Discussion Groups / British English / February 2005

Well, no.  The Americans use a pronunciation as if it were a word in the
English language, rather than a French one.  (And they say "Loo-" rather
than "Lyoo-".)  Or else they may be using an archaic naval pronunciation.

I've forgotten the real explanation, but how would you pronounce in Flemish
if it were spelt "Lievtenant"?

Wikipedia says according to www.answers.com quote

The word is pronounced loo-tenant in American English and usually lef-tenant
in British English. The Royal Navy, however, traditionally pronounce the
word as l'tenant which is a closer anglicised approximation of the original
French.

In Canada, lef-tenant is standard for all branches of the Armed Forces and
for other usages such as lieutenant governor or Quebec lieutenant.

The British pronunciation is prevalent during 14th and 15th centuries with
the word being variously spelled as lieftenant, lyeftenant or luftenant. It
may have originated from a mistaken reading of the 'u' as a 'v', lev-tenant
eventually becoming lef-tenant. Some sources state that the original French
word lieu had an alternative form spelt and pronounced lieuf, and that the
modern British English form retains the former spelling and the latter
pronunciation.

It has also been speculated that it may have come from a fanciful etymology
which associated it with the verb 'to leave', as the lieutenant only took up
his duties once his superior officer had 'left'.

Another theory comes from the fact that in typical propriety the person or
persons standing to the rear-left of a gentleman held power and were
typically those directly second to him. The person or persons standing to
the rear-right were considered to have no or less standing than those to the
rear-left, such as aides, bodyguards, wives, etc., often holding this
position for simple facility rather than societal importance. This tradition
remains in military parades, with lieutenants standing to the rear-left of
the commanding officer (when facing the advance.) unquote

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Noel