# Famous names you mispronounced for the longest time **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 5, 2016, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973 "2016-03-05T02:34:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2016, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973/101 "2016-03-09T20:09:29Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > SEE o ban. Three syllables. Shivon makes nae sense. It makes perfect sense in Gaelic. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2016, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973/102 "2016-03-09T20:25:46Z")
> [@drad\_dog](#): > > Isn’t this impossible? There needs to be an accent on the first as well for that to work. I just tried to say it without any accent on the first three and it sounded very pretentious. The main stress is indeed on the last syllable, but yes, there is secondary stress on the first syllable: AIR - uh - go - **NAISS** ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2016, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973/103 "2016-03-09T21:11:52Z")
> [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > Looks like Arnold mentioned plo(w/ugh)man in a Letterman interview, but I can’t verify right now. I remember seeing this. It was on Arsenio Hall’s first show back in the 90s. As I recall, Schwarzenegger told Arsenio that his name means “the black ploughman” in English. Hall threw his arms around Arnold and exclaimed, “Brother!” ---
**Author:** ![edwards\_beard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7bcc69/32.png) [@edwards\_beard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/edwards_beard)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2016, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973/104 "2016-03-09T21:24:22Z")
Gbenga Akinnagbe Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje Emilie de Ravin Yeardley Smith John Candy ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2016, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973/105 "2016-03-09T22:12:50Z")
I haven’t heard these stars say their own names, but I have read “here’s how you pronounce them” references in rags like Entertainment Weekly: > [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > And some I’m lost on. How do you pronounce: > > Chiwetel Ejiofor > Djimon Hounsou > Gabourey Sidibe CHEW-eh-tell EJ-ee-oh-fer DIME-un HUN-sue GAB-or-ay SID-uh-bay I clearly remember pronunciation guides for Chiwetel and Gabourey, but not so much for Djimon. It’s possible I’m saying his name wrong. (I would have written GA-bor-ay SI-duh-bay but I couldn’t figure out how to convey the first vowel sounds in each name properly.) ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2016, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973/106 "2016-03-09T22:21:59Z")
> [@edwards\_beard](#): > > John Candy YAW-gun kin-DAY. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2016, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973/107 "2016-03-09T22:22:37Z")
Too late to edit, I should have started Ejiofor with EDGE instead of EJ. ---
**Author:** ![ekedolphin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ekedolphin/32/10003_2.png) [@ekedolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekedolphin)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2016, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973/108 "2016-03-09T22:25:37Z")
I pronounced Zooey Deschanel’s name as “ZOO-ee desch-ANN-el”, instead of “ZO-ee DASH-en-el”. I pronounced Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s last name as “AB-DUL-jabb-er” instead of “AAB-dool-JAA-bar”. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2016, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973/109 "2016-03-09T22:37:01Z")
> [@EllisDee](#): > > DIME-un HUN-sue > > […] > > for Djimon. It’s possible I’m saying his name wrong. You are. There’s a lot of inconsistency in how the vowels are pronounced, and I’ve never seen the man himself pronounce it, so I don’t know which variants he prefers\*, **but** … The ‘dj’ is pronounced ‘j’, not ‘d’. (See also: Django.) - I would assume Jee-mon, but Jai-mən is common enough to make me wonder. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2016, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973/110 "2016-03-09T23:03:55Z")
> [@edwards\_beard](#): > > Yeardley Smith This one is not pronounced as it looks? To rhyme with _weirdly_? For me, Samuel Pepys. How do you get _Peeps_ from that!? Should be _Peppis_ dammit. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2016, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973/111 "2016-03-09T23:20:58Z")
> [@Kamino\_Neko](#): > > - I would assume Jee-mon, but Jai-mən is common enough to make me wonder. Wikipedia gives (in IPA not phonetic) the latter for how his name is normally pronounced in the US, and the former for French (basically). J as in jump in both cases. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2016, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973/112 "2016-03-09T23:39:48Z")
