 |
 | Home | Contact Us | FAQ | Search & Site Map | Link to Us |
 | Sign In | Join | Other 45 Sites in Network |
| HomeDiscussion GroupsEnglish UsageBritish EnglishESL Teaching Learnglish.com Contact UsLink To UsSearch & Site Map |
Discussion Groups / English Usage / January 2009Anglicised place names
I'm hoping some of you good people will be able to help me with a small marital problem I am having with my husband. I'm afraid that if he continues to pronounce "Ligny" as "Lig (hard g) nee" I will not be able to stop myself from beating him senseless with one of his many Napoleonic period texts. Unfortunately today it has occurred to me that perhaps he is actually right and his is the correct anglicised form of the name of the Belgian town. So I would like to know both how a Belgian and an educated Briton would each pronounce "Ligny" and whether I am going to have to bake my darling something rich and chocolatey in apology. -------------------8>< > So I would like to know both how a Belgian and an educated Briton would each > pronounce "Ligny" and whether I am going to have to bake my darling > something rich and chocolatey in apology. We really don't care about your sex life. ;-)  SignaturePeter (BrE) >-------------------8>< >> So I would like to know both how a Belgian and an educated Briton would each >> pronounce "Ligny" and whether I am going to have to bake my darling >> something rich and chocolatey in apology. > >We really don't care about your sex life. ;-) Being in the Frenchie part of Belgium, I guess "LEE-nee"? If I spoke out loud the Flemish pronunciation, I would have to spend the rest of day cleaning the monitor screen. SignatureIan > -------------------8>< >> So I would like to know both how a Belgian and an educated Briton would [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > We really don't care about your sex life. ;-) Speak for yourself! >> -------------------8>< >>> So I would like to know both how a Belgian and an educated Briton would [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] >> > Speak for yourself! I would use an approximation of the French pronunciation - "leenyee". Whether I am an educated Brit I must leave to others to judge. Regards Jonathan >>> -------------------8>< >>>> So I would like to know both how a Belgian and an educated Briton [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] >>> >> Speak for yourself! Cheeky bas... er... beggars! :o) > I would use an approximation of the French pronunciation - "leenyee". Thanks, Jonathan and Ian, my ears will be very grateful. > Whether I am an educated Brit I must leave to others to judge. Hmmm... perhaps I could have worded that a little better. I meant a Briton or any other English speaking person who had actually heard the word rather than some uneducated person like me who has only ever seen the word in print. >Jonathan Morton wrote: >>>> [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] >>>>> pronounce "Ligny" and whether I am going to have to bake my darling >>>>> something rich and chocolatey in apology. >> I would use an approximation of the French pronunciation - "leenyee". > [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] >word rather than some uneducated person like me who has only ever seen >the word in print. I don't know that I've heard it, but from what I know of French in general I would pronounce it as Jonathan has described. I think 'educated' is OK in the original question, if it means having such familiarity with French that one wishes to give the town name something close to its native value. Traditionally, not so long ago, an educated Briton would have learned French at school, in order to be able to shout the right insults across the Channel. As discussed here in the past, there are some French towns and cities that have anglicized names, but these are falling out of use. I doubt if many speak of "Lions" when they mean Lyon these days. SignaturePaul >As discussed here in the past, there are some French towns and cities >that have anglicized names, but these are falling out of use. I doubt >if many speak of "Lions" when they mean Lyon these days. Any Britisher who pronounced "Lyons" as "Lions" would be considered ignorant. Any Britisher who pronounced "Paris" as "Paree" would be considered pretentious. I can't speak for the rest of the English-speaking world! SignatureIan >> As discussed here in the past, there are some French towns and cities >> that have anglicized names, but these are falling out of use. I doubt [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > > I can't speak for the rest of the English-speaking world! Wasn't the quite interesting topic of exonyms discussed recently? SignatureJames Silverton Potomac, Maryland > Any Britisher who pronounced "Lyons" as "Lions" would be considered > ignorant. > > Any Britisher who pronounced "Paris" as "Paree" would be considered > pretentious. Altering foreign place names in the course of their adoption into the language is an ancient point of difference between English and other languages e.g. French. Places in Paris are named for Jena, Austerlitz, Wagram etc., all sounded more or less as in the original: but the way Waterloo (London) is heard almost disguises its representing Waterloo (Belgium.) This variation seems normal. English "Lions" became familiar because of the play The Lyons Mail, one of actor Henry Irving's most popular hits in the Victorian period -- but the correct French pronunciation displaced it in the English language only one or two generations ago (after a sufficient number of English holidaymakers had driven through Lyons on their way to the French Riviera?) Another influence (now nearly extinct?) was the First World War when British troops spent years in such places as Ypres which proletarians pronounced as Wipers. SignatureDon Phillipson Carlsbad Springs (Ottawa, Canada) [...] > Another influence (now nearly extinct?) was the First World > War when British troops spent years in such places as > Ypres which proletarians pronounced as Wipers. Yes, it was recalling "Wipers" that made me wonder if the pronunciation of Ligny had been treated similarly by British soldiers ~130 years earlier. > [...] > [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > Yes, it was recalling "Wipers" that made me wonder if the pronunciation of > Ligny had been treated similarly by British soldiers ~130 years earlier. No British were at Ligny it was the French vs the Prussians. The British were engaged at the Battle of Quartre Bras on that day So its doubtful the English had any reason to say it or even be aware it existed, it wasn't their concern. On 25 Jan 2009, Ian Jackson wrote >> As discussed here in the past, there are some French towns and >> cities that have anglicized names, but these are falling out of [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > Any Britisher who pronounced "Paris" as "Paree" would be > considered pretentious. What about the French department and river name of "the Lot"? I've never had the occasion to hear it pronounced in French, and would just have assumed a standard French pronunciation of "lo"; Collins and other English sources, however, give only "lot". Is the "t", by some etymological quirk, pronounced in French? SignatureCheers, Harvey CanEng and BrEng, indiscriminately mixed >On 25 Jan 2009, Ian Jackson wrote > [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] >> Any Britisher who pronounced "Lyons" as "Lions" would be >> considered ignorant. Lyons is the restaurant where the Quickies used to serve. Or Nippies -- same thing, really. A propos the city of Lyon, it's odd that we have abandoned the "Lions" in speech but have retained it in still writing "Lyons". Marseille(s) is on a parallel path. >> Any Britisher who pronounced "Paris" as "Paree" would be >> considered pretentious. [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > >Is the "t", by some etymological quirk, pronounced in French? Dunno, but multilingual Dad was inclined to say "That's le lo" for "That's the lot" when feeling playful. SignaturePaul > Lyons is the restaurant where the Quickies used to serve. Or Nippies -- > same thing, really. A propos the city of Lyon, it's odd that we have > abandoned the "Lions" in speech but have retained it in still writing > "Lyons". It never occurred to me until I read this thread that the angilicized spelling "Lyons" ever indicated a different pronunciation from the French one. I thought it was just a silent-S ending like the similarly anglicized Marseilles. > Marseille(s) is on a parallel path. What, *that* S was pronounced as well? Was like "Mar-SAILZ", or something else? SignatureMark Brader | "I had never thought of Jesus as being msb@vex.net | a variety of grape plant, but Toronto | if you put it that way..." --Jan Sand >Paul Wolff writes: >> Lyons is the restaurant where the Quickies used to serve. Or Nippies -- [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > >What, *that* S was pronounced as well? Was like "Mar-SAILZ", That's right. >or something else? I'm sure there were some interesting near misses too. SignaturePaul >> Lyons is the restaurant where the Quickies used to serve. Or Nippies -- >> same thing, really. A propos the city of Lyon, it's odd that we have [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > >What, *that* S was pronounced as well? Was like "Mar-SAILZ", or something else? Exactly that. Same sort of thing for Orleans (three syllables). Not Calais, though. Thinking back, I'm a litle surprised about Lyons, considering that the "Richard Gare de Lyon" pun in 1066 And All That, published in 1930 (and serialised before that), only works if it's pronounced in the French way. SignatureKaty Jennison spamtrap: