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Joined: Oct 2000
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Carpal Tunnel
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OP
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Oct 2000
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In NYC Houston rhyms with house (mouse, louse). but when we speak of the city in Texas that is Houston (the first sylable is hue (as in hue and cry) or cue. But we are consistent.. one way for the street, an other way for the city in texas.. but we are not alway so consistent.. as an article in this week's New Yorker points out, we haven't reach consensus on how to pronounce the names of a highway and two bridges.. http://www.newyorker.com/THE_TALK_OF_THE_TOWN/CURRENT/?TALK_DEPT_OF_ONCE_AND_FOR_ALL It this a NYC thing? or do you have place about town (or country) that have two alternate (and equally valid) pronounciations?
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Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 4,189
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2001
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Lived downtown in NYC for awhile...so I know Houston Street well, of troy! In Atlantic City (NJ) they practice the same strange linguistic dichotomy with Arkansas Street...pronouncing it 'ARE--kansas' instead of ' ARE--can--saw' like the state...don't know why. Just a localism, I guess. Which brings to mind this question...Why do we pronounce Kansas one way and Arkansas another? Anybody have the background on this one? ( I would assume it has to do with has to do with American Indian tribal language)
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Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 393
enthusiast
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enthusiast
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 393 |
The territory was called Arkansaw. I don't know whether it's related to Kansas at all. As it was (I presume, without checking a map) originally part of Louisiana, it could have been spelt Arkansas in French and retained the pronunciation Arkansaw.
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Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 771
old hand
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old hand
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 771 |
I recently figured out the Midwest's excuse for their insistent mispronunciation of my home state for which I depart anon... apparently there's some little burg in Wisconsin (I think) named Oregon, but they pronounce it or-uh-gone rather than the more melifluous (and right) or-@-gun. Oooooooh it steams me when I hear or-uh-gone! Agreed, Geoff?
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Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 819
old hand
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old hand
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 819 |
Oooooooh it steams me when I hear or-uh-gone! Agreed, Geoff?I'm amused when I hear folks from Eye-O-Way calling it Aura-Gone. Of course, with the massive population influx, THEY'RE RIGHT!
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Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,773
Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,773 |
Arkansas is a French variant of the Siouxian word Quapaw (also a tribe located in the area around the area where Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Arkansas almost meet, and, additionally, a town in northeastern Oklahoma, between Miami and Baxter Springs, Kansas). Quapaw means, literally, "downstream people." see http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/markansa.htmlIt seems that Arkansas retained the French pronunciation, while Kansas went with an English spin. The Arkansas River which runs from Colorado, though Kansas, Oklahoma and Arkansas, is pronouced like the state of Arkansas in Colorado, Oklahoma, and Arkansas, but while in Kansas, it is pronounced "Are Kansas". see http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=72271
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Joined: Feb 2001
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addict
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addict
Joined: Feb 2001
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and do "Ouichita" Louisiana (where my niece is currently on exchange with the National Parks service), and Wichita have anything in common apart from the same pronunciation (I think)?
Rod
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Joined: Dec 2000
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Dec 2000
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Ouichita and Wichita
Dunno, but the early music group Ensemble Ouabache gets its name from the Wabash in Indiana.
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Joined: Nov 2000
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Nov 2000
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do you have place about town (or country) that have two alternate (and equally valid) pronounciations?
We have a river in New Hampshire called the Piscataqua. And a group of folk have a club with the same name. You have to have Colonial ancestry to join. However: The river is the Pis-CAT-a-kwah.
The club is the Pis-cuh-TOCK-wah.
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Joined: Mar 2000
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 6,511 |
Odd that both pronunciations supply a gratuitous S (???)
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