[CH] Regional Pronunciations
The Old Bear (oldbear@arctos.com)
Fri, 13 Feb 1998 14:54:24 -0500
In ChileHeads Digest, v.4 no.309, kay buie wrote:
>Date: Sun, 8 Feb 1998 23:54:18 -0800
>From: kay buie <kaybuie@softcom.net>
>Subject: [none]
>
>Got back from Puerta Vallarta day before yesterday and god is it
>good to be home! First thing yesterday I got back on the list and
>stumbled onto this ever recurring thread about how to pronounce words
>in Spanish. So, ok, I'm only gonna say this once, so listen up, yall.
>
>There is NO Spanish Pronunciation. Period. Just like there is NO
>English Pronumciation. Period. What there IS are regional
>pronunciations and no single one is right or wrong. It's like arguing
>whether you pronounce a certain word as "laBORatory" as the English do
>or as "LABratory" as we Americans do. Neither one is "better" than
>the other; they're just regional differences.
>
>Just so Spanish. It is different in each area. Castillan Spanish is
>one thing, Puerta Vallartan another and in Mexico City it is different
>yet again. Even the slang differs from place so you have to keep on
>your toes. And I haven't even mentioned Central and South American
>Countries, etc., where still more variety can be found. . .
I feel much better hearing that. Being a native Bostonian, it has
always vexed me that my favorite tequila is "Herradura" -- with that
delightfully rolled double-r when spoken by most native speakers of
Spanish.
Of course, in Boston, the pronunciation of the letter R is considered
optional, and as result I often have settled for the house brand
rather than offend a Latino bartender by so disgracing both myself
and his language with a Bostonian "hear-a-dehr-rer" vocalization.
My problem was only worsened by the addition of conn chips and solser
or even just a glass of wine from Napper or Sonomer.
So you can imagine what happens with simple chile names like
holler-peenyo or red serveener, let along more complex names of
spicy foods like jumber-liar and inch-hill-larders.
At least I can now shrug it off as a simple regional difference. Of
couse I will stil carry paper and pencil so that I can write out the
name of whatever it is that I want.
Cheers,
The Old Bear
PS: You are invited to visit The Old Bear's Secret Tequila Cave at
< http://www.arctos.com/arctos/tequila.html >. Just don't make
me pronounce Herradura.