How did he pronounce Laos? Like louse?
I missed “guerilla”, but I did get the three countries. Two of them came to me right away, and the third took a few seconds.
Yes, he did.
“Guerilla” is literally “warrior”. And I don’t see how knowing that the Peninsular Wars were in Spain would help, given that the clue also says that the word is Spanish.
I got Spain, Greece, and France, in that order. Dunno why it took me longer to think of France than the others.
Now that I think about it, I’d definitely pronounce Laos with two syllables. It’s got two vowels.
Spain has two vowels also.
Laos is always pronounced “louse” in my experience.
Spain has a diphtong, which is still one syllable.
In Laos, I’d tend to separate the vowels into two syllables, but louse with the diphtong is an acceptable pronunciation according to Wikipedia.
Anyway, the question is an old chestnut, but typically the three European countries are given and you have to guess Chad (or Laos).
I also have always pronounced it ‘louse’.
And I got France and Spain immediately, but couldn’t think of Greece. As I stated earlier, I was (and am) ashamed of not being able to come up with the complete answer.
Wait! Spain has three syllables!
Es Pan Ya
Greece has two.
Slly American-centric questions!
Spain has a dipthong.
(As noted above.)
I don’t think I’ve ever heard Laos pronounced louse.
The official name of Laos (in English) is “Lao People’s Democratic Republic”. 
To my ears, “Laos” has two syllables. It’s not quite the same as “louse,” more like “La-ose” than an actual dipthong.
How do you pronounce Laos with two syllables? Lay-ohs? I have never heard that. Every time I have ever heard the name spoken it’s rhymed with mouse.
I checked multiple resources. Both pronunciations are acceptable, but the consensus is that 2 syllables is more preferred than 1 syllable.
I’ve only ever heard “Laos” with one syllable. “Laotian”, however, has three; so the ‘a’ and ‘o’ can be distinct.
As for me, I pronounce it LAH-os. Short “a”.
This. I remember, back during the latter years of the Viet Nam war, we heard about Laos quite often, and it was always pronounced this way, NEVER rhyming with “mouse.”
[quote=“panache45, post:1517, topic:832696, full:true”]
Hmm. My memory is the exact opposite.
FWIW, this Trip Savvy article says: The correct way to say “Laos” is the same as “louse” (rhymes with blouse). Merriam Webster Online does give two alternate pronunciations, but the first listed, and the only sound clip says “Louse”.
And of course, the true reality is that syllables are not actually discrete countable things, and it’s possible to have a verbal sound that’s somewhere in between one and two syllables.
I trust someone that lived there:
A landlocked country between Viet Nam and Thailand. population 4.7 million.
The first time he says it it sounds like say it “LAH-os”. Very little distinction between the syllables. (Though the second sounds more like “Louse”.)
Espana strill has three, and Hella has two, no doubt there.