to run away from your ‘squatting’ or settlement. The word is applied in England to any one running away from his creditors.” OED1 has the … Continue reading
January 9, 2010
by Graham
6 Comments
The anonymous author of A Dictionary of Blunders has a thing about syllabic /l/: BRIDAL should not be pronounced bri’-dle, but as spelled, bri’-dal. GRAVEL … should not be pronounced grav’-l, but grav’-vel. MEDAL … should be pronounced med’-al, not … Continue reading
January 6, 2010
by Graham
7 Comments
I’ve been rather disappointed by the BBC since Christmas Day over the attempted bombing of an airliner approaching Detroit airport. For at least the first week, there was absolutely no consistency among even radio newsreaders in the pronunciation of the … Continue reading