Strange American ways

[tocpe321]

Originally Posted by Wazza

Probably the same reason we bow before royalty and tie a bow in our shoe laces

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Yes or we have a heated row before we row across the lake.

[Posiesmum]

Originally Posted by tmwalsh

We had an US visitor at work who pronounced Loughborough as Loo-Ga-Ba-Roo-gah.

Obvs Edinburgh was pronounced Edin-Burg

UK place names are terrible for pronunciation though.

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Originally Posted by DDad

Or edin-boro 🤣

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When, of course, it’s ‘Embra’!

[tocpe321]

Even more strange UK pronunciations.

Cough ends OFF

Dough ends OWE

Tough ends UFF


Why?

[Shani]

Originally Posted by Twiggy1953

Changing subject slightly, I’ve never been able to understand why the Welsh have such a different language to the English given how close they live to us.(English). It’s a beautiful sounding language but unlike German or even French, you can’t really take a guess at what the words are.

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Welsh is a Celtic language, much like Gaelic, and is older than English

There any many words that are extremely similar in other European languages. For example, window in French is fenetre, in Welsh it's ffenestr.

We often get mistaken for Germans when speaking Welsh on holiday anywhere in Europe lol

[Loulou127]

Originally Posted by Shani

Welsh is a Celtic language, much like Gaelic, and is older than English

There any many words that are extremely similar in other European languages. For example, window in French is fenetre, in Welsh it's ffenestr.

We often get mistaken for Germans when speaking Welsh on holiday anywhere in Europe lol

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Shani, but does any other language have mutations? our faces were a picture in class when the tutor was trying to explain them!

[Shani]

Originally Posted by Loulou127

Shani, but does any other language have mutations? our faces were a picture in class when the tutor was trying to explain them!

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Quite a few do! All the Celtic ones do I believe (Gaelic, Welsh, Breton etc)

Mutations are difficult for even native Welsh speakers, but I can't begin to imagine how difficult it is to learn later in life!

[Loulou127]

Originally Posted by Shani

Quite a few do! All the Celtic ones do I believe (Gaelic, Welsh, Breton etc)

Mutations are difficult for even native Welsh speakers, but I can't begin to imagine how difficult it is to learn later in life!

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The one that I really didn’t understand was the soft mutation of P to B, but then B mutates to F, so where is the sense in that, why doesn’t P mutate straight to F? when I asked the teacher to explain that one she said ‘just learn it don’t question it’ 😂😂

[Libby]

I was given the following at a course. It makes you think about how to pronounce words based not just on spelling but context too.


The boys had been out all day long looking for game. Their arrows were nearly gone and some of the boys had broken the strings on their bows. So, they decided to stop hunting and sat down to rest under a large oak tree by a cool stream. Over at the edge of the wood they saw their friend, Henry, making a bow to a little girl with a bow in her hair who was walking down the road. She had tears in her dirty dress and also tears in her eyes. The girl gave Henry a note which he brought over to the group of young hunters. Read to the boys, it caused great excitement. After a minute but rapid examination of their weapons they ran down to the valley. Does were standing at the edge of the lake, making an excellent target. The boys watched for a minute, and then began to shoot.

[tocpe321]

Originally Posted by Libby

I was given the following at a course. It makes you think about how to pronounce words based not just on spelling but context too.


The boys had been out all day long looking for game. Their arrows were nearly gone and some of the boys had broken the strings on their bows. So, they decided to stop hunting and sat down to rest under a large oak tree by a cool stream. Over at the edge of the wood they saw their friend, Henry, making a bow to a little girl with a bow in her hair who was walking down the road. She had tears in her dirty dress and also tears in her eyes. The girl gave Henry a note which he brought over to the group of young hunters. Read to the boys, it caused great excitement. After a minute but rapid examination of their weapons they ran down to the valley. Does were standing at the edge of the lake, making an excellent target. The boys watched for a minute, and then began to shoot.

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Thanks for posting.

Makes you realise all the peripheral information we're taking in when we read.