Query: dialectal pronunciation of the type "EYE-talian" for "Italian"

[Ben Zimmer]

On "I-raq"/"I-ran", see:

http://americanspeech.dukejournals.org/content/85/1/91.abstract
http://americanspeech.dukejournals.org/content/86/2/179.abstract
http://chronicle.com/blogs/linguafranca/2012/09/25/eye-rate-about-eye-ran/

("Eye-talian" and "Ay-rab" mentioned in the last one.)


On Sun, Sep 22, 2013 at 8:03 PM, ADSGarson O'Toole wrote:
>
> Wilson Gray wrote
>> In the spoken intro to his 1973 record, Don't You Worry About a Thing,
>> Stevie Wonder uses - indeed, *says* - "I-Ran an' I-Rack."
>>
>> He also uses "chevareh" ['tSEv at rE], which I thought was just a noise that
>> he had made up. It turns out that it's real Spanglish slang, based on
>> "Chevrolet."
>
> Here is a youtube link to "Don't You Worry 'Bout A Thing" Stevie Wonder (1973)
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOz3p6k5O2g
>
> Below is an excerpt from the message of the person who posted the
> video and transcribed part of Stevie Wonder's introductory words:
>
> [Begin excerpt]
> "'Cause like I been to, y'know, Paris, Beirut, y'know, I mean, uh,
> Iraq, Iran, Eurasia . . . y'know I speak very, very, um fluent Spanish
> -- 'Todo 'stá bien chévere'
> [End excerpt]

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