Lafayette pronunciation

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Originally Posted by Hooj_Cajun_Fan

_ I just came back from France. What I say is not ridiculous.

It's a different dialect. It's like saying that someone from England sounds the same as someone from America, they simply don't. Especially someone from the Yorkshire region of England, alot of those guys we would barely be able to understand.

The Cajun people were separated from France for hundreds of years. Over that time the dialect changed, words had to be invented, and pronunciations changed due to English and Spanish influences...among other things. _

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All of that is true enough, but it has nothing to do with why people from Lafayette pronounce the city's name as Laugh-a-yette. That short A sound does not exist in the French language--be it in France or Cankton. You're in way over your head here.

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Originally Posted by Membertou

The irony is ask someone from Lafayette where they are from and they'll say "Laugh-a-yette"--no french pronounciation at all.

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And down here we pronounce it laugh-e-ette. And that comes directly from our Cajun French accent and language, which is different from the French you spoke in France.



igeaux.mobi

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Originally Posted by Membertou

_ All of that is true enough, but it has nothing to do with why people from Lafayette pronounce the city's name as Laugh-a-yette. That short A sound does not exist in the French language--be it in France or Cankton. You're in way over your head here. _

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The way we pronounce Lafayette has absolutely nothing to do with what sounds are in the French language. However, it has everything to do with how our French language has translated over to English in the form of our Cajun English accent. Becuase the short A was not in the French language it is a bit different in our dialect, or accent, of English.

I've had a Cajun accent for a good while now. I'm not in "way" over my head. There's no reason to flex your muscles man. I'm just trying to have a discussion. No reason to try and be-little anyone else.

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Originally Posted by Hooj_Cajun_Fan

_ The way we pronounce Lafayette has absolutely nothing to do with what sounds are in the French language. However, it has everything to do with how our French language has translated over to English in the form of our Cajun English accent. Becuase the short A was not in the French language it is a bit different in our dialect, or accent, of English.

I've had a Cajun accent for a good while now. I'm not in "way" over my head. There's no reason to flex your muscles man. I'm just trying to have a discussion. No reason to try and be-little anyone else. _

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I grew up in rural north Lafayette Parish. French is my first language. My degree is in English. Lafayette pronounced "Laugh-a-yette" uses English, not French, not Cajun-English, but just plain old English phonetics. You're just plain wrong. There isn't anything wrong with the way we pronounce Lafayette, its the proper English way to pronounce it. I've just always found it ironic that most Americans pronounce the city's name using French phonetics, and the natives pronounce it using English phonetics. (an incidentally, in Cajun-French, Lafayette is pronounced exactly the same way its pronounced in Paris. The accent may be different, but the phonetics are identical.)

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Originally Posted by Membertou

_ I grew up in rural north Lafayette Parish. French is my first language. My degree is in English. Lafayette pronounced "Laugh-a-yette" uses English, not French, not Cajun-English, but just plain old English phonetics. You're just plain wrong. There isn't anything wrong with the way we pronounce Lafayette, its the proper English way to pronounce it. I've just always found it ironic that most Americans pronounce the city's name using French phonetics, and the natives pronounce it using English phonetics. (an incidentally, in Cajun-French, Lafayette is pronounced exactly the same way its pronounced in Paris. The accent may be different, but the phonetics are identical.) _

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Congrats on your English degree, and congrats on speaking French you are the man...but chill dude.

Again, no reason to flex your muscles. No reason to talk down to anyone. I was just trying to have a discussion.

Sorry for jacking the thread everyone. I apologize.

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Originally Posted by Membertou

_ All of that is true enough, but it has nothing to do with why people from Lafayette pronounce the city's name as Laugh-a-yette. That short A sound does not exist in the French language--be it in France or Cankton. You're in way over your head here. _

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Sure, the short a exists in French: gaz, pâte. Even 'Place de la Concorde'; supposedly Place has the 'ah' sound, but when I listen closely to the French it sounds to me like the the first 'a' in the American pronunciation of Lafayette. (Well, sometimes like the American pronunciation. Oxford MS is in Luh FAYE ut county.)

I think you guys are arguing about different things. Cajun pronunciations are different from 'hexagonal' pronunciations, as are Quebecois, Caribbean French, and African French pronunciations, and numerous others. Heck, I've visited with people from different parts of France, and even the regional dialects can be wild (I had a guy who kept talking about 'paguis', or so I thought; it was 'Paris').

Nevertheless, the Cajuns pronounce Lafayette very similarly to the French... sometimes. I've observed Cajuns changing the pronunciation depending on whether they're speaking French or English, and depending on to whom they are speaking.

Yall do realize that Lafayette is a City in multiple states of America right?
Such as Indiana, Georgia, Colorado, just to name a few. I wonder how they pronounce it?

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Originally Posted by raginWaldo

_ Yall do realize that Lafayette is a City in multiple states of America right?
Such as Indiana, Georgia, Colorado, just to name a few. I wonder how they pronounce it? _

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I work with a guy that went to Purdue in West Lafayette, Indiana. He pronounces it Laugh-eye-ette. I'm from Pont Breaux, I pronounce it Laugh-ee-ette. As in, "Shake dat laffy taffy..ooohhh" haha

in Oxford, we live in la-fay ette county the rednecks in the country say laafet

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Originally Posted by CajunFun

_ Sure, the short a exists in French: gaz, pâte. Even 'Place de la Concorde'; supposedly Place has the 'ah' sound, but when I listen closely to the French it sounds to me like the the first 'a' in the American pronunciation of Lafayette. (Well, sometimes like the American pronunciation. Oxford MS is in Luh FAYE ut county.)

I think you guys are arguing about different things. Cajun pronunciations are different from 'hexagonal' pronunciations, as are Quebecois, Caribbean French, and African French pronunciations, and numerous others. Heck, I've visited with people from different parts of France, and even the regional dialects can be wild (I had a guy who kept talking about 'paguis', or so I thought; it was 'Paris').

Nevertheless, the Cajuns pronounce Lafayette very similarly to the French... sometimes. I've observed Cajuns changing the pronunciation depending on whether they're speaking French or English, and depending on to whom they are speaking. _

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Back to the Muses, Fun. .... the worst in New Orleans is Clio ...

Pronounced by the locals as C L ten. [Street signs are all caps: hence CLIO]