> [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > This one is not pronounced as it looks? To rhyme with _weirdly_? No, Yeardley is YARD-lee. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2016, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973/113 "2016-03-09T23:42:10Z")
Here’s one I don’t know: Zeljko Ivanek. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2016, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973/114 "2016-03-09T23:48:05Z")
> [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > Wikipedia gives (in IPA not phonetic) the latter for how his name is normally pronounced in the US, and the former for French (basically). J as in jump in both cases. Yeah. That’s why I would assume the Beninese Housou would prefer Jeemon…but the fact that Jaimən is so popular in English despite Housou being probably the only Djimon most English speakers have ever heard of makes me wonder. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2016, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973/115 "2016-03-10T00:07:04Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > Here’s one I don’t know: Zeljko Ivanek. > [@Kamino\_Neko](#): > > Yeah. That’s why I would assume the Beninese Housou would prefer Jeemon…but the fact that Jaimən is so popular in English despite Housou being probably the only Djimon most English speakers have ever heard of makes me wonder. Zhelko Ee-vahn-uk Zh as the s in “pleasure” or “vision.” Optional: L as in the “lli” in “million” in some accents V sound here is rare in English, but the regular v is an approximation > [@Kamino\_Neko](#): > > Yeah. That’s why I would assume the Beninese Housou would prefer Jeemon…but the fact that Jaimən is so popular in English despite Housou being probably the only Djimon most English speakers have ever heard of makes me wonder. I like Djimon mustard. Jamən is what Michael Jackson said all the time. ---
**Author:** ![chizzuk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e36b37/32.png) [@chizzuk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chizzuk)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2016, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973/116 "2016-03-10T05:42:05Z")
Nicolae Ceausescu. Turns out it’s “Nikolai Chow-SHESS-koo” but I think I learned each part of that at a different time. Not that it matters much because on the very rare occasions he comes up in conversation, I usually have to try about 5 different pronunciations before hitting on one the other person recognizes. I think I was a full season into the Hawaii Five-0 reboot before I learned that the lead actor, Alex O’Loughlin, pronounces his last name as “O-Lock-lin” and not “O-Loff-lin.” ---
**Author:** ![magnusblitz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@magnusblitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magnusblitz)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2016, 6:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973/117 "2016-03-10T06:52:55Z")
For a long time I would confuse and swap pronouncations for David Bowie (rhymes with row-ee) and Jim Bowie (boo-ee). ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2016, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973/118 "2016-03-10T14:37:04Z")
> [@chizzuk](#): > > I think I was a full season into the Hawaii Five-0 reboot before I learned that the lead actor, Alex O’Loughlin, pronounces his last name as “O-Lock-lin” and not “O-Loff-lin.” I didn’t know that until know. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2016, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973/119 "2016-03-10T17:56:30Z")
> [@Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](#): > > This is from Joan Baez’s autobiography: > > _"I gave Time a long-winded explanation of the pronunciation of my name which came out wrong, was printed wrong in Time magazine, and has been pronounced wrong ever since. It’s not “Buy-ezz”; it’s more like “Bize,” but never mind. The French pronounce it “Bayz,” which (phonetically speaking) is the present tense of the verb baiser, which in slang means “to fornicate.”_ Except that “baise” is pronounced more like “bez,” if not exactly like “bez.” It’s not an “ay” sound in there. ---
**Author:** ![psychonaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psychonaut/32/4655_2.png) [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2016, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973/120 "2016-03-10T17:57:31Z")
Until recently I had no idea that Jim Croce was of Italian origin, and so I rhymed his surname with “gross”. I’m kind of scared of even _trying_ to say “Jane Kaczmarek” for fear of mispronunciation. (The transcription given in her Wikipedia entry is for the original Polish, which isn’t necessarily how she says it.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-names-you-mispronounced-for-the-longest-time/747973.md?page=7)