Glamis

[Robert Kelly]

the only pronunciation (other than the spelling-pronunciation you mention)
I've heard is /gla:mz/, one syllable.  I've heard it often, from Scots and
older English folk.  But nowadays you hear Fotheringay just as spelled,
and Shrewsbury with the vowel of Tuesday on the BBC where one grew up
trying to get the 'authentic' pronunciation right as /fungei/ and
/Sro:zbri/.  Interesting, if nobody uses the pronunciation, how authentic
is it?  I gather Ulverston is as spelled nowadays, whereas fifteen years
ago people round the town said /u:st at n/.  So probably the
spelling-pronunciations will take over. Is it a sinister side effect of
grammatology....?


RK


On Thu, 7 Oct 1999, William H. Smith wrote:

> Does anyone know the "correct" (i.e. Scottish) pronunciation of "Glamis" (as
> in _Macbeth_)?  My sense is [glaemIs], but I have no idea why; the spelling
> indicates [glemIs].  If my sense is correct, why is it?
> On a similar subject, what about the lax stressed vowel in words like
> "finish"?  Was it laxed because when borrowed the stress was on the second
> syllable (French "finisse") and thus laxed, and later anglicized?
>