Re: why can't the BBC

Tue, 20 May 2008 18:12:25 +0200: "Ekkehard Dengler"
<ED-RS@xxxxxxxxxxx>: in sci.lang:

Their "Barrick" has _exactly_ the same stress and vowel pattern as
their "garridge."

No, "barrack" has /&@/ in RP, while "garage" has /&I/ or /&A:/.

/'b&r@k/, /'g&rIdZ/, /g@'rA:Z/

That's probably what you mean too, but I add it to make it clearer.

"Berark O'Barma"?

No, there is only one r in Barack, and the vowel in the first syllable
is [@], not [whatever the symbol for the vowel in <berth> is].

But if Barrack Obama's first name was spelled <Berark>, BBC newsreaders
would probably pronounce it the way you feel they should: /b@'rA:k/.

Exactly, that was my point.
--
Ruud Harmsen

http://rudhar.com
.