In the near future I will have to greet someone who has the surname of Tzou, but I have no idea how to pronounce it. I’ve lived my entire life in Washington State, so I have a neutral American accent, and would appreciate it if someone could give me an idea how to pronounce this name. Unfortunately, I have no one else to ask, and will of course simply ask the person if I don’t get an answer, but I’d prefer to get it right (or at least close) in the first place. Google has been very unhelpful.
It’s almost certainly pronounced similar to ‘Joe’, but it would help to confirm that if you know what his heritage is - what part of China or the Chinese diaspora. If his family have been in the US for a while it could be anything, for example.
I was afraid of something like that. My guess was “Chow”. This person is a woman who was educated (college and beyond, at least) in and is working in the US, and I suspect was raised in the US. That’s all I’ve got to go on. Thanks for the clue.
I always thought it was “tsow”, like tsunami pow, but it probably depends on where she’s from and whether she speaks Mandarin or Cantonese, etc.
How about “Good to meet you, Miss – is it Tzou?” If she’s American, I doubt she’ll take much offense. If she’s Chinese, she’ll still pretend not to while secretly thinking you’re an idiot, but you’d probably be none the wiser anyway so what’s the loss? If she turns out to be some sort of strange Vietnamese-Ethiopian mutt, well, welcome to America.
No, it doesn’t. “Tz” or “ts” is never pronounced as it looks to English-speakers when it’s a Chinese word - and “Tzou” is almost certainly Chinese.
I had a guy behind a bar in England offer me a “tuh-sing tay-oh” beer once. I regret to say it grated so much I couldn’t help but correct him. Tsingtao = (roughly) ching-dow = Green Island.
ETA: it isn’t pinyin. Hence my question about roots. Here’s my reasoning: non-pinyin transliterations are usually a) via Ellis Island and thus far from their roots, b) from the 19th-20th century diaspora, mainly from southern China and thus more likely Canto, Hakka or Fujianese, who settled in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Hong Kong, etc. In the latter case, the non-standard spelling in English letters would likely have been fixed by the colonial powers at the time of the emigrant’s ancestor’s arrival.
I presume you missed my second post agreeing with you?
However, as for the “never pronounced like it looks to an English speaker” part, I have to disagree. The name game can get tedious for some immigrants or their descendants and sometimes it’s easier for them to just assume the American pronunciation even if it isn’t technically accurate. The woman may or may not feel any particular attachment to the “authentic” pronunciation, especially if she was born in America.
Take a look at a list of common Chinese surnames: “Lee” isn’t pronounced the way most Americans see it, neither is Chang, Chen, Yang, etc., but they’re so commonly butchered that IME people tend to just accept the alternate pronunciations.
True, this is just personal experience and not researched data, but FWIW I’m of Chinese descent with a Chinese surname, I grew up among other ethnic Chinese, and we all lived among English speakers who couldn’t pronounce our names. After a while it just wasn’t worth the effort and people trying (and continually failing) to get the technically-correct pronunciation is more annoying than flattering. It’s a useless, silly formality and a waste of time for both of us.
Besides, the phenomenon is hardly limited to Chinese people or even Asians in general. I have Latina, German, etc. friends who routinely tell people the Americanized versions of their names just because it’s easier.
Exactly. If the woman doesn’t care, she’ll just give it to you Americanized. If she places special emphasis on pronouncing it the “right” way, well, you’ll know how she wants it.
And again I erred - my Ellis Island comment was meant to clarify that an Nth generation immigrant to the US could pronounce it in any number of Americanised ways. But I missed the mark by using the word “never” with respect to ‘authentic’ pronunciation.
If she turns out to be some sort of strange Vietnamese-Ethiopian mutt, well, welcome to America.