If your accent is RP English, how do you pronounce “Glasgow”?

[Wigeon]

Settle an argument between DH and me:

YANBU: Glasgow in an RP English accent is pronounced “Glarsgow” with a long “arr” or “arh” in the middle. Like the “a” in “car” (in an RP accent).

YABU: Glasgow in an RP English accent is pronounced “Gl-ah-sgow”, with a short “ah”, like the “a” in “cat” (in an RP accent).

A lot of Americans pronounce it as "glass-gow" instead of "glass-go". Many do the same with Moscow "moss-cow".

I think Americans are likely to pronounce the first part as glass rather than glaz in the same way that they pronounce less-lee rather than lez-lee.

that accent thing is different to pronouncing the second syllable as gow rather than go. And, I’d say, falls into the same category of willful mispronunciation as Edinbor-oh. You get Americans who live in Edinburgh for years, attend the university, and never learn how to pronounce the name of the city properly. That would be like me moving to Arkansas for years and years and insisting on pronouncing it ar-kan-sas despite hearing the correct pronunciation all the bloody time.

There's a village in Ayrshire called Moscow pronounced 'Mosscow'
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moscow,_East_Ayrshire

Is anyone else now saying to.themselves "border broader border broader" and failing to see how they sound different?

I’m confused by that too.

In phonics you’d say “oo” but reading the alphabet it’s “oh” to me, regardless of the case.

I don't understand putting "r" in a word that doesn't have an "r?"
It's not an r. As discussed. A lot.

It's a non-rhotic accented person's way of distinguishing between a long and short a. It is better expressed as ah which takes out the confusion. ----

All sound the same to me. The example of bot and boat, yes they sound different. But boarder and border are the same.

It's Glaz-go for me. I'm from there so don't know if that helps.

Glarz-go

Glaswegians I’ve met pronounce it Glaz-gore (to my ears anyway!)

Yet people in Scotland pronounce Russian Moscow as "Moss-co" and a lot of them find it irritating Americans pronounce Glasgow as "glass-cow" too.

Here's a pic.

Glaz go.

As a born and bred Glaswegian I can be pretty sure that nobody would add an r at the end (or anywhere in fact). Interesting that is what you hear.

From this thread I can believe people say it with the magical r in their own accent but it definitely doesn’t have one when a Glaswegian accent says it

When I try and put on an English accent is say glas- gow as in Cow!

Not Glarsgow though.

Probably cause my tongue struggles with the r.

(When I Missenden Carl by calling him Carol 🤣)

*misgender

Typed conversations about how words are pronounced without recourse to a standardised pronunciation chart are amazingly pointless.

IMO

Glesgae 😂

What a strange thread. I'm very RP but would say 'Glaz-go' without thinking twice. That's just what it's called. I'm afraid I'd laugh at anyone I heard saying 'Glaaahhsgo'. It would be like hearing an American say 'Edin-borrow'. Tbh this is reminding me of the thread the other day that consisted of mocking people whose names have regional pronuciations as 'not knowing how to say their own name'.

In my mind's eye, you've got to imagine someone with a pair of pince-nez perched atop their beak, looking down their nose at you or speaking to two children as per the Catherine Tate sketches, and say a very breathy, exaggerated "Glaaarsgo". It works then!

Bath = Barth

Glastonbury = Glaston. berry

my Dad says Glarston-bree he’s way more RP than I am and used to live in Glastonbury.

However, if you are a local and referring to the festival. That’s Pilton, no one in Somerset says they are going to Glastonbury festival.

BaRth for Bath
GlaRsgow for Glasgow
both an utter nonsense and to be honest incredibly pretentious.
No R sound in either.
I'm from Glasgow and it is Glahsgo,Glazgo, Glesga (to the locals)

The whole time I've been reading this thread I've had this as an earworm:

Definitely Barr-th and Glarrs-go!

@AchatAVendre interesting about the danes... I have a close Norwegian friend and I try to speak as much Norwegian as I can. I often ask her "why don't you pronounce this letter in this word?" And she just thinks about it for a minute and says "no idea. We just don't" 🤣 (I guess that's similar to English in lots of ways!)

I posted this upthread (31/07/2022 21:22) as evidence that the Queen does NOT say Glasgow with an R. She says it at 00.17 with no R. Is there some later point at which she does say it with an R, or are people just desperate to hear R?

(Not minding the link/clip being reposted, just object to people saying there is an R when there is no R.)