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On the pronunciation of "Iran" and other words

Discussion in 'Chit Chat' started by AlamoCity, Sep 15, 2015.

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How do you say "Iran?"

  1. Closer to "eh-rohn"

    18 vote(s)
    30.5%

  2. Closer to "eye-ran"

    24 vote(s)
    40.7%

  3. It depends on the audience

    3 vote(s)
    5.1%

  4. Some other variation

    14 vote(s)
    23.7%
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  1. AlamoCity

    AlamoCity
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    I was with my dad today and he was talking about someone from Iran and it just struck me when he said (phonetically): he was from eye-ran. And then I realized I also grew up saying eye-ran and eye-rak and other similar pronunciations, but when in more "formal" settings will try to force myself to say "eh-rohn" and "eh-rok" to not sound less worldly.

    For fun, how do you say "Iran?"

    Are there any words you pronounce one way but will correct when in front of a different audience?
     
    #1 AlamoCity, Sep 15, 2015
  2. BryanM

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    I pronounce Iran and Iraq like er-rohn and er-ahk. I honestly think when it's pronounced with the same pronunciation as "eye", it sounds a bit odd.
     
    #2 BryanM, Sep 15, 2015
  3. LakanLunti

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    Here we pronounce it as /ee-RAN/
     
    #3 LakanLunti, Sep 15, 2015
  4. Aussie792

    Aussie792
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    A short 'I' as in Italy and a long 'A' as in card, with the stress on the second syllable. I voted "other variation" because my accent would make "rohn" incorrect, even though I pronounce the equivalent of what you mean.

    I find "eye-ran" and "eye-rack" cringeworthy.
     
    #4 Aussie792, Sep 15, 2015
    Last edited: Sep 15, 2015
  5. Chi and Bashful

    Chi and Bashful
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    Growing up I thought it was eye-ran but I made some Muslim friends and they told me the correct pronunciation of eee-ran
     
    #5 Chi and Bashful, Sep 15, 2015
  6. Purp

    Purp
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    Southern dialect: eye-ran
     
    #6 Purp, Sep 15, 2015
  7. Argentwing

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    I say short I like "if" and "ran", same for "ih-rack." Not perfectly accurate but a close anglicized pronunciation. I know the real ones but making that much effort to do a perfect pronunciation when the rest of my speech is casual is just a little weird. Same thing for mixing other languages with English, changing up your whole accent for one word seems like a weird choice so I just stick to one.

    *One of the worst repeated instances of this for me is talking in English about the Japanese polearm called a naginata (I'm a weapon nerd XD.) There is no way to cheap out on saying this word; you have to pronounce it properly or it sounds terrible lol.
     
    #7 Argentwing, Sep 15, 2015
    Last edited: Sep 15, 2015
  8. Lyana

    Lyana
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    I say ee-rahn. Never actually gave it much thought... I'm not sure I've ever heard it spoken aloud in English, so I guessed.
     
    #8 Lyana, Sep 15, 2015
  9. AwesomGaytheist

    AwesomGaytheist
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    Uh-ran and uh-rack
     
    #9 AwesomGaytheist, Sep 15, 2015
  10. Lawrence

    Lawrence
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    I say "e-ran."

    I mix up "coma" and "comma." This is just the tip of the iceberg. My "Freudian slips" get worse when I worry about them, so I learned to accept it.
     
    #10 Lawrence, Sep 15, 2015
  11. QueerTransEnby

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    Must be a MI thing because I am the same way. :slight_smile:
     
    #11 QueerTransEnby, Sep 15, 2015
  12. redneck

    redneck
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    Eye-rack and eye-ran
     
    #12 redneck, Sep 16, 2015
  13. lettuce

    lettuce
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    Persia. I don't care if it's wrong it sounds cooler :icon_mad:

    Or ee-rahn. Like "he ran", but without the "H".
     
    #13 lettuce, Sep 16, 2015
  14. Reciprocal

    Reciprocal
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    I-rarn. (I as in ink).

    Eye-rack.
     
    #14 Reciprocal, Sep 16, 2015
  15. Kaiser

    Kaiser Guest

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    Muslim Land.
     
    #15 Kaiser, Sep 16, 2015
  16. biAnnika

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    Agreed. All of it.
     
    #16 biAnnika, Sep 16, 2015
  17. rudysteiner

    rudysteiner
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    ih-ran and ih-rack. 'Ih' as in the pronunciation of a lower case 'I'.
     
    #17 rudysteiner, Sep 16, 2015
  18. acciocarrie

    acciocarrie
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    dutch: ee-rahn and ee-rahk
    english: eye-ran and eye-rack

    i didn't know there were other ways to pronounce iran or irak in english :lol:
     
    #18 acciocarrie, Sep 16, 2015
  19. imnotreallysure

    imnotreallysure Guest

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    Ditto. I wonder why Americans pronounce it as eye-rack?
     
    #19 imnotreallysure, Sep 16, 2015
    Last edited: Sep 16, 2015
  20. MrSkittles

    MrSkittles
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    Wow, we were talking about this in English Class today because we did a Iran short story. I pronounce it eye ran
     
    #20 MrSkittles, Sep 16, 2015
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