pronunciation of j in foreign names

[GoesStation]

Some British usages were common in Toronto when I lived there in the seventies. I adopted the very handy "Tuesday week" as soon as I figured out what it meant. I was sad to have to let it go when I got back home and discovered it was still baffling to Americans. I also liked the "it should do" family, which stuck with me for many years and may still occasionally emerge.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

I can get my head around the stress on the wrong syllable of the second word, for those who don't know where it comes in the original French. However, I have never understood how anyone can pronounce "papier" the same as "paper". Do you literally just ignore that "i" in the middle?!

In our hearts we know it's just paper spelled wrong.

(I didn't know you all hung on to that i until I heard Emma Thompson say it.)

 

[Tarheel]

In Canada we cleave to the BrE pronunciation with the stress on the second syllable. This is an unusual case because normally we use American pronunciation and British spelling.

Like cheque for example?

 

[probus]

Cheque, yes. We also double final consonants when adding -ing. So we write travelling for traveling.

 

[GoesStation]

And you add an "A" to declarative statements, eh? (I admit that I picked up that habit when I lived there, too. I did not bring it home.)

 

[probus]

Plenty of us add eh but not I. I think it's mainly a "down east" thing along with jeezly, a Canadianism if ever there was one.

PS The web claims that jeezly is also used in America.

 

[GoesStation]

Plenty of us add eh but not I. I think it's mainly a "down east" thing along with jeezly, a Canadianism if ever there was one.

PS The web claims that jeezly is also used in America.

I don't remember hearing it in T.O.

 

[Tarheel]

"Jeezly" is new to me.