How to say: O. Obasanjo
| 11:30 UK time, Friday, 11 August 2006
A guide to words and names in the news, from Martha Figueroa-Clark of the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Pronunciation Unit.
"Today's pronunciation is .
"Our recommendation is ol-OO-sheg-uu(ng) ob-ASS-an-joh (-ol as in 'olive', -g as in 'get', -j as in 'Jack'), following consultation with the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Hausa Section."
(.)
Comments
Its all a little bit academic dont you think?
Yes. But how do you pronounce "Figueroa-Clark "
Not wanting to split hairs , but the Hausa service isn't the best place to consult on how to pronounce a Yoruba name. There are thousands of Yoruba living and working in London, and I'm sure if you checked, you'd even find some working at the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ!
And as to whether it was academic or not, I bet Craig and Ian would be surprised if a major foreign broadcaster regularly mispronounced the names of leading English public figures
Strange. I saw him taking his oath of office on TV, and I remember hearing s, not sh, and the stress on the last syllable in both words. But maybe I confused stress and tone...
Funny bizzare, the Hausa service is definitely NOT the place to learn pronounciation of Yoruba names - phonetics are totally different. In same way as cockneys and glaswegians do not pronounce alike! C'mon Beeb - like Oj says, talk to your staff with Yoruba heritage & they'll come up with the goods!