Learn English – Pronunciation of foreign words by foreign speakers

frenchpronunciation

I've used English for a long time and it isn't immediately obvious to others that I'm native French. Whenever I say a French word or place name in English I wonder whether I should pronounce it like English or French speakers would. (Of course I always use English pronunciation for common place names like Paris.) Using French pronunciation can sound pretentious, but English pronunciation can too, especially if part of the audience speaks French and knows that I am native French.

This question is similar. My question focuses on native French speakers that speak in English to an audience of both English and French natives. Which pronunciation draws less attention?

Best Answer

I'd recommend the following strategy:

  • For place names that actually have an anglicised name, always use that ("Paris", "Normandy", "Brittany", "Brussels", "The Dordogne");
  • For place names that are well-known in England, if your pronunciation of English generally is fairly proficient, then try to "anglicise" your pronunciation a little, e.g. by pronouncing "Marseille(s)" and "Lourdes" without a French 'r' and moving the vowels a little closer to their English counterparts;
  • For place names with alternative pronunciations in French where English speakers tend towards one of the pronunciations, try to notice which one tends to be used in English and use that, even if it's not the pronunciation used by inhabitants of that town. So for example, English speakers tens to be used to pronouncing "Chamonix" without the final [ks], or to pronouncing "Metz" with its "German" pronunciation [mEts] (whereas actual inhabitants of the town don't usually pronounce the 't').
  • Subtly, consider adopting "mispronounced" versions of names that are commonly used by English speakers. For example, English speakers tend to pronounce "Bayeux" with [be-] rather than [ba-] at the start and commonly omit the final [s] of "Saint-Saëns" (either as the town or the composer) when they come across it-- not because these towns really have "English" names as such, just that English speakers commonly mispronounce them when attempting to call them by their "French" name;
  • For lesser known place names, where English speakers aren't used to hearing the name pronounced either with an "English" or "French" accent, I would suggest just adopting the French pronunciation without trying to give it an "English accent".
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