"Bob Mannix" wrote in message
...
"Alang" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 5 Mar 2009 08:22:44 -0000, "Bob Mannix"
wrote:


"Alang" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 05 Mar 2009 00:13:58 +0000 (GMT), "Dave Plowman (News)"
wrote:

In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
Yup. The clearest pronunciation of all in the UK comes with an
accent
from the NE of Scotland. Not to be confused with the dialect from
there, obviously. 'BBC perceived pronunciation' is actually quite
poor. Too many words with different meanings sounding the same.
Wales
and whales being the obvious one.

whereas in scotland, its whales and wheels... ;-)

So you consider a cockney and geordie accent the same?

I hope he doesn't.
My mother was raised on Tyneside and spoke very clearly and distinctly
in a local accent. Never lost it and was understood anywhere she went
except by cockneys.

Now if you had said cockney and glaswegian...

And why do some people not pronounce the 'H' in herb and hotel?
Apart from those raised in France.

For the first because they are merkins, for the second because it's
"correct" not to pronounce it, which is why it's "an hotel" not "a
hotel".

Only for french people. In English the 'h' i sounded

It is now but the (old-fashioned) and, some might say, "correct"
prununciation, is without the "h". The fact that you do not think so
merely underlies my point about the dynamics of langauage. It was
certainly regarded as "correct", if posh, when I was a boy.


Mind you it's a long time since I heard the "correct" pronunciation of
Coventry as "Cuventry" on the tv.

I suspect Cuventry is a local usage


No, perhaps the opposite! Ditto my remarks above. The RP BBC guide
pronunciation was "Cuventry" and that was "correct". I very much doubt
that it is now! AFAICR the last time a BBC newsreader used "Cuventry" that
I heard, was in the 1970's.


--
Bob Mannix
(anti-spam is as easy as 1-2-3 - not)


That's an interesting one. I live not far from Coventry, and I have never
heard it pronounced that way. Any idea what the reason for that
pronunciation is? Any connection to the word 'coven' maybe ?

Arfa