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HelpRe: How to pronounce ..........?
in reply to a message by Egyptian Princess
I'd say ROZ-a-lin with a short "o". For me RAWZ- sounds very different to ROZ-, the former sounds very American. The difference in sound is like that bewteen hawk and hockey. I'm not sure if that explanation works well, I'm no linguist. I don't like the sound of ROSE-a-lin at all.
I prefer Rosaline pronounced ROZ-a-line (not leen) to Rosalyn. Both are nice though.
I prefer Rosaline pronounced ROZ-a-line (not leen) to Rosalyn. Both are nice though.
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I'd say ROZ-a-lin with a short "o". For me RAWZ- sounds very different to ROZ-, the former sounds very American. The difference in sound is like that bewteen hawk and hockey.
Unfortunately, the difference between those sounds is starting to disappear in Western American accents (and the trend is moving East, I think), according to an article someone posted on the Facts board a while ago. It's also the difference between Don and Dawn, and octopus and awkward (it annoys me so much when my roommates say AHK-ward, like octopus or hockey).
I personally pronounce it the same way you do, and thanks for explaining it a bit more clearly than I did. :)
Array
Unfortunately, the difference between those sounds is starting to disappear in Western American accents (and the trend is moving East, I think), according to an article someone posted on the Facts board a while ago. It's also the difference between Don and Dawn, and octopus and awkward (it annoys me so much when my roommates say AHK-ward, like octopus or hockey).
I personally pronounce it the same way you do, and thanks for explaining it a bit more clearly than I did. :)
Array
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It is very difficult for someone who has grown up not making a distinction between the "ah" and "aw" sounds of Don and Dawn to even hear that when other people are trying hard to demonstrate it. The brain simply loses a lot of the ability to hear the difference between two close sounds when the difference is not meaningful in your own language or dialect.
How I try to explain it is:
AH is like the sound (Ahhhh!) one makes when one is very contented, such as settling into a warm bath.
AW is like the sound one makes when one feels sorry for someone else, or even better, when one is PRETENDING to feel sorry for someone else (AWWWW!!!)
Does that help you hear the difference??
How I try to explain it is:
AH is like the sound (Ahhhh!) one makes when one is very contented, such as settling into a warm bath.
AW is like the sound one makes when one feels sorry for someone else, or even better, when one is PRETENDING to feel sorry for someone else (AWWWW!!!)
Does that help you hear the difference??
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I think I get it better now...
I think I get it better now. Kinda a difference in how far you open your mouth and throat? Very, very interesting.
Thanks to both of you!
I think I get it better now. Kinda a difference in how far you open your mouth and throat? Very, very interesting.
Thanks to both of you!
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It is not dissimilar from the sound of the word "or". Trying saying "or"k-wud. Gosh, I'm pretty bad at explaining this. I'll try another method. How about the sound you use for the beginning of awful? Just say that and add the k-wud ending. AWK-wud.
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No problem. I wasn't sure if I expressed myself well at all, but I'm glad it made sense to you. I like the difference between Don and Dawn, I'm going to stick with it.
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Don v Dawn
Like Array said, that difference is disappearing. The Dawn sound is still more prevalent in New Jersey or New York, but even as east as Pennsylvania, where I am, we prn Dawn as Don.
Like Array said, that difference is disappearing. The Dawn sound is still more prevalent in New Jersey or New York, but even as east as Pennsylvania, where I am, we prn Dawn as Don.
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The geographic distribution of the ah/aw merger is not a simple "east vs. west" one. Evidently the Pittsburgh area of Pennsylvania was one of the first places in the country to lose the distinction. The following map shows that most of the USA west of the Missouri has lost it, but so has western Pennsylvania, most of West Virginia, and northern New England. Most of my students in Omaha, which is on the eastern edge of Nebraska, still seem to make the distinction, but the western half of Nebraska has lost it, according to the map:
http://www.ling.upenn.edu/phono_atlas/maps/Map1.html
http://www.ling.upenn.edu/phono_atlas/maps/Map1.html
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Ditto pronunciation.
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