to point out that people who say "choritso" for chorizo...

[MardyBra]

... are assigning an Italian pronunciation to a Spanish word?

You don't need to do a Manuel-style "choreeeeetho" thing. Chorizo with a z sound is fine by me if you prefer, as it's a valid in many dialects.

I say cho-ree-so, because I speak a little Spanish and have mainly been to Andalucia. Cho-rit-zo, as per the M+S advert makes me .

Genuine question, I would have thought that Ibiza would be pronounced ee- bee-tha instead of eye-bee-tha, when following the normal rules of Spanish pronunciation?

However, my Spanish is not sufficiently advanced to try and pronounce This, but it doesn't matter because I usually just buy it at the airport, and don't need to ask anyone for it

After an episode of CDWM with a particularly dim contestant, our household always calls it CHIROZZA, as we found the programme so hilarious and this pronunciation so distinctive. And to go with our chirozza, we sometimes have DOPHIN-YOES potatoes (Dave Lamb did keep correcting her on the voice-over, which made it even funnier)

What is wrong with "can i have a panini?"

You are saying "Can I have a sandwiches?"

But the person serving me in the BHS cafe in Croydon probably won't know I am saying "Can I have a sandwiches?" I'm not criticising people who work in BHS cafes in Croydon by the way, I wouldn't have realised either before this thread.

Also won't they look at me like if I ask for a panino?

Gin the Catalan spelling of Ibiza is Eivissa which would be pronounced eye-bee-sa as far as I'm aware (don't know much about Catalan pronunciation though), so I assume the spelling Ibiza was a bastardisation of the sound of the word. Happy to be corrected though.

*I take it, OP, that you also say "Veen" for Vienna

MardyBra LessMiss I don't. But I don't pronounce them Italian style either

"Vienna" is the Italian pronunciation of Wien...

Much of what the English names we give foreign places (and things) is random. Why do we call Stuttgart Stuttgart and not "Stockarda" but call Wien "Vienna"?

While we're at it, how do you choose what to call Brugge? Bruges or Brugge? Or Bolzano? Bozen?? Both equally valid in their own countries but presumably not hear, under the "chorizo" rule!

Pinkycheesy, who is Dave Lamb to correct anybody? He's the worst choritso offender of them all.

The panini thing is a non issue

Surely any normal person would eat at least two of ghose tiny hot snacks disguised as lunch.

Or three

Tres panini por favor

I don't really care how people pronounce loan words but I've had people who were excessively proud of the fact they've learned German tell me that I pronounce my own surname wrong. I mean wow. I'm English, my whole family is English, and that is how we pronounce our originally German name.

The Beijing thing does irritate me though. Why do people use that soft j sound as though it were French? That's not the way j is usually pronounced in English so it certainly is not an Anglicization.

I used to have a friend who pronounced "macho" as maco, given that he also pronounced "machismo" as macismo.

For all those asking whether I have more important things to worry about, how come this has provoked 9 pages of debate.

I am going to start asking for 'a sandwiches' and give them a flea in their ear when they look at me as if I'm a nutter.

You can get around the panino issue, by asking for "one of those panini"

Can you please give us a list, of all the words, and next to them, their pronunciation. Please. Because I am totally confused.

Mardy, I have a huge list of bigger issues in my life to worry about right now, which is exactly why I love the distraction of threads like this one.

Yay! for distraction threads.

How do you cope with the Polish cold meats now on offer in the deli counter of your local supermarket?

The woman who serves at our local Tesco calls it "that Polish ham" and "that Polish sausage." Result!

How are we supposed to pronounce Freixenet again?
I never know.

Specially if people keep pronouncing them in pseudo-Russian accents

Damn, now I have to practice accents too? Boggles.

Fresh a net

I have a friend who says pro sh ecco but I say pro sek o

Can you settle that one for us please?!

Also yes please to the list of foods/wines with the correct pronunciation!