Added: 11/09/2005 |
Can You Pronounce The Names Hungarian Style??Thanks to a stint in the military, I had the opportunity to spend some time -- on several different occasions - in the Czech Republic. And out of all the places I went to, I think the most interesting were Ukraine and Hungary. If I had to narrow it down even further I guess I would pick Hungary as one of the most unique locals I've ever been. Just don't try to pronounce the names Hungarian. Never. There are probably several things that tip you right off the bat that you're in a foreign country: obviously the language is a dead give-away. Whether it's spoken or written or read, if you can't figure it out or at the very least ask where the restroom is, then I'd say you're in a heap of trouble. Other less intimidating factors would include the way people dress and the way they spend their time. But for my money, if you can't speak the language you shouldn't be in the country. So it was the case with names Hungarian. I had a military obligation to serve my country -- in Budapest no less -- so I wasn't going anywhere.
The toughest thing about any Hungarian name is first of all they're difficult to pronounce and second they don't necessarily correspond with names that you know. For example, the English name Angela gets twisted around and comes out as "Angyalka". Don't ask me how to pronounce it because I don't know. Or how about the name Barbara. That's a pretty typical name. It rolls off your tongue quite easily as a matter of fact. But give it the Hungarian treatment and it becomes "Borbála". Close but no cigar. At least "Borbála" kind of sounds like Barbara. Perhaps if I was thinking of hungarian baby names I would settle on Borbála because Borbála sounds like something that might come out of a baby's mouth. I met a girl who was named Pricilla - in English anyway - but in Hungarian it was Piroska. Again, if we're talking about Hungarian baby names; Piroska might not be so bad. But spending 20 years with someone named Piroska? It's not going to happen. I'm quite sure that most Hungarians will take this into consideration the difficulty in pronouncing their names Hungarian and will give foreigners the English or American version of their names.
When it comes to names Hungarian I wonder what effect they have in specific situations. Take for example romance. Imagine you're in passionate embrace with the girl of your dreams and you want to whisper her hungarian name in her ear. Well, if her name is Elisabeth that's one thing, but in Hungarian it's Erzsébet. You can cut it any way you want to, but I'm telling you, I wouldn't feel all that romantic if I'm moaning the name Erzsébet in someone's ear, I don't care how attractive they are.
This is just a hunch on my part. There are probably are sorts of people -- excluding Hungarians of course -- that are quite enamored with names Hungarian. Some people enjoy pronouncing words they just can't grasp, whether it's someone's name or a plate of food in a restaurant. Personally I don't think I'm paying anyone a compliment by butchering their language. Names Hungarian, like the language in general, demands that one study the pronunciation and didactics. Only then can you save yourself the embarrassment of possibly offending someone.
Having said all this, I have no doubt that Hungarians or Chinese or whatever the nationality is have the same reservations about names and language that are not their own. So that makes us even in a way