Text 4134, 112 rader
Skriven 2012-09-20 16:57:38 av Robert Bashe (2:2448/44)
   Kommentar till text 4124 av Bjorn Felten (2:203/2)
Ärende: Language nuts (was: Pvt nodes vs points)
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Bjorn Felten wrote to Roy Witt on Thursday September 20 2012 at 11:50:

RW>> Is it? Or does it sound that way because of the New Yorker's eastern
RW>> accent in speaking that confuses you. That's not a question.

BF> How would you know? Unlike me, you've never even set foot in NYC --
BF> that's fairly obvious. Or else you would know that there's probably a
BF> million different dialects going around there.

I have, and probably more often than you. There _is_ a New Yorker accent.
Probably a mixture of all those who originally came to the city before
spreading out across the country.

RW>> The proper pronounciation of Houston is hyoo sten...

BF> As pronounced in what language?

English. You may be thinking of Swedish.

BF>That's no generally accepted notation. BTW, is the spelling of the
BF>third word there yet another US anomaly. In English it's spelt
BF>differently.

That's "spelled". "Spelt" is a kind of wheat:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spelt

"Spelt, also known as dinkel wheat,[2] or hulled wheat,[2] is a hexaploid
species of wheat."

Better learn a little more English before you start arguing language with a
native speaker.

RW>> BTW, Sam Houston would be rolling in his grave if he knew a Svede was
RW>> telling someone how to pronounce his name.

BF> Maybe. He was a southerner -- and a soldier even -- and probably
BF> suffered from the same pathological hatred for everything European as
BF> you.

No, he was just an American, originally from the east, who came to Texas
because the Mexican government had ofered immigrants generous terms to settle.
The place was nearly empty except for Indians at the time. It was only after
Santa Annna changed the constitution and tried to revoke the rights of the new
citizens that the Texas revolution began.

BF> As for *William* Houstoun on the other hand, he was educated in
BF> London, and even had a British citizenship. He most likely had better
BF> respect for non-US people.

If you're talking about the physicist and former president of Rice University
in Houston, Texas, you must be crazy.

But I'm sure you can find various pronunciations among the people and places
named Houston and listed in Wikepedia:

* Houston (pornographic actress) - former adult-film star
* Houston (singer) - an early 2000s R&B singer
* Allan Houston (born 1971) - former NBA player
* Angus Houston - Commander of the Australian Defence Force
* Brian Houston (musician) - Northern Irish musician
* Brian Houston (pastor) - Australian religious leader
* Charles Hamilton Houston - American civil rights lawyer
* Charles Snead Houston - American mountaineer, physician and scientist
* Cherylee Houston - actress currently playing Izzy Armstrong In Corronation
Street
* Cissy Houston (born 1933) - American gospel singer, mother of famous singer
Whitney
* Drew Houston (born 1983) - American internet entrepreneur, founder and CEO of
Dropbox
* Jean Houston - American author of New Thought or New Age books
* Jamie Houston - English-born German rugby union international
* Kevin Houston - American basketball player
* Lucy, Lady Houston - backer of the British entry for 1931 Schneider Trophy
races
* Marques Houston - African-American R&B singer
* Penelope Houston - American singer-songwriter
* Penelope Houston (film critic) - British film critic
* Phil Houston, New Zealand rugby league football referee
* Sam Houston (1793-1863) - 19th century American statesman and namesake of the
Texas city
* Stewart Houston - Scottish football player and coach
* Thelma Houston - R&B and dance music singer
* Victor Houston - Barbadian track and field athlete
* Walter Scott Houston - popularizer of amateur astronomy
* Wade Houston - American basketball coach (also father of the aforementioned
Allan Houston)
* Whitney Houston (1963-2012) - American R&B/pop singer
* William Vermillion Houston - (1900-1968) American physicist and president of
Rice University
* Houston Alexander - American mixed martial artist
* Huston Street - American baseball player (name pronounced like Houston,
Texas)

For your information - this from an old lady who was alive during both
administrations, and familiar with _both_ presidents...

Theodore Roosevelt pronounced his name R-ooo-sevelt
whereas
Franklin D. Roosevelt pronounced his R-oh-sevelt

Both accented on the second syllable. So go figure.

But I still think you should stick to Swedish. At least you know that language.

Don't try to argue language with a native speaker. You just make a fool of
yourself.

Cheers, Bob

--- GoldED+/W32 1.1.5-0613
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