remove the first two letters after the @ >>> Lyons is the restaurant where the Quickies used to serve. Or Nippies -- >>> same thing, really. A propos the city of Lyon, it's odd that we have [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] >Exactly that. Same sort of thing for Orleans (three syllables). Not >Calais, though. If you go back a few centuries, the usual spelling in English was "Cales" or "Caleys", which I'm sure reflects the pronunciation. It was, after all, an English possession with an English-speaking population for 200 years. SignatureDon Aitken Mail to the From: address is not read. To email me, substitute "clara.co.uk" for "freeuk.com" >On Sun, 25 Jan 2009 21:05:20 +0000, Wood Avens ><woodavens@askjennison.com> wrote: [quoted text clipped - 21 lines] >was, after all, an English possession with an English-speaking >population for 200 years. I should have added Brussels to Lyons and Marseilles. That's one that we still pronounce in the English manner, though in this case we've added the 's' to the Dutch name Brussel rather than to the French name Bruxelles. Brussels is a clear example that doesn't rely on ancient memory to verify. SignaturePaul >>>> Lyons is the restaurant where the Quickies used to serve. Or >>>> Nippies -- [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > was, after all, an English possession with an English-speaking > population for 200 years. For Shakespeare, it was Callice (rhymes with Alice) and Marseilles was marSELLies . Peter Groves >>>>> Lyons is the restaurant where the Quickies used to serve. Or >>>>> Nippies -- [quoted text clipped - 24 lines] > > Peter Groves The town Calais in Maine is calice rhymes with alice. >>>>>> Lyons is the restaurant where the Quickies used to serve. Or >>>>>> Nippies -- [quoted text clipped - 26 lines] > > The town Calais in Maine is calice rhymes with alice. How do the residents of Berkeley, California say Berkeley Square? >>>>>>> Lyons is the restaurant where the Quickies used to serve. Or >>>>>>> Nippies -- [quoted text clipped - 32 lines] > How do the residents of Berkeley, California > say Berkeley Square? Berklee >> How do the residents of Berkeley, California >> say Berkeley Square? > >Berklee http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=naC0PIL0EXE SignatureIan >How do the residents of Berkeley, California >say Berkeley Square? The town of Hertford, Connecticut, was renamed to "Hartford" to match the (unchanging) pronunciation. Or so claims Bryson, anyway, and for once he's actually believable. There are still a number of Massachusetts towns that vary between -boro and -borough depending on which government agency is doing the calling. There's still the interesting issue of Southampton, Northampton, and Easthampton, Mass., and Southampton, Westhampton, and East Hampton, New York (further complicated by Bridgehampton, Hampton Bays, and Midhampton). -GAWollman SignatureGarrett A. Wollman | The real tragedy of human existence is not that we are wollman@csail.mit.edu| nasty by nature, but that a cruel structural asymmetry Opinions not those | grants to rare events of meanness such power to shape of MIT or CSAIL. | our history. - S.J. Gould, Ten Thousand Acts of Kindness >>How do the residents of Berkeley, California >>say Berkeley Square? [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > > -GAWollman And Hampton Wick, but be very careful with that one! Paul Wolff: >>> Marseille(s) is on a parallel path. Mark Brader (copyedited): >> What, *that* S was pronounced as well? Was it like "Mar-SAILZ", or >> something else? Katy Jennison: > Exactly that. Same sort of thing for Orleans (three syllables). Three! I could see two, i.e. pronounced as spelled. > Not Calais, though. Well, the Americans have covered that one. > Thinking back, I'm a litle surprised about Lyons, considering that the > "Richard Gare de Lyon" pun in 1066 And All That, published in 1930 > (and serialised before that), only works if it's pronounced in the > French way. Well, once you say "Gare de", it's natural to continue in French, isn't it? But the pun also requires familiarity with the French version of the epithet. SignatureMark Brader | "Strong typing isn't for weak minds; the argument Toronto | 'strong typing is for weak minds' is for weak minds." msb@vex.net | -- Guy Harris Paul Wolff set the following eddies spiralling through the space-time continuum: > Lyons is the restaurant where the Quickies used to serve. Or Nippies -- > same thing, really. A propos the city of Lyon, it's odd that we have > abandoned the "Lions" in speech but have retained it in still writing > "Lyons". 