Help with French Place Pronuciations
 

We are preparing for our second trip to Provence next month - listening to the French language CD's, English-French books, etc. While these provide a lot of help with pronouncing French words, there is very little help with French places. How do you say?
St. Remy
Roussillon
Gordes
Bonnieux
Les Baux
Uzes
Cassis

Is there a source to look up this stuff?

Thanks,

JoeG

I'll take a stab at it.
Sahn-rim-may (accent on last syllable)
Rooce-ee-yahn (accent on first syllable, second accent on last syllable)
Gore-dez (accent on first syllable)
Bon-new (accent on last syllable)
Lay-bo (accent on last syllable)
Kas-seece (accent on last syllable)

I'll leave Uzes for someone else.

St Remy = "Saint Ramie"
Cassis = "Cass-eece"

The others all have sounds that are unique to French - it would be nearly impossible to spell it out in a way that you would understand. Try to find someone you know that speaks even a bit of french.

If this is Gordes in the Luberon, it's simply "Gord", isn't it? No reason to pronounce the last syllable with this sort of spelling, I was taught.

On the other hand Uzès has the "grave" e, which gives weight to that syllable, so that's "Ew-zez", with the stress on the last syllable, and the "Ew" the very pinched "u" sound we had a long thread about some months ago (say EE with your lips wide but close together, and push them forward, as if about to give a maiden aunt a peck on the cheek).

I'd have thought any good language guid should indicate the various rules of French spelling and pronunciation - they are much more regular than English.

I agree it's practically impossible to do this, but since I disagree with some of Patrick's tries, I'll try to do better:

Sahn Ray Me (barely pronounce the "n")

Roo Seey Ohn (ditto)

Gord (one syllable)

Bon Yeu (think Sound of Music - "and yeu and yeu and yeu..")

Lay Bow

U Zes (to make the U sound, say EEEEE and pucker your lips)

Cah Seess (some would say Cah See)

"Cah see" is enough

note that the 'bow' St cirq uses in 'lay bow' would be pronounced like 'bow' as in 'bow and arrow' (NOT the 'bow' of a boat)

Joe G - St Cirqs spellings are definitely closer than Patricks - especially with Bonnieux, and St Remy

I think I prefer StCirq's recommendations.

((I))

We have had a discussion here before about certain place names in France that end in "is" or "as" and as to whether the "s" is pronounced or not. The consensus seemed to be - and it's been borne out by my own experience - that some (French) people pronounce the "s" and some do not. I think the preponderance pronounce the "s" but I've definitely heard the no-s pronounciation.

Wow, would you really pronounce St. as Saint, to rhyme with "ain't"? Not, "sahn" with a very soft n at the end?

From my experience, none of the approximations will play for a French ear, with the possible exception of Gordes. Do not expect to be understood at the first try, and keep a map handy to point to the location you are seeking.

Syllables are all given equal emphasis. Forget any but the written accent.

The problem with giving "phonetic" pronunciations is you have to make sure you aren't giving something that can still be pronounced two ways.

If you write "Lay-bow", I'd pronounce that second syllable like taking a bow before an audience -- rhyming with "now". If that's right, I've sure been very wrong all these years. Maybe I have? Does it rhyme with now or no?

Michael,

You are correct. Last time when we were going through airline security at CDG, we were asked "where did you begin your travels today?" I kept responding "Arl!" (Arles) He had no idea what I was talking about. I thought that was an easy one!
JoeG

Cassis rhyme with Paris. No endig "s".
"Gord" is a bad approach to Gordes because it tends to be pronounced as an only syllabe, while in fact it should be pronounced as 2 syllabes "gor-de"

Patrick, it rhymes with neither since both English words are dipthongs and the French ends in a pure vowel, but "no" is a closer approximation. There is a reason why the IPA was invented. Someone who has done classical singing, solo or choral, should be able to get the sounds right because in that music the notes are maintained as pure sounds with no dipthongization(sp ?).

Joe, next time try to say "Ar-le".

Lobo, the <i>m&eacute;ridional</i> pronunciation often adds that syllable at the end of the word, but northern French does not, and the <i>m&eacute;ridionaux</i> understand the Parisians. The problem does not lie with the second syllable, but with the pronunciation of the A and the R in Arles, and the O and R in Gordes.

If you know how to spell it, write it down for the person who wants to know. That's easier.

It's the French R and the fully pronounced French L at the end that make it hard. French people probably won't understand if you pronounce an American R and an American L... as has been said.