pronun. of "Medvedev" - a solution

[John Langran]

This transliteration business is a nightmare, especially here in the UK 
where there are so many regional accents. We could discuss it until the cows 
come home. The obvious thing to do is to set up a web page for journalists 
etc to help them pronounce the important names. I'll start work on something 
like this in the next couple of weeks and will let colleagues know when it 
is ready. Then each time there is a new difficult to pronounce tennis player 
etc I can add to the page. If any native speakers (one male one female) 
would like to send me sound files for Dmitrii Anatol'evich Medvedyev to 
start off with, that would be excellent, thanks in advance. Please send off 
list to john at ruslan.co.uk

John Langran
www.ruslan.co.uk


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Emily Saunders" <emilka at MAC.COM>
To: <SEELANGS at BAMA.UA.EDU>
Sent: Sunday, March 02, 2008 6:59 PM
Subject: Re: [SEELANGS] FW: [SEELANGS] pronun. of "Medvedev" (cont.)


>I must disagree.  When I read the bit below with standard US English 
>pronunciation I get the awkward way radio announcers are currently 
>pronouncing his name.  Our short "e" is just not the same "yeh" sound  that 
>you get when a stressed Russian "e" is followed by a soft  consonant. 
>(Witness the difference in pronunciation between est' and  est -- есть и 
>ест.)
>
> I would propose the following:
>
> Mid-VEH-dyiff
> Mid-VAY-dyiff
>
> Or
>
> Med-VEH-def
> Med-VAY-def
>
> How one renders the first and final syllables is pretty much a toss-up 
> since they get reduced anyway.
>
> Regards,
>
> Emily Saunders
>
>
> On Mar 2, 2008, at 10:32 AM, Jerry Katsell wrote:
>
>> Here's another vote for "med - VED - yeff," with which I think  ordinary
>> folks possessing no Russian could with reasonable approximation
>> pronounce the name Medvedev.
>>
>
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