Pronounce H 'aitch' or 'haitch'

[frank ryan 10]

how do you pronounce it, where did you grow up and what class are you?

 

this is science!!

[Electerrific 14]

Neither, it's ''Haych''!

[XXTickerXX 10]

It all depends on who I`m talking to.

 

To friends it`s Aitch and on the phone it`s Haitch.

[JFKvsNixon 11]

I've always pronounced it aitch, because that was the way I was taught in school, in fact one of my teachers was a stickler for it.

 

I grew up in Devon, and my parents are working class.

[frank ryan 10]

I think it's odd that a northern working class pronunciation is 'haitch' when we abandon the H in most other words - eg 'I 'it it with an 'ammer'

[Olive 10]

I pronounce it as "aitch" and I'm a Yorkshire lass. I don't think I ever heard anyone pronounce it any other way apart from maybe Eliza Doolitle. Until about five years ago.

 

Now nearly everyone from teachers to TV voiceovers pop in an extra "H". It's weird how this has come about so quickly.

[Ghozer 112]

ay, bee, cee, dee, eff, gee, haych, eye, jay, kay, ell, em, en, oh, pee, qoo, arr, ess, tee, you, vee, double you, ex, why, zed

 

[poppet2 13]

It all depends where you are from. In France they don't pronounce the word at all as there just isn't a sound for it. The correct pronunciation is how the Queen pronounces all words.

[frank ryan 10]

no poppet, there's no 'correct' pronunciations - language is fluid and changing and beautiful - RP like the queen's is a completely made up system devised when merchants started being richer than aristocrats. upper class speech is ugly, give me geordie or barnsley or dublin or kingston any day

[poppet2 13]

no poppet, there's no 'correct' pronunciations - language is fluid and changing and beautiful - RP like the queen's is a completely made up system devised when merchants started being richer than aristocrats. upper class speech is ugly, give me geordie or barnsley or dublin or kingston any day

 

Try explaining that to a foreigner or tourist who has learnt English. They don't teach Geordie or Scottish or Liverpudlian etc, but English. A tourist will tell you the further North you live, the more difficult it is to understand English.

The sad fact is that many tourists can speak better English than those born and educated here.

[Electerrific 14]

Try explaining that to a foreigner or tourist who has learnt English. They don't teach Geordie or Scottish or Liverpudlian etc, but English. A tourist will tell you the further North you live, the more difficult it is to understand English.

The sad fact is that many tourists can speak better English than those born and educated here.

Sadly, in my work experience, this seems to be very true!

 

Look at the London riots, those interviewed were barely able to be monosyllablic? And then there's Jeremy Kyle's show!

[frank ryan 10]

I pronounce it as "aitch" and I'm a Yorkshire lass. I don't think I ever heard anyone pronounce it any other way apart from maybe Eliza Doolitle. Until about five years ago.

 

Now nearly everyone from teachers to TV voiceovers pop in an extra "H". It's weird how this has come about so quickly.

 

it's part of my daughter's english homework - how language changes can be wide and sudden -

 

mis -cheev-us to mis -chiv -us

 

har-ass to ha RASS

 

ga-rarj to garridge

 

etc - very interesting