Regarding the country Qatar, I have heard the following pronounciations on television:
kuh-TAR, Cutter, Gutter, and guh-TAR.
So, what the dilly?
As it’s an Arabic word, I’d be surprised if the correct pronunciation exists in English.
Well, on NPR, it’s along the lines of cutter, but with more of a short “a,” sort of in between “cut” and “cat.” And if that’s how they do it on NPR…
From a friend stationed in the area:
“gutter”
I suspect many (English-speaking) people mispronounce the name due to the negative connotations of the term in English.
I heard a newscaster the other night say something to the effect of:
“Here in [gutter], or [ka-tar] as some pronounce it…”
The newscaster positively sounded apologetic.
johnson gots it right. It sounds practically the same as “cutter” (Mid-American pronunciation that is, with the final r pronounced).
Make sure the accent goes on the first syllable. Far too many people on the radio say it ca-TARRH, that’s a bad case of runny nose. :rolleyes:
A useful resource for this and other international pronunciation issues is the Voice of America pronunciation guide. Their pronunciation sounds rather like COT-ter.
What kind of wacky transliteration came up with Qatar anyway? Isn’t the goal to come up with something that’s pronounceable in the other language? What does a lone Q at the beginning of a sentence even sound like?
Anyways, if you want to hear it pronounced, Merriam Webster has a definition with audio. (They vote for the k-sound)
All I can think of now is the new mid-season replacement sitcom: Welcome Back, Qatar.
I used to live in the Middle East and I’ve always known it to be pronounced Ka-Tar. I’m English BTW, so that might mean something…
A friend of mine lived there. He pronounces it
Ka-Tar
or Kah-Tar
both a’s are short (as in car) and the emphasis is on Tar.
Hope it helps.
I always thought the “Q” represented a sound that was something like a “k” pronounced further back in the mouth, about as far back as a “g,” but unlike the “g” it is unvoiced. Anyhow, that’s what I thought, hence that’s the reason you get:
Qadafi
Gadafi
Kadafi
And that’s why you may hear “Qatar” as “Gutter” or “Kutter.”
“Q” represents a sound which is not a “g” or a “k,” but given the limitations of the English language, I would say the closest equivalent is the “k” since, like the “q”, it is unvoiced.
pulykamell gots it right. Changing the /q/ to a /g/ is some kind of dialectal pronunciation. Imagine instructing a visiting Arabian journalist to say “Californ-eye-ay” or “Illinoize”.