Decyphering speach

[gore]

This has been bothering about as long as I've started learning other languages.

The reason is, when I would try pronouncing words in German or Italian, I'd get them wrong because of how they are pronounced. German seems to me to be a MUCH more thought out language than English. Mainly because for the most part, words and letters are pronounced a certain way.

Example:

Canada. That's only 4 letters, C, A, N, D... There are three As in there but they all aren't pronounced the same way. Then there is the letter C... It has an S sound to it, or a K sound as in Canada. Or can... Why?

Now, do this:

Pronounce the following letters and think about how you are moving your mouth when you do each:

Kit

Cat

You make the same sound at the start, but they are completely different letters...

Now try this:

Pet

Bet

What is the difference there? Pee and Bee sound exactly the same, you push some air through your lips to preonounce the letter, and they sound almost exactly the same, the only difference, is that when you pronounce a Bee, your bottom teeth GENTLY touch your lower lip... That's all. The outter portion of your lips are in the same position.

Now here is another:

Zit

Sit

Pronounce those two letters and take note of how your toungue is touching close to the top of your mouth but not actually making contact.

And now to really through you off:

Hackers.

Now the S is pronounced as a "Z"... Why? IT already sounds like one...

How about this:

WHISPER this:

Fuc.k

Vuck

Notice how anyone reading your lips just asked why you repeated yourself? If you say it out loud you can tell, if you whisper, you can't.

Notice how your upper teeth are hitting pretty much the same spot for both the ponouncing of the Vee and the "F" sound..


Now try this out:

Far Var Far Var Far Var Far Var Far Var Far Var

It sounds almost exact and I'm pretty sure you'll have a fun time trying to figure out what you're pronouncing and you'll most likely get mixed up.


Now try these:

Tee

Dee

What is the difference? Well, if you play bass think of it as hitting a string with your finger, and then hitting the same one with the pick. You're hitting the same note, same string, but they sound SLIGHTLY different, and sometimes it's hard to tell the difference.

Now try this one:

War

That is NOT war as in battle, it's German. So it's going to sound like this:

"Varrrr"

Roll the R.

English is the only Language I know of that doesn't roll Rs... Why? This helps explain why Asian country's pronounce Rs as "Ls"...

Think about "A Christmas Story", good movie and at the end the Chinese guys are singing Christmas songs and they mix up the Ls and Rs, they say "Farararararararara" instead of "Falalalalalalalala"... some people laugh at them for this.

However, it's usually only English speaking people. English as I said before doesn't Roll the R.

When you roll an R, you make a sound similar to an L.

Roll another R and then say the word "Letter"... Notice how your toung is hitting almost the same spot?

Anyway this is getting pretty long but it's hard for me not to think about this.

In German they don't do this so often where the same letters have like 10 sounds... Just like the word "Uber" with an Umlaut.


Hint:

That is NOT pronounced "ooober", it has an umlaut therefore you pronounce it by moving your mouth and jaws as if you were about to say "Eeeeee" and then move them for an "ohhhh" sound. It may sound strange but you pronounce an Umlauted U that way.

Without moving your jaw say this:

"Eat You"

It should leave you jaw in the position of saying both the "E" and the "You" sound, then you can say that word properly.


What about "A" ?

Hack

Bang

Gallon.

All three contain an A and none are pronounced the same.

How about "ahhhhhhhh"

Again, not the same pronouncing of the A.

How about "Eryn" the name? Now E is an A? This is how it is in German, but not English.... Why?

Comments? / Komments?

[morganlefay]

Just for clarification Gore

AFAIK Canada is an english translation of a native indian word

as with Ottawa...and many others

MLF

[gore]

I know, that's why I left the word can and cat in there for extras

Sort of like how we have in Michigan "Mackinac" island (Makinaw pronounced" And my favorite screw up of letters:

Ypsilanti...

[MURACU]

Here you go Gore.
origins of the english lanuage.

It doesn't answer all your questions but it does make interesting reading.

[Aspman]

Lots of accents in the UK roll the R, it's not 'proper' English though.

[dalek]

Originally posted here by Aspman
Lots of accents in the UK roll the R, it's not 'proper' English though.

Aspman...gaaak, I am so shocked...I would have thought that if it weren't 'English" why then it would be 'Scottish"....I do believe they certainly rrrollll their 'R"s", I know my Geordie cousins can certainly twist that letter...

Some languages are more "expressive" then other's, I find that Hispanics/latinos use their hands a lot when articulating in either language, Germans are more forceful when they speak, Norwegians seem a little more relaxed when they speak, Asians seem like they are in a hurry..

But yeah the fact that Asians have a hard time wrapping their tongue's around certain letters is strange as I am sure they have an equivalent in their native tongue, unless the letter "R" doesn't exist for them, but as I understand it, most Asian languages are based upon themes or groups of words which can mean different things at different times...

[gore]

If you listen to The Sex Pistols some of the Rs are rolled by Johnny Rotten.

[dalek]

Just rent "Braveheart" or listen to Sean Connery, a lot of jocks that I know roll their "R's" and after a few wets, forget trying to understand a bleeping word.(dinna ken mon, et al)

John Lydon was reportedly born on January 31, 1956 in Holloway in London—although, according to his autobiography, this cannot be confirmed, as his birth certificate has been lost. It is alleged that he was born in County Galway, Ireland, and spent a very brief portion of his life there in his father's home town of Tuam. His parents were both Irish immigrants. He grew up in the working class environment of Holloway with three younger brothers. At the age of seven, he contracted spinal meningitis, putting him in and out of comas for half a year and erasing most of his memory. The disease left him with a permanent curve in his spine and his iconic stare.

Anarchy