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HelpHow do you pronounce Joseph and where are you from? (m)
Do you pronounce the last syllable with an 's' sound (JOE-seff) or a 'z' sound (JOE-zeff)?
We are in the south-east of England and our son is called Joseph; we noticed most people say it with a 'z' sound, while we both say it with an 's' sound. Our Texan friend says it how my husband and I do.
I was curious as to whether it's a UK/US English thing, a more local dialect thing or just personal preference! Interested in pronounciations from all around the globe.
Don't you think you've seen enough?
We are in the south-east of England and our son is called Joseph; we noticed most people say it with a 'z' sound, while we both say it with an 's' sound. Our Texan friend says it how my husband and I do.
I was curious as to whether it's a UK/US English thing, a more local dialect thing or just personal preference! Interested in pronounciations from all around the globe.
Don't you think you've seen enough?
Archived Thread - replies disabled
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Replies
Where I'm from - the Czech Republic - we pronounce this name YO-zef and write it Josef.
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I think I'm kind of halfway between the two sounds. The z sound is lazier, and I suspect that if I were saying the name conversationally (which I rarely would, because all of the Josephs in my life go by Joe or Joey exclusively) it would sound like JOE-zif, but if I am reading aloud from a text, I say, "JOE-sif."
I am in the mid-Atlantic coast area of the U.S., where we have truly terrible accents.
I am in the mid-Atlantic coast area of the U.S., where we have truly terrible accents.
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How interesting. I live in the US South (born and bred) and have only heard Joseph pronounced with the s sound. Maybe I just never paid close attention before because the z sound never occurred to me!
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Thank you to everyone that replied!
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This message is blank.
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I say JOEzif when I'm speaking English and YOOesef when I'm speaking Afrikaans. English is my home language, and when I visit the UK I pass for a local! I live in South Africa.
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I say it with an S sound, but I've heard both. I don't like it with a Z sound. I also say Josephine with an S sound, but Josie with a Z sound.
ETA: I live in the southern US.
ETA: I live in the southern US.
This message was edited 8/4/2019, 9:24 AM
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An "s" sound. I live in Poland, but my father (who I learned most of my English from) is from North West England.
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I pronounce Joseph with an "s" sound. It contains an "s," after all. A "z" sound wouldn't make sense to me. I'm from the US, and happen to live in Texas. I'm not a Texas native though.
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Jo-suf. Maybe Jo-zuf, if I'm yelling.
I'm from Virginia in the US.
I'm from Virginia in the US.
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I'm from the Pacific Northwest of the US and I say it with the S sound and I've never pronounced it with the Z sound except when spelled Josef.
I've never paid much attention before but I more often pronounce Josiah with the Z sound but sometimes I say it with the S sound. Josephine I more often say with an S sound but I also sometimes pronounce it with the Z sound.
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I've never paid much attention before but I more often pronounce Josiah with the Z sound but sometimes I say it with the S sound. Josephine I more often say with an S sound but I also sometimes pronounce it with the Z sound.
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From Belfast, NI and I hear it with the 's' sound or even a cross between a s and z depending on how broad the accent is but never a true z sound
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I live in England and say it as a bit of a mix, but it’s more Jo-zeff with a hint of an ‘S’ sound.
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JO-suf in Southern California.
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I say JOE-seff. I'm Aussie, and I've never heard it said with a z here, so that's interesting.
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Z
UK (South East)
UK (South East)
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JOE-seff
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I live in the US and I say JOE-seff.
JOE-zeff in the US kind of sounds posh or affectatious.
JOE-zeff in the US kind of sounds posh or affectatious.
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jo-SEFF. I am from Western Canada. I would pronounce Josef with a Z sound.
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With an s, and I'm from southwestern Ohio!
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I live in central Scotland and I’ve only ever heard it pronounced with an s, never with a z.
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Hi !!!
I'm not from UK/US but here in Italy we have the same issue about 's'.
Infact a person from Northern Italy would probably pronounce it with /z/ while in the Southern part it is pronounced with /s/.
Italian rules say that generally a 's' in the middle of a word is pronounced /z/ plus I'm from Northern Italy so.. no problem! Joseph with /z/.
Actually I've always heard Joseph /z/ used by Anglophones too but for example I know that Josiah is with /s/...
I'm not from UK/US but here in Italy we have the same issue about 's'.
Infact a person from Northern Italy would probably pronounce it with /z/ while in the Southern part it is pronounced with /s/.
Italian rules say that generally a 's' in the middle of a word is pronounced /z/ plus I'm from Northern Italy so.. no problem! Joseph with /z/.
Actually I've always heard Joseph /z/ used by Anglophones too but for example I know that Josiah is with /s/...
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