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AIBU?

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AIBU for pronouncing the name Brooke as BrOOKe rather than Bruck

695 replies

MoserRothOrangeandAlmond · 22/07/2025 11:54

I’m a Geordie and pronounce words such as Book, Look and Cook with an oo sound rather than the uck sound.
A family who are from about an hour a way said that her daughter is sick of everyone pronouncing her name incorrectly.

I explained that it’s an accent thing as we pronounce those words with an oo sound rather that uck so it wouldn’t occur to most people to pronounce it that way and they wouldn’t deliberately mispronounce her name!

Just as if I go another part of the country or different country they pronounce my name differently depending on their accent.

AIBU?

OP posts:
EspeciallyHeinous · 22/07/2025 14:48

I pronounce bath as baff😂

MasterBeth · 22/07/2025 14:46

Soggyspaniel · 22/07/2025 14:41

Of course 🤣 touchy.

I’m just pointing out that not everyone hears a London accent everyday. Or takes much notice to it when they do.

I just don't understand how people are so insular that they cannot comprehend that a word might be pronounced differently elsewhere, or cannot call to mind the very different ways that, for example, typically southern and northern English people speak.

We all know that some people say grasss and some people say graaas, or bath and baaath, right?

Are they really saying that they just didn't notice that some people say luck differently to them???

DestinysMum · 22/07/2025 14:45

Brooke and Truck absolutely do not rhyme in my (south west) accent. I imagine in a geordie accent Brooke would become like Brewk to my ear.

I wouldn't find it offensive if someone pronounced my name differently due to an accent though anyway.

AlviarinAesSedai · 22/07/2025 14:44

I’m sitting here, saying words over and over and now realise I can’t speak English properly.
I would try and pronounce as parents want, but I would probably slip up constantly because it’s not how I speak.

JustSawJohnny · 22/07/2025 14:44

@SweetFancyMoses

No one pronounces book as buck.

Errrr, have you ever met anyone from the vast swathe of country that is the Midlands?

Book and buck are exactly the same here.

Soggyspaniel · 22/07/2025 14:41

MasterBeth · 22/07/2025 14:39

Have you noticed that before Look North there is the national news and after Look North is the One Show, and that both before and after them there are many, many, many other programmes presented by people who don't all come from Yorkshire??

Of course 🤣 touchy.

I’m just pointing out that not everyone hears a London accent everyday. Or takes much notice to it when they do.

JustSawJohnny · 22/07/2025 14:40

I do think YABU if she has told you she doesn't like it, yes.

I'm sure she wouldn't be as bothered if you were strangers reading her name in your accent, but you do know her and hear her name often so you know it's pronounced Bruck, not Brook.

Sometimes names don't roll of the tongue easily, I get that. I have 2 friends who insist on either the use of their kid's full name at all times (bit of a mouthful and sounds formal) or that pronounce the name a bit differently to the norm, but you know what, it's their kid. Not mine to choose.

I have a name that is different in Southern & Midland accents (where I'm from) to Northern. My best mate is Northern and it really doesn't bother me that she says it differently.

If it did, she'd change how she says it. I'm sure of that.

MasterBeth · 22/07/2025 14:39

Soggyspaniel · 22/07/2025 13:17

People tend to listen to regional radio stations, so the hosts have regional accents, which is also true for news channels. Look North for example does not have hosts with London accents. Film is quite often in American accents, as are many series on Netflix, Prime etc. The London accent isn’t as widespread as you think.

Have you noticed that before Look North there is the national news and after Look North is the One Show, and that both before and after them there are many, many, many other programmes presented by people who don't all come from Yorkshire??

bingobanjo · 22/07/2025 14:38

I know 2 Aarons, both Geordies. Both say their name Air-un - any southerner I know by that name is pronounced Ah-run. It doesn’t come naturally to me at all to pronounce it as Air-un, but it would be wild for me to continually pronounce it “my way” when they’ve made it very clear they don’t feel that is their name - the pronunciation is perfectly within my speaking range, I just make the effort to say it like that.

I think there’s a degree to which it can be different, and what’s changeable or not. I’m not going to make an American say my name in an English accent because the subtle difference in sound is so bothersome, but these are two different sounds that you are capable of producing whether you naturally read it one way or not. She responds to the name Bruck, say Bruck. Easy.

sandyhappypeople · 22/07/2025 14:38

MoserRothOrangeandAlmond · 22/07/2025 13:00

@HotCrossBunpleasein Sunderland it would be pronounced like that. So Brooke would be pronounce Br-ew-k

Accents will always vary, but surely it doesn't matter where you are from, you must have heard them SAY their daughters name many times so you KNOW how it is pronounced, a name is a name and it should be pronounced how the person with the name pronounces it.

You CHOOSING to pronounce it differently like you are talking about a small stream, rather than calling the person what they are called is just ignorant to be fair.