'Ang on a mo (attendez une minute)! I always thought Lyon and Lyons were two different places. Signatureξ:) Proud to be curly Interchange the alphabetic letter groups to reply >Paul Wolff set the following eddies spiralling through the space-time >continuum: [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] >'Ang on a mo (attendez une minute)! I always thought Lyon and Lyons were two >different places. Yes and No. I'm lazy, and copy from Wikipedia: In Europe Lyon, France (alternative English spelling) Lyons-la-Forêt, France Lyons, Tyne and Wear, England Lyons Hill, Ireland In the United States Lyons, Colorado Lyons, Georgia Lyons, Illinois Lyons, Indiana Lyons, Kansas Lyons, Michigan Lyons (town), New York Lyons (village), New York Lyons, Ohio Lyons, Oregon Lyons, Pennsylvania Lyons, Wisconsin Lyons Falls, New York Lyons Switch, Oklahoma See also: Lyons Township In Australia Lyons, Australian Capital Territory Division of Lyons (state), a state electoral division of Tasmania Division of Lyons, a federal electoral division of Tasmania SignaturePaul [...] > Division of Lyons (state), a state electoral division of Tasmania > Division of Lyons, a federal electoral division of Tasmania Which reminds me. The captioning on UK television is a good source of amusement, and is often even intelligible. But yesterday it had "Tasmania" twice: once in commentary on the Liverpool-Everton match, and earlier on real news. Australia's little, er, bush state cannot possibly have been meant, but I really couldn't guess. Any ideas? (I'm no good at multi-tasking: I can't reliably read and hear at the same time.) SignatureMike. Mike wrote on Mon, 26 Jan 2009 16:29:23 -0000: > [...] >> Division of Lyons (state), a state electoral division of >> Tasmania Division of Lyons, a federal electoral division of >> Tasmania > Which reminds me. The captioning on UK television is a good > source of amusement, and is often even intelligible. But [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > couldn't guess. Any ideas? (I'm no good at multi-tasking: I can't > reliably read and hear at the same time.) It is sometimes surprising what one hears when one is not listening properly like to a car radio. I was recently fairly sure that a broadcast of "Tamilano" by Handel was announced that had a character with the appropriate name of Hysteria. I did check later and it turned out to be "Tamerlano" with Asteria. SignatureJames Silverton Potomac, Maryland Email, with obvious alterations: not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not On 26 Jan, 16:58, "James Silverton" <not.jim.silver...@verizon.net> wrote: > Mike wrote on Mon, 26 Jan 2009 16:29:23 -0000: > [quoted text clipped - 15 lines] > with the appropriate name of Hysteria. I did check later and it turned > out to be "Tamerlano" with Asteria. It doesn't help with the Tasmania problem, but today there was a "great Manchester this kind of role", which meant "great man just for this kind of role". It referred to that excellent American, whose name momentarily escapes me, who's gone to listen in the Middle East, having previously done it very helpfully in Northern Ireland. -- Mike. >On 26 Jan, 16:58, "James Silverton" <not.jim.silver...@verizon.net> >wrote: [quoted text clipped - 23 lines] >momentarily escapes me, who's gone to listen in the Middle East, >having previously done it very helpfully in Northern Ireland. George Mitchell, innit? Among his past accomplishments is Chairman of the Walt Disney Company. This explains where he learned to spread pixie dust as special envoy to the Middle East and as special envoy to Northern Ireland. He is also a former US Senator and Senate Majority Leader. SignatureTony Cooper - Orlando, Florida >>On 26 Jan, 16:58, "James Silverton" <not.jim.silver...@verizon.net> >>wrote: [quoted text clipped - 30 lines] >to the Middle East and as special envoy to Northern Ireland. He is >also a former US Senator and Senate Majority Leader. He is also Chancellor of the Queen's University of Belfast: http://www.qub.ac.uk/home/TheUniversity/AboutQueens/UniversityInformation/Univer sityStructure/ At his installation ceremony in 1999, Chancellor Mitchell made this pledge: "I cannot promise you success. I can promise you the full measure of my devotion and effort." A good attitude. Chancellor of a UK university is a non-resident, non-executive role: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chancellor_(education)> SignaturePeter Duncanson, UK (in alt.usage.english) >> On Tue, 27 Jan 2009 14:45:50 -0800 (PST), Mike L [...] >>> It doesn't help with the Tasmania problem, but today there was a >>> "great Manchester this kind of role", which meant "great man just [quoted text clipped - 21 lines] > Chancellor of a UK university is a non-resident, non-executive role: > <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chancellor_(education)> Generally a thoroughly Good Egg. Thanks to you both. And talking of "general" in this context, I admired De Chastelaine, too. SignatureMike. >>On 26 Jan, 16:58, "James Silverton" <not.jim.silver...