# Pronunciation of Colin Powell **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 21, 2003, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-of-colin-powell/163070 "2003-03-21T12:22:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![DrNick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f6c823/32.png) [@DrNick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrNick)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-of-colin-powell/163070/1 "2003-03-21T12:22:36Z")
In America, is Colin pronounced ‘Coe-lin’ for for all Colins , or just Mr Powell? Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-of-colin-powell/163070/2 "2003-03-21T12:28:18Z")
In a better world than this, it’s pronounced “President”. ---
**Author:** ![ChalkPit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a88e4f/32.png) [@ChalkPit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChalkPit)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-of-colin-powell/163070/3 "2003-03-21T12:32:23Z")
I have noticed that some newsreaders and political commentators in UK, have started to drop the coe-lin bit and just say col-in. Coe-lin sounds somewhat more impressive dont you think ? ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-of-colin-powell/163070/4 "2003-03-21T12:33:59Z")
I’ve only ever heard it pronounced ‘Coh-lin’ for Powell. If it were me, I’d prefer the standard pronunciation over the digestive track version, but HMMY. ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-of-colin-powell/163070/5 "2003-03-21T12:36:35Z")
Make that HMMV (His Milage May Vary) :o ---
**Author:** ![yojimbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yojimbo/32/232_2.png) [@yojimbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yojimbo)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-of-colin-powell/163070/6 "2003-03-21T12:44:12Z")
I asked the same question over at Fathom during one of the outages here. [http://fff.fathom.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=13160](http://fff.fathom.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=13160) **Fretful Porpentine** came up with what looks like the answer > [@](#): > > From the Washington Post: > Powell’s parents, Jamaican immigrants and subjects of the British empire, pronounced their son’s name KAH-lin. But Powell’s childhood friends in the South Bronx, impressed by the heroic exploits of World War II flyer Colin P. Kelly Jr. (known as KOH-lin), altered the pronunciation and its been KOH-lin Powell ever since. **jjimm** 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-of-colin-powell/163070/7 "2003-03-21T13:17:03Z")
For everyone’s information, my RL name does _not_ rhyme with colon. ---
**Author:** ![ratatoskK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ratatoskk/32/2987_2.png) [@ratatoskK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ratatoskK)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-of-colin-powell/163070/8 "2003-03-21T20:19:49Z")
Generally it would be pronounced CAH-lin. Colin Powell is the only person I’ve ever heard of who pronounces it COE-lin. God knows why anyone would prefer to have it pronounced that way. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2003, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-of-colin-powell/163070/9 "2003-03-22T05:36:55Z")
It should be noted that Colin is a distinctly rarer name in the U.S. than it is in the U.K. ---
**Author:** ![Philosophocles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b38774/32.png) [@Philosophocles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philosophocles)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2003, 6:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-of-colin-powell/163070/10 "2003-03-22T06:26:47Z")
You would have to eat 25,000 bowls of Corn Flakes to get the fiber in one bowl of Colon Blow. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Ender\_Will](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/eb9ed0/32.png) [@Ender\_Will](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ender_Will)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2003, 8:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-of-colin-powell/163070/11 "2003-03-22T08:19:41Z")
You know, in all the years I’ve been hearing of Colin “COE-lin” Powell, I’ve never thought about the body part homonym. Now I will have permanent mnemonic link. AAAAARGH! Why must you torment me so!??!? And **Philosophocles** , what about new Super Colon Blow? ---
**Author:** ![istara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e79b87/32.png) [@istara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/istara)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2003, 11:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-of-colin-powell/163070/12 "2003-03-22T11:03:49Z")
I keep thinking “Colon Bowel”. Most unfortunate. ---
**Author:** ![ratatoskK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ratatoskk/32/2987_2.png) [@ratatoskK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ratatoskK)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2003, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-of-colin-powell/163070/13 "2003-03-22T15:59:20Z")
My son calls him “COE-lin Polyp.”