this post was submitted on 14 Jul 2025
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Before I heard it being said I kept pronouncing the surname "Mangione" as "Man-jee-own" rather than "man-jo-nee" and I'm still ashamed about it lol I'm sorry

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[–] nicerdicer@feddit.org 1 points 5 days ago

Yosemite

I've learned in school quite early that it is pronounced as Yo-semmy-tee, but I deliberately pronounce it Yoh-ze-mite, because it's funny.

I'll answer for the 99% of people in my life: Hiram

🫠

[–] mysticpickle@lemmy.ca 2 points 6 days ago

Internal monologue:

Fuck. Jeremy? Germy? Jehrehmy? Jerremy?

Yo! J-dawg how's it hanging man?

[–] RBWells@lemmy.world 1 points 6 days ago

Gillian like Gil in Gilbert and the Gill of a fish not Jill like, well, I honestly still don't know why it's spelled Gillian but pronounced Jillian.

[–] Deestan@lemmy.world 26 points 1 week ago (7 children)

All English town names, by spite and ignorance but mostly spite.

Oh, I am not pronounching "Glouchestershire" correctly? SPELL it correctly then!

[–] flamingo_pinyata@sopuli.xyz 20 points 1 week ago

For all native English speakers, this is how the rest of us feel about any words in English

[–] spankmonkey@lemmy.world 11 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Is that the one pronounced "Wooster"?

[–] TheLeadenSea@sh.itjust.works 7 points 1 week ago (1 children)

No, Worcestershire is pronounced woostershire

And Gloucestershire sounds like Glousteshire.

[–] slazer2au@lemmy.world 8 points 1 week ago (1 children)

There was a YouTube video I watch ages ago and it explained it pretty well.

The differences depends on who settled the town. Roman, Saxon, or Viking

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[–] frenchfryenjoyer@lemmings.world 6 points 1 week ago (2 children)

I have American friends who couldn't pronounce it. it was always some variant of "Glow-kester-sheer" but tbh I can't blame them, the spelling doesn't do the pronunciation justice πŸ˜‚

[–] Deestan@lemmy.world 9 points 1 week ago

I think I'm supposed to say "gl" and then the vocal equivalent of "asdfasdfasdf"

[–] Skua@kbin.earth 7 points 1 week ago

Start intentionally pronouncing "Pittsburgh" with the -burgh suffix from Edinburgh or Musselburgh to get them back

In his comments on the Jeeves & Wooster series Stephen Fry talked a bit about English family names. Among others, he said Mainwaring is pronounced "Mannering", and Cholmondeley is "Chumley".

[–] klemptor@startrek.website 3 points 1 week ago (1 children)
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[–] makingStuffForFun@lemmy.ml 21 points 1 week ago (6 children)

Pronounced Siobhan as SheOhBahn for years.

Sorry SheVohn!

[–] selkiesidhe@sh.itjust.works 4 points 6 days ago (1 children)

For me it's, Saoirse

I have to look it up every time I see it.

[–] ouRKaoS@lemmy.today 2 points 6 days ago

If I remember this one, it's Sher-sha?

[–] garbagebagel@lemmy.world 3 points 6 days ago

I used to have a work friend named Siobhan and when I'd come home I'd mention her to my partner. Sometimes I would text him about her. He fully thought these were two different people for like a year.

omg I know the feeling. had someone in college named this and I pronounced it the same way until she corrected me and I was so sorry 😭 an apology to Siobhans everywhere!

[–] Etterra@discuss.online 5 points 1 week ago

Yeah, and apparently it's the Irish equivalent of fucking "Joan" or similar. JFC.

[–] _LordMcNuggets_@feddit.org 3 points 1 week ago

came here to say literally THIS name haha, crazy

[–] LovableSidekick@lemmy.world 3 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Same here. One of my favorite bit-part actors is Siobhan Fallon, who played the wife of "Egger" in Men in Black. She absolutely stole the few scenes she was in. I didn't know I was mispronouncing her name for years.

[–] leaky_shower_thought@feddit.nl 10 points 1 week ago (2 children)

Chongqing like "Chongqing Chicken". not pronounced "chonking".

"AΓ±ejo", not pronounced "ah-neh-joe"

"Hors d'oeuvre". funnily not pronounced "horse divorce".

[–] spankmonkey@lemmy.world 15 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

"Hors d’oeuvre”. funnily not pronounced β€œhorse divorce”.

That's a new one and I love it I like calling them "hours devours" which also adds in a non-existing consonant.

[–] leaky_shower_thought@feddit.nl 4 points 1 week ago (1 children)

yeah, french (and borrowed words) is usually my hard-mode when it comes to pronunciations. this one is special because it's dessert (or so I think).

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[–] Akasazh@feddit.nl 3 points 1 week ago (1 children)

How's Chongqing pronounced?

[–] leaky_shower_thought@feddit.nl 4 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Wikipedia says it is like Chóngqìng. "Chong" with long o sound, then tsin.

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[–] shalafi@lemmy.world 8 points 1 week ago (2 children)

Any Chinese name beginning with X. Took me awhile to figure out Nuyen as well.

[–] garbagebagel@lemmy.world 2 points 6 days ago

Isn't X just like a muted "sh"?

[–] Akasazh@feddit.nl 9 points 1 week ago

Nguyen

'N when did you find out?

[–] captain_aggravated@sh.itjust.works 8 points 1 week ago (1 children)

I'm not convinced there is a correct pronunciation for "Kirsten."

[–] zammy95@lemmy.world 2 points 1 week ago

Are you combining it in your head with Kristen or Kierstin?

[–] blarghly@lemmy.world 6 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Apparently, any Indian names until I can see how they are spelled.

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[–] Etterra@discuss.online 6 points 1 week ago (3 children)

Ghislaine, but I do it on purpose.

I'm still trying to get some Irish names right in my head, specifically Rhiannon and especially Siobhan.

[–] garbagebagel@lemmy.world 2 points 6 days ago

The Irish name that gets me is Cian, especially cause I used to know someone named Cyan (like the colour).

[–] Rai@lemmy.dbzer0.com 8 points 1 week ago

Team Jizz Lane

[–] phoenixz@lemmy.ca 2 points 1 week ago

I did so too but that's because I knew an actual Ghislaine who pronounced her own name like "djizlaine"

[–] LovableSidekick@lemmy.world 4 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Just mentioned this in another thread - Kraken. I say it phonetically - "krayken - but for some reason the world says "cracken".

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[–] Whitebrow@lemmy.world 4 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Gonna use this thread as inspiration to piss off people, thank you for your contributions.

Also Gyro is pronounced j-eye-roe.

I thought it was yee-row.

[–] Nemo@slrpnk.net 4 points 1 week ago

Loudon Wainwright

Lancaster (as in Pennsylvania).

Pronounced it as "LAN Caster" like some sort of cyberpunk mage.

[–] hubobes@sh.itjust.works 3 points 1 week ago

I always pronounced Tolkens name as Token, apparently nobody else made that mistake.

[–] Venicon@lemmy.world 3 points 1 week ago

Two common names in Scotland are Aileen and Eileen but damned if I don’t say the wrong one every time.

[–] brendansimms@lemmy.world 2 points 1 week ago

Hasan - I feel like different people have different pronunciations of it and I can't keep track of which is for who.

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