“Zee” vs “Zed”
(The Difference Between The Name Of The Letter Z In American & European English)
I am certainly not One to promote divisiveness between the people who conform to the different ways that English is spoken throughout The World. In fact, this is specifically why I started The Common Tongue Project. But, the pronunciation of The Name of The Letter Z is one of those things which is a bit different.
And more significantly, the idea that one person is considered to be, “wrong” where-as another is supposedly, “right” – when it comes to things which are not rules, but conventions – is absolutely ridiculous… What people are usually talking about is opinion, preference, and ideology.
(And We Here At GiveMeSomeEnglish!!! Are Pretty Freakin’ Exhausted By You Chelsea)
Now… what I’m talking about does not pertain to things which are un-deniable proven facts… Like the fact that all Americans are stupid, and all Europeans hate generally hate them for it…
Good Job! Now the Russians are pissed because you gave the credit for their ingenuity to the Europeans.
Ha Ha… I was just kidding 😀
But When It Comes To The Different Ways To Pronounce The Letter Z…
The Fact Of The Matter Is…
The pronunciation of The Letter Z, in The Common Tongue is…
/zee/ – /ziː/
Where-as, in European English – The Letter Z is pronounced…
/zehd/ – /zɛɾ/…
Either one is perfectly fine to use, and neither one is “wrong” – however, it is quite possible for an American who has not had any interactions with those from outside of his country to become confused by this – mainly because…
“Zed” Is (or at least was) A Man’s Name…
And That’s That
Jay: “I can’t believe you actually called me Jay-Zed!”
Rick: “I can’t believe you don’t even know how to pronounce your own bloody name!”
Have An Ek-ZEE-lent Day!
😉
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