# Eye-ran? Kiss my grits, Wolfie. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 9, 2002, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500 "2002-12-09T13:50:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Anahita](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a9a28c/32.png) [@Anahita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anahita)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500/1 "2002-12-09T13:50:09Z")
Attention you annoying little man (Wolf Blitzer, CNN correspondent) It’s not NOT NOT pronounced “Eye-ran.” If you’re calling a country out as one of your top three enemies (AoE), then you should probably learn how to pronounce the name of the country. It’s not difficult. I’m sure you can manage. It’s pronounced “ee-rawn” and even if you have difficulty making the ‘r’ sound correctly, it’s better than “eye-ran.” Flock of Seagulls isn’t in it with you. :goes back to avoiding CNN: ---
**Author:** ![lno](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a8b319/32.png) [@lno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lno)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500/2 "2002-12-09T13:53:25Z")
I just call it Persia. Avoids all of those nasty linguistic issues. Now, on with the invasion of Mesopotamia. ---
**Author:** ![tsarina](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f4b2a3/32.png) [@tsarina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tsarina)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500/3 "2002-12-09T14:44:26Z")
_blushes_ I say it that way. But I think I’m one up on the rest of my family in that I don’t say “ay-rab”. What’s REALLY funny is hearing newscasters mangle the pronunciation of “Qatar”. ---
**Author:** ![Gorgon\_Heap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f475e1/32.png) [@Gorgon\_Heap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorgon_Heap)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500/4 "2002-12-09T14:48:42Z")
Indeed. Once we capture their ziggarut, their morale will collapse, leaving us alone to offer Mr. Blitzer as a gift to the gods in a gory ceremony atop the Tower of Babel. ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500/5 "2002-12-09T14:58:56Z")
You mean Istanbul is Constantinople? ---
**Author:** ![Fenris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fenris/32/498_2.png) [@Fenris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fenris)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500/6 "2002-12-09T14:59:45Z")
Nah, sorry I disagree. The correct Amercian pronunciation _is_ eye-ran. I hate it when news announcers dummy up a phony accent for a single word: NPR was terrible about it in the '80s: Neee-haaa-waaaaaah-gwah for example, or Kay-bek instead of Kwuh-bek. It sounds phoney otherwise. Use a consisitant pronunciation throughout the broadcast. Heck, you live in France, do you call the country that keeps invading yours “Deutchland”(sp), “Allamande”(sp) or “Germany”? Fenris ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500/7 "2002-12-09T15:13:59Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by tsarina \* > \*\*What’s REALLY funny is hearing newscasters mangle the pronunciation of “Qatar”. \*\* Yeah! I heard an NPR guy pronounce it _Ka-TAR_ this morning. It’s actually _QA-tur_, as in rhyming with gutter. The Q sound doesn’t exist in English (make it at the very back of your throat), but dammit, I want newsreaders who speak fluent Arabic! I think we might be expecting a little too much from the talking heads on TV. ---
**Author:** ![Anahita](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a9a28c/32.png) [@Anahita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anahita)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500/8 "2002-12-09T15:18:18Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Fenris \* > \*\*Nah, sorry I disagree. The correct Amercian pronunciation _is_ eye-ran. > \*\* Ok, well, guess what? I disagree with you. Why not at least _try_ to pronounce it correctly. I wouldn’t expect you to attempt the ‘r’ sound that is a part of the Persian language, but at least show that you’re making an effort to pronounce it correctly. Frankly, I think it shows a great deal of conceit and ignorance to not bother. Again, I understand some sounds (like the gutteral gh and kh) are difficult to pronounce, but in this case, ‘ee-rawn’ is just as easy to pronounce as ‘eye-ran’ and far more respectful. ---
**Author:** ![gobear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8dc957/32.png) [@gobear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gobear)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500/9 "2002-12-09T15:26:04Z")
Given that **Anahita** is Iranian, I would think that her pronunciation of Iran would take precedence over anyone else’s. C’mon, she’s not asking people to speak Farsi; she hust wants the name of her native land pronounced correctly. Goodness knows that when I live in Louisville KY, I used to get annoyed with people who called it Loo-ee-vill and not the correct Loo-uh-vul. ---
