# Palestinian Pronunciation Limitation

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palestinian-pronunciation-limitation/276116>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [November 22, 2004, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palestinian-pronunciation-limitation/276116 "2004-11-22T15:21:37Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9fc348/32.png) [@The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Flying_Dutchman)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2004, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palestinian-pronunciation-limitation/276116/1 "2004-11-22T15:21:37Z")

</div>

Is it true that Palestinians have difficulty in pronouncing the letter P ?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2004, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palestinian-pronunciation-limitation/276116/2 "2004-11-22T15:24:04Z")

</div>

Is there some dialect of Arabic specific to Palestinians?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\
**Post date:** [November 22, 2004, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palestinian-pronunciation-limitation/276116/3 "2004-11-22T15:27:38Z")

</div>

All Arabic-speakers have difficulty with the Anglo ‘P’ and ‘B.’ In Arabic there is only one combined sound. They have problems hearing it and saying it.

Palestinians have an identifiable dialect. (Among amusing things, they use nonstandard names for the months of the year.)

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![rippingtons\_fan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rippingtons_fan/32/11767_2.png) [@rippingtons\_fan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rippingtons_fan)\
**Post date:** [November 28, 2004, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palestinian-pronunciation-limitation/276116/4 "2004-11-28T00:53:23Z")

</div>

When Palestinians use many words that begin with a “p”, they use “f” in many cases, so they would say Falastinian. To say “I’m Palestinian” they would say “'ana falastiini”.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![clairobscur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\
**Post date:** [November 28, 2004, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palestinian-pronunciation-limitation/276116/5 "2004-11-28T01:22:58Z")

</div>

Try to pronounce alternatively and at a short interval the letter “p” and the letter “b”. Listen attentively to the sound and pay attention to the mouvements of your mouth. You’ll probably notice that these sounds are _extremely_ similar.

There’s no letter for “p” in arabic.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![PaulFitzroy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/2acd7d/32.png) [@PaulFitzroy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PaulFitzroy)\
**Post date:** [November 28, 2004, 6:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palestinian-pronunciation-limitation/276116/6 "2004-11-28T06:01:02Z")

</div>

When you hear it pronounced in the Arabic way, it’s much more clear that the term originated from “Philistina” (which Judea was renamed by the Roman Emperor Hadrian after the destruction of the Second Temple.) Obviously since “Philistine” begins with a P, Westerners have Anglicized it into Palestine which it is called now.