Ehhhh?..... ** birthday bumped post **

[Lizzie]

This is doin ma heed in! But I canny stop reading this marathon post?

Lizzie

[JustJean]

Och where to next? I think some clarifications from the northern territories are in order now. I seem to have no one originating north of your Mason-Dixon line but my good buddy BobG has a whole slew of them (If you had been privy to some of our phone conversations when we're working on a project together you'd have had a good chuckle at some of our attempts at pronunication! Even the easy ones we've probably got wrong just because we're saying them like the US natives that we are!....hope you don't mind Bob that I'm dragging you into the midst of all this )

Here we go now....

FORGUE - one syllable like Four with a g sound at the end???

URQUHART - two syllables Erk and then Heart emphasis on the Erk???

AUCHTERLEES - Did we do this one already? I'll have to check....but here goes...Och then Ter then long ee Lees??? Emphasis on the Och.

ELGIN - this one long g or short g? Two syllables?? Assuming the i is short....

BANFF - ???? one syllable ending is FF sound???

KEITH - just like the mans name???

BEITH - while we're at it does this one rhyme with Leith and Keith?

TOWIE - rhymes with Howie???

I got a million more.................

Best wishes
Jean

[CatrionaL]

Jean

Don't want to upset you or anything BUT I pronounce

URQUHART. Ur Kit

Also have some idea that Fifers pronounce
BEITH Bith (like in Pithy)

Do you plan a trip to ST BOSWELLS Sint Boz'ls (the o as in boat), to the Abbey at DRYBURGH Drybury or to the historic battleground of Philihaugh the haugh as in loch.

If I was you I'd give it a miss and go somewhere like France. More chance of understanding the english spoken by the natives there..

Catriona

[AndrewP]

FORGUE - may be pronounced Forg

URQUHART - Ur-cart (Ur as in fur)

AUCHTERLEES - should be spelled AUCHTERLESS and I believe to be pronounced as written - Auch-ter-less

ELGIN - Ell-gin (gin as in begin, not as in the drink)

BANFF - ???? one syllable ending is FF sound??? - yes

KEITH - just like the mans name??? - yes

BEITH, Ayrshire and Beath, Fife - while we're at it does this one rhyme with Leith and Keith? - yes

TOWIE - rhymes with Howie??? - so far as I know, yes

All the best,

AndrewP

[WilmaM]

Wilma, regarding Camelon - I had always believed it to be as camel-on, then when I started working amongst people from the west, they referred to it as came-lon. What is your pronunciation for it?

All the best,

Andrew

Being married to a local I say places the way he does [ and he accepts my version of all things west of Cumbernauld ]

So it's Came-lon posher folks prefer Camel-on but that's just 'cause they'd like to like it's linked to King Arthur's Camel-ot
I've seen many a strange things there but never a Camel !

[Russell]

Hi Andrew

Please don't say Beeth to a Beith resident.
They don't say it as though they have a lisp at the end. they pronounce it Beeethe. Almost as if the 'the was a the sound.

In Ayrshire Drongan is all one word yet Trabboch is all emphasising the first syllable with 'uch'tagged on at the end.

My suggestion Jean is to write the name on card, show it to a local then whip out your pocket dictaphone and record their answer. It would give you hours of mindboggling research when you get back home again.
Providing you don't get lost following an enquiry from a straw chewing local as to where ..............is!

Russell

[joette]

Oh Jean when you go to Helensburgh(in the family we call it Hellsburgh-affectionately)you must go to Dino's Cafe on the front & buy a Pokey Hat-none of them fancy fruit flavours plain old vanilla-heaven in a cone!It's one of the first stops my Aunt makes when she visits from the States.
Hill House is worth a look if you have time & you can even go doon the water from Helensburgh Pier.
Re Milngavie-Bankies always call it MillGuy& Glaswegian Mullguy(we bankies are a bit posh but not pouncey like Millingavie-usually transplanted English folk or those trying to speak recieved English.)

[JustJean]

Aye Russell......DRONGAN was coming up on my next list. Had a rellie there used to keep the post office back in the 60's. A bit before my interest in genealogy unfortunately . So it's no Drone Gun then eh? Pity.........I've so much damage to undo Can someone bring clarity to MAUCHLINE for me then? Am I doing aright with the Moch Lin???? Please do tell me DAILLY is like the weekday news?? And WALLACETOWN is a Toon named after the hero? PATNA is coming out just like it looks emphasis on the Pat. DALRY again like it looks Dal ryhymes with Gal and Re bringing up the rear emphasis on the Dal?

The deaf mute routine is starting to appeal. ......flashcards......hmmmm.

Best wishes
Jean

PS...as for straw chewing locals.....I'm familiar with the New Englander version as I've played that one masel......"You can't git theah from heah"....but thanks for the heads up

[LesleyB]

Hi Jean
Think DALRY is Dal-rye (as in "Catcher in the Rye") Emphasis on second syllable.

[Russell]

Jean you have got to grips sounds like!!!

Now you have mastered 'OCH' the names will just trip off the tongue.

Watch Dalry Pronunciation is nae problem but there is a Dalry in Kirkcudbrightshire as well as Ayrshire. So watch for these directions.

St John's Town of Dalry. The name is bigger than the place but lots of my wife's rellies seemed to be bred there so lookout for rabbit burrows

Russell

PS Should we ask the administrators if we can send MP3 tracks as sound bites by PM. I thought keyboards produced sounds? Mine just produces frustration trying to convey accents and phraseology. Russ