@verizon.net> >>wrote: [quoted text clipped - 30 lines] >to the Middle East and as special envoy to Northern Ireland. He is >also a former US Senator and Senate Majority Leader. Not only is George Mitchell a likeable man who works well with people, you'll never meet a more honest man. He was a U.S. Senator when I lived in Bangor, Maine. SignatureRegards, Chuck Riggs Near Dublin, Ireland >In Australia >Lyons, Australian Capital Territory >Division of Lyons (state), a state electoral division of Tasmania >Division of Lyons, a federal electoral division of Tasmania All named after PM Joseph Lyons and pronounced "lions". SignatureRichard Bollard Canberra Australia To email, I'm at AMT not spAMT. HVS wrote, in <Xns9B9E97E262842whhvans@news.albasani.net> on Sun, 25 Jan 2009 14:55:50 GMT: > On 25 Jan 2009, Ian Jackson wrote > [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > > Is the "t", by some etymological quirk, pronounced in French? Yes, but only just, and the o is as in alone. SignatureNick Spalding BrE/IrE HVS a écrit : [...] > What about the French department and river name of "the Lot"? > [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > Is the "t", by some etymological quirk, pronounced in French? It is. Another and older name for the river is Olt, or Out, in which the "t" is also pronounced. SignatureIsabelle Cecchini > [ ... ] > What about the French department and river name of "the Lot"? > [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > Is the "t", by some etymological quirk, pronounced in French? Yes, but it's not really a quirk: many rules for pronouncing ordinary words get suspended when applied to proper names. There is a town near here called Cassis, for which the final s is silent (except in the mouths of ignorant people from the north), and there is a drink from blackcurrants called cassis, in which the final s is very strongly articulated. Signatureathel Athel wrote on Mon, 26 Jan 2009 13:05:54 +0100: >> [ ... ] >> What about the French department and river name of "the Lot"? >> [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >> >> Is the "t", by some etymological quirk, pronounced in French? > Yes, but it's not really a quirk: many rules for pronouncing > ordinary words get suspended when applied to proper names. > There is a town near here called Cassis, for which the final s > is silent (except in the mouths of ignorant people from the > north), and there is a drink from blackcurrants called cassis, > in which the final s is very strongly articulated. I think I might have mentioned this before but, having spent several vacations at Chamonix-Mont Blanc, it is noticeable how much difference there is between the local pronunciation of Chamonix and that of "educated" French sophisticates. The local people don't pronounce the "x" but many Parisians do. Strangely, the normal UK English pronunciation is similar to the local one. SignatureJames Silverton Potomac, Maryland Email, with obvious alterations: not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not > Athel wrote on Mon, 26 Jan 2009 13:05:54 +0100: > [quoted text clipped - 22 lines] > "x" but many Parisians do. Strangely, the normal UK English > pronunciation is similar to the local one. Yes, I noticed the same when we were in Chamonix two years ago. We were actually at a meeting in Les Houches (which is very close to Chamonix), and there was no agreement, even among the locals, about whether the H of Houches was aspirated (in the French sense) or not. Some people made an elision with the Les, and some didn't. Signatureathel >> Athel wrote on Mon, 26 Jan 2009 13:05:54 +0100: >> [quoted text clipped - 28 lines] > of Houches was aspirated (in the French sense) or not. Some people made > an elision with the Les, and some didn't. The tongue-twister for us gambists is the composer Louis de Caix d'Hervelois. Best practice seems to call for /kEks/ for the middle bit (rhymes with Aix, as in Provence). Then there's Johan Schenck's Op. 2, the ever-popular "Tyd en Konst- Oeffeningen"... SignatureRoland Hutchinson Will play viola da gamba for food. NB mail to my.spamtrap [at] verizon.net is heavily filtered to remove spam. If your message looks like spam I may not see it. > What about the French department and river name of "the Lot"? > [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > Is the "t", by some etymological quirk, pronounced in French? Yes, it is. Where names - of places and people - are concerned, the rules often go out of the window. The final "s" in a French place-name is often a complete lottery - I mean a real final "s" like Senlis, Sens, Frejus etc, rather than the ones on the end of Lyon and Marseille. Regards Jonathan >> As discussed here in the past, there are some French towns and cities >> that have anglicized names, but these are falling out of use. I doubt >> if many speak of "Lions" when they mean Lyon these days. > > Any Britisher