# European royal crown made of aluminum?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/european-royal-crown-made-of-aluminum/643490>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [December 9, 2012, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/european-royal-crown-made-of-aluminum/643490 "2012-12-09T05:05:16Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 8\
**Page:** 3

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**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\
**Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/european-royal-crown-made-of-aluminum/643490/42 "2012-12-14T21:53:54Z")

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> [@CalMeacham](#):
>
> I’ve always been amused that people who insist on using “aluminium” for the sake of consistency\* nevertheless insuist on having the pronunciation of “Z” the Odd Man Outr with its eccentric ending, unlike the pronnciation of any other letter.
> 
> \*Yet “platinum” doesn’t bother them.

Consistency arguments don’t really work in either direction. The best (and only necessary) argument is “that’s what we call it here”

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**Author:** ![fumster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e9c0ed/32.png) [@fumster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fumster)\
**Post date:** [December 15, 2012, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/european-royal-crown-made-of-aluminum/643490/43 "2012-12-15T16:54:13Z")

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> [@stui\_magpie](#):
>
> (Z by the way is pronounced “Zed” by the rest of the world, not “Zee”.)

I find it amusing that you would think Americans give a shit about how the rest of the world pronounces something.

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**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\
**Post date:** [December 15, 2012, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/european-royal-crown-made-of-aluminum/643490/44 "2012-12-15T21:30:20Z")

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> [@Fear\_Itself](#):
>
> Oh, the irony.

Mind if I steel that joke?

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**Author:** ![FluffyBob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecb155/32.png) [@FluffyBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FluffyBob)\
**Post date:** [December 16, 2012, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/european-royal-crown-made-of-aluminum/643490/45 "2012-12-16T05:03:04Z")

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[quote=“Shakester, post:13, topic:643490”]

Not “Brits” - the entire world except for the USA (and maybe some Canadians).

The only Canadians that say “aluminium” are first generation British immigrants.

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**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\
**Post date:** [December 16, 2012, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/european-royal-crown-made-of-aluminum/643490/46 "2012-12-16T05:23:57Z")

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Americans will say it as uh-loo-min-um. The Brits make it sound like al-you-min-ee-um. Minor spelling change, but very discordant to American ears. The zed thing is also a little jarring. The pronunciation difference, even between words spelled the same, is much more of difference than spelling alone in the common language that divides us.

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**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\
**Post date:** [December 16, 2012, 11:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/european-royal-crown-made-of-aluminum/643490/47 "2012-12-16T11:15:35Z")

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> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#):
>
> Mind if I steel that joke?

Cut that out, or I’ll call the coppers.

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**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\
**Post date:** [December 16, 2012, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/european-royal-crown-made-of-aluminum/643490/48 "2012-12-16T16:43:54Z")

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Wait! There are aluminum crowns! Here they are!

[http://www.parkell.com/products/402/Aluminum-Crowns---Bicuspid](http://www.parkell.com/products/402/Aluminum-Crowns---Bicuspid)

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**Author:** ![Norse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a9adbd/32.png) [@Norse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Norse)\
**Post date:** [December 16, 2012, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/european-royal-crown-made-of-aluminum/643490/49 "2012-12-16T18:20:05Z")

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> [@Fear\_Itself](#):
>
> Oh, the irony.

My wife prefers goldy (or so she tells me)

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