**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 9, 2002, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500/10 "2002-12-09T15:31:43Z")
> [@](#): > > _Originally posted by Fenris \* > Nah, sorry I disagree. The correct **Amercian** pronunciation is eye-ran._\* I’ve never even heard of Amercia, so I’m staying out of this. ---
**Author:** ![Helen\_s\_Eidolon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Helen\_s\_Eidolon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helen_s_Eidolon)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500/11 "2002-12-09T15:32:19Z")
Ha ha ha ha… Sorry **Fenris**. You really lost me at the Quebec thing. I see absolutely no reason for you not to pronounce it like we do. I can understand you wouldn’t want to pronounce it with a heavy jouale accent, but come on. We anglophones up here pronounce it “Ke-bec”, you can, too. Gimme a freakin’ break. Too funny. ---
**Author:** ![Gorgon\_Heap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f475e1/32.png) [@Gorgon\_Heap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorgon_Heap)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500/12 "2002-12-09T15:33:55Z")
It does say in the dictionary thet they are _ee-ron_ and _ee-rock_. I hadn’t actually paid attention to this before because everyone pronounces them differently. I will try to remember this in the future. ---
**Author:** ![Anahita](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a9a28c/32.png) [@Anahita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anahita)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500/13 "2002-12-09T15:38:11Z")
Thanks, **gobear** , that was my point exactly. It’s more just that it makes you look ignorant. BTW, to be fair, when I hear people of ME descent call it Amreeka, I teach them to pronounce it correctly as well. ---
**Author:** ![Fenris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fenris/32/498_2.png) [@Fenris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fenris)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500/14 "2002-12-09T15:39:00Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Anahita \* > \*\*Again, I understand some sounds (like the gutteral gh and kh) are difficult to pronounce, but in this case, ‘ee-rawn’ is just as easy to pronounce as ‘eye-ran’ and far more respectful. \*\* You didn’t answer my question about Germany/Deutchland(sp) or Allemande(sp). Do you refer to it as Deutchland? Why or why not? ---
**Author:** ![Anahita](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a9a28c/32.png) [@Anahita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anahita)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500/15 "2002-12-09T15:40:27Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Fenris \* > \*\*You didn’t answer my question about Germany/Deutchland(sp) or Allemande(sp). Do you refer to it as Deutchland? Why or why not? \*\* Sorry, I’m not French myself. It’s not Deutchland, you are correct. I’m not sure why they call it Allemande, but interestingly enough, it’s also used in Iran. Only the ‘d’ sound at the end isn’t pronounced. ---
**Author:** ![Helen\_s\_Eidolon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Helen\_s\_Eidolon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helen_s_Eidolon)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500/16 "2002-12-09T15:42:48Z")
**Fenris** , there’s a difference between different **words** for a place and different ways to pronounce the same word. ---
**Author:** ![Globe-trotter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/cab0a1/32.png) [@Globe-trotter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Globe-trotter)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500/17 "2002-12-09T15:49:41Z")
**Allemande** means German (female), Allemand for a male. **Allemagne** is Germany. ---
**Author:** ![Soul\_Brother\_Number\_Two](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/soul_brother_number_two/32/3515_2.png) [@Soul\_Brother\_Number\_Two](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soul_Brother_Number_Two)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500/18 "2002-12-09T15:50:36Z")
The Iron Sheik always said EE-RAWN, so I do too. ---
**Author:** ![Anahita](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a9a28c/32.png) [@Anahita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anahita)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500/19 "2002-12-09T15:53:29Z")
**essvee** I had an Iran Sheik notebook for my cooking class. You’ve just resurrected a very odd memory. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Anahita](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a9a28c/32.png) [@Anahita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anahita)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500/20 "2002-12-09T15:54:54Z")
Ir **O** n Sheik of course. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eye-ran-kiss-my-grits-wolfie/141500.md?page=2)