who pronounced "Lyons" as "Lions" would be considered > ignorant. On the other hand, pronouncing the y as ee, and even making it a stressed syllable, seems pretty normal SignatureRob Bannister >-------------------8>< >> So I would like to know both how a Belgian and an educated Briton would each >> pronounce "Ligny" and whether I am going to have to bake my darling >> something rich and chocolatey in apology. > >We really don't care about your sex life. ;-) We may not *care*, but that's not to say that we won't be willing to read about it. SignatureTony Cooper - Orlando, Florida >>-------------------8>< >>> So I would like to know both how a Belgian and an educated Briton would each [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] >We may not *care*, but that's not to say that we won't be willing to >read about it. Or even watch the DVD, each picture being worth a thousand words. SignatureRobin (BrE) Herts, England >>-------------------8>< >>> So I would like to know both how a Belgian and an educated Briton would each [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] >We may not *care*, but that's not to say that we won't be willing to >read about it. From the above couplet, I conclude that some of us want to read about your sex life, Tasha, and some of us don't. Unless you can give us an unimaginatively appealing appetizer, I'll remain in the second camp. SignatureRegards, Chuck Riggs Near Dublin, Ireland On Jan 25, 12:57 am, "Tasha Miller" <tashamill...@gEEEmail.com.invalid> wrote: > I'm hoping some of you good people will be able to help me with a small > marital problem I am having with my husband. I'm afraid that if he continues [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > pronounce "Ligny" and whether I am going to have to bake my darling > something rich and chocolatey in apology. Wikipedia says Ligny is in the municipality of Sombreffe, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ligny and "Sombreffe is a Walloon municipality located [sic] in the Belgian province of Namur." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sombreffe They give a link to Sombreffe's official Web site, but "Nous sommes désolés, mais le site est en travaux. Dans les prochaines semaines, une nouvelle version sera opérationnelle." http://www.sombreffe.be/ -- Jerry Friedman "jerry_friedman@yahoo.com" <jerry_friedman@yahoo.com> >On Jan 25, 12:57 am, "Tasha Miller" >> So I would like to know both how a Belgian and an educated Briton would each >> pronounce "Ligny" and whether I am going to have to bake my darling >> something rich and chocolatey in apology. > >Wikipedia says Ligny is in the municipality of Sombreffe, [...] >They give a link to Sombreffe's official Web site, but > >"Nous sommes désolés, mais le site est en travaux. Dans les prochaines >semaines, une nouvelle version sera opérationnelle." I've known for many years that francophones desolate rather easily, but I still can't explain how it happens. SignaturePaul On Jan 25, 12:57 am, "Tasha Miller" <tashamill...@gEEEmail.com.invalid> wrote: > I'm hoping some of you good people will be able to help me with a small > marital problem I am having with my husband. I'm afraid that if he [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > pronounce "Ligny" and whether I am going to have to bake my darling > something rich and chocolatey in apology. Wikipedia says Ligny is in the municipality of Sombreffe, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ligny Ligny was the Empereur's last victory. > <jerry_friedman@yahoo.com> wrote in message > [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > Ligny was the Empereur's last victory. Indeed. My husband is desolated that the last time we were wandering around Waterloo and Quatre Bras we didn't have time to 'do' Ligny, as well. But never mind, it's on his list for next time. > [ ... ] > "Nous sommes désolés, mais le site est en travaux. Dans les prochaines > semaines, une nouvelle version sera opérationnelle." It's almost a completely reliable rule: sites that say they are under construction aren't. Signatureathel > So I would like to know both how a Belgian and an educated Briton would each > pronounce "Ligny" and whether I am going to have to bake my darling > something rich and chocolatey in apology. I would pronounce it "Linyee". http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Ligny suggests I'm pretty close. The 'g' is not hard. SignatureLinz Wet Yorks via Cambridge, York, London and Watford My accent may vary |
Reply to this Message |
 Sign In
 Join
 My Latest Posts My Monitored Threads My Blog My Photo Gallery My Profile My Homepage Start New Thread Enable EMail Alerts Rate this Thread
|
©2012 Advenet LLC Privacy Policy - Terms of Use
This website includes both content owned or controlled by Advenet as well as content owned or controlled by third parties.