How would you pronounce Zana ?

[RoseApp]

My friend assumed people would pronounce her child’s name Zana like Zah-nah as in Suzanna but several people have pronounced it as Zar-na

It is a random letter. There is no r. There is an a or an elongated a.

Honestly I don't think my head can get any more fucked up right now tbf 😂

The joke has clearly gone over your head.

It's not pronounced ar though, it's ah. That is the point!

Don’t you understand? Their “r” sound is not the same as my (and presumably your) “r” sound.

To them an “r sound” is an elongated vowel.

Joke?

I understand different ways or saying r, yes, but there still isn't an r sound of any description in these words!

Yes I was making a joke about taking like a pirate to that poster. Hence all the rrrrrr’s.

It took me years to realise that it was a pun on the word “Awesome” because non-rhotic speakers say “Roarsome” and “Awesome” almost identically.

Really? What about the name Rory - would they pronounce it as Aw-ey??

I didn't miss it, just didn't reply to the humour aspect of it.

What words?
“Bath”, grass and giraffe?

Do you agree that they can be pronounced with either a long or a short “a”?

Yes but people put the r to exaggerate the sound. Perhaps it doesn't work in your accent, but it does in ours. I put ah when I posted but I can see why others have used r. It's really not that deep.

Ah and ar sound the same to us southerners.

I also can't make put and but rhyme but pour poor pore and paw do 😉

How do you pronounce put and but 🤯🤯🤯🤯

I'd use a short a, others could perhaps use a long a, nobody should be adding any sort of r.

You've got a lot of patience HotCrossBunplease.

I'm a scouser and there's no difference between Zahna and Zarna to me. Or but and put or paw, poor and pour.

I'm finding it really hard to describe how I say put 🙈

To exaggerate what sound though?
If they want to exaggerate the a do that, no need to add an r!

I came to say Zar-na. Clearly this will make people cross, so I think I mean Zaah-na.

To me, it would rhyme with the last part of “banana”. But I could be pronouncing that incorrectly too…

Zanna would rhyme with Suzanna/Hannah.

Surely in phonics-land 'ar' sounds like the word 'are' so car, bar, far etc. Zara also has that same vowel sound which is why people are reading Zana as Z-ah-na although phonetically that could be spelt Z-ar-na?!

Anyway I vote Z-ah-na 😅

I know a Zana and she pronounces it Zarnah

*What words?
“Bath”, grass and giraffe?

Do you agree that they can be pronounced with either a long or a short “a”?*

Yes, of course. But they should NOT include an R.

Pardon?

The initial “r is very soft in Roar and Rory, it’s a pun so there is a very slight difference between the initial sound of Roarsome and Awesome.

However the “r” in “Rory” (and Tory, glory, story etc) is lightly rolled even by non-rhotic speakers because it’s not the final “r” in the word. The second “r” in “roar” is the final letter of the word so does not sounded at all (cf car, door, moor etc)