If you had such an accent that the UCK sound was difficult for you I'd understand, but it sounds like you can manage "truck" and "luck" without mangling it so at this point you are just being petty by continuing to call her a completely different name.

notonthescrx · 22/07/2025 14:37

Dramatic · 22/07/2025 14:13

Not all northern accents, in mine and many others book, buck and Brooke are all rhyming. If you went 10 minutes up the road they would say it with the long ooooo sound

Yes I know - that was the video I posted above !There are a myriad different "northern" accents. I was talking about the confusion around bruck that this has descended.

Look/brook/book will be prounced differently in many different accents.

This thread is insane because no one is reading what has gone before and it's descended into 'but I don't say it like that/no one says it like that' and not about OP's original problem which is actually about asking someone to change their regional accent for one word to avoid 'offense'.

Funnywonder · 22/07/2025 14:37

MasterBeth · 22/07/2025 14:34

This is driving me brucking mental.

Ahem - it’s driving me brooking mental. Get it right😃

CubanTody · 22/07/2025 14:35

RidiculouslyInvestedInThis · 22/07/2025 14:12

https://youtube.com/shorts/7nxLCgZtZCs?feature=share

Accents are hard to describe and I am a gigantic sad sack so I recorded a short video of me saying some words and uploaded it to youtube. Its unlisted so can only be seen from the link.

Brooke, luck and book are the same in my very northern accent.

Now Im off to see if I can pick up a modestly priced life from Ebay.

I love this! Your accent is like mine.

User839516 · 22/07/2025 14:34

RidiculouslyInvestedInThis · 22/07/2025 14:12

https://youtube.com/shorts/7nxLCgZtZCs?feature=share

Accents are hard to describe and I am a gigantic sad sack so I recorded a short video of me saying some words and uploaded it to youtube. Its unlisted so can only be seen from the link.

Brooke, luck and book are the same in my very northern accent.

Now Im off to see if I can pick up a modestly priced life from Ebay.

Thank you so much oh my goodness, as a Scot I was so confused as to how on earth there was a way to say Brooke without an ‘oo’ sound but I understand now!

MasterBeth · 22/07/2025 14:34

This is driving me brucking mental.

RedRoss86 · 22/07/2025 14:34

Overthebow · 22/07/2025 12:14

Does anyone pronounce it Bruck? Book isn’t pronounced buck, look isn’t pronounced luck so I’m not sure where you’re getting this from. Brook does rhymes with book and look though, but no u sound. I from the south and no one would say bruck.

I'm Irish & after your comment I noticed I pronounce it Bruck and when I say look / luck or book / buck, there is no difference 🙈🙈😅

CubanTody · 22/07/2025 14:33

SweetFancyMoses · 22/07/2025 12:54

It’s pronounced brʊk as in book. Not bruck. No one pronounces book as buck. The ʊ sound is different to the ʌ vowel sound.

I assume the OP is pronouncing it brewk.

Yes we do. A number of people have explained that book and buck sound exactly the same with a Yorkshire accent.

MasterBeth · 22/07/2025 14:29

Idontpostmuch · 22/07/2025 13:21

But the PP says food has the long oo sound, like oooo. You say it's book that has that sound. To me, they're the same.

Fine.

But for other people, they're not.

How is this difficult for people to grasp?

ScouserInExile · 22/07/2025 14:27

Russiandollsaresofullofthemselves · 22/07/2025 14:24

if anything it’s the parents pronouncing it incorrectly. i’ve never heard it said any other way than how you are saying it. i’m scottish and definitely say it the same as in book!

But you're Scottish so that makes sense, but to me, as a Liverpudlian, it doesn't. I say it as Bruck. So, no they aren't pronouncing it "incorrectly" because that would entirely depend on where in the UK they come from.

Wolfpa · 22/07/2025 14:26

So you heard her parents calling her something different and you didn’t think to check?

you know now just say it the preferred way in the future

MasterBeth · 22/07/2025 14:26

R0ckandHardPlace · 22/07/2025 14:01

Book isn’t pronounced buck, look isn’t pronounced luck so I’m not sure where you’re getting this from.

Book is pronounced buck and look is pronounced ‘luck’ where I live. How else would they be pronounced?

It all depends on how you pronounce buck and luck!

MoserRothOrangeandAlmond · 22/07/2025 14:25

@TheBewleySistersyes

OP posts:
Russiandollsaresofullofthemselves · 22/07/2025 14:24

if anything it’s the parents pronouncing it incorrectly. i’ve never heard it said any other way than how you are saying it. i’m scottish and definitely say it the same as in book!

NotCrazyAboutIt · 22/07/2025 14:24

doodleschnoodle · 22/07/2025 12:07

YANBU. People with non-rhotic-type accents often don’t understand this. I’d have to put on a ridiculous fake English accent to make ‘Bruck’ from Brooke.

Edited

It has nothing to do with rhoticism! It’s a different pronunciation of the vowel sound ‘oo’.

Funnywonder · 22/07/2025 14:23

Dramatic · 22/07/2025 14:12

Southerners like to do it with my accent too and I'm English 🤷

Yes, I have to agree that it seems to come from people towards the south of England.

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