JB's bureau of pronunciation

Maybe nimh will drop in. Looks like you are needing some Dutch pronounciation.

Here I am. Oy. The thing is, I always get in trouble when trying to explain the phonetic spelling of a word. Not just cause I know sh!t about phonetic spelling in the first place, but also cause see, obviously, if I spell a name phonetically, I'll use Dutch phonetic spelling. Its almost impossible for me to figure out what the English phonetic spelling would be.

For example. Paté, as in, you know, the nice meat stuff you put on bread. Dutch spelling: Paté. Dutch phonetic spelling: Pattee (I'm guessing). English phonetic spelling (I suppose?): Puhtay ...?

Add mushrooms and in Dutch you get champignonpaté, or phonetically, something like: sjampinjonpattee. English phonetic spelling? Eh, shampinyunpatay?

Can of worms there ...

<end of rant, and yes I realise I didnt answer your question >

de hope sheh-fer.

That's a rough phonetic transliteration. The double oo in Dutch is pronounced as long 'o', not as in English where it would be pronounced as a long 'u'. The various European languages have quite different phonetics in their spellings.

How about "de"?
"e" pronounces as "e" in "bed" or "i" in "sit"?

And the "sheh" pronounce as "she" in "shelf"?

And where is the stress?
I guess it is at "hoop".

De as in bed

sheh as "sha" in shade (told you it's not easy )

You're right on the stress

Actually, Dutchmen - or at least those from the Protestant, northern half of the country - I believe pronounce the "Sch" in Scheffer as a hard "g". Which means ... not as in the "g" in "go", either - it's the g-sound foreigners can never pronounce, which is why jokesters always try to make them say "Scheveningen" a lot (as in Scheveningen, the beach town). I've been trying to come up with an English word that has it, but I can't. It sounds kinda like you're clearing your throat. You have it in Arabic a lot too.

I hope this may be helpful to you...


Yahoo Talking Dictionary

It would if they had one for Dutch

But they do have a Spanish dictionary, which reminds me. The "j" in Spanish words like "jamon" - thats more or less the "hard g" I'm talking about, that one uses when pronouncing the "ch" in "Scheffer". So "s" - then the "j" as in "jamon" - then "effer", which is more or less like in English.

Sorry...I misunderstood


Yahoo is being biased at only having two audio languages for their dictionaries; they need to update…this is the World Wide Web isn't it?

ok this time we will have this dude:
Silvio Berlusconi

By my rough sense, the first stress is on "sil"
"o" in "vio" is pronounced as "o" in "hello".

the second stress is on "sco"
"er" is pronounced as "ear" of "earth"
"o" in "sco" is pronounced as "o" of "got".

Am I right?

More like air as in fair

Thanks

Giora Eiland (Israeli National Security advisor)

the stress is on "Gio"?
"g" of "Gio" is pronounced as "gg" of "egg"?
"a" of "ra" is pronounced as "o" of "recognize" ?
"ei" is pronounced as "a" of "patient"?

thanks

Brian Roehrkasse
US Department Spokesman


Is he an immigrate? I am totally confused with the name!

no....help?

This name is originally a german one. As it seems unlikely a fresh immigrant could be a US spokesman, it means he is from german ancestry and his family being American for many (or some) generations.

Yes.
But how about the pronounciation?


"oehr" is pronounced as "oo" in "goose"?
"kasse " ?

Where is the stress?

I know the german pronounciation, but maybe some of our american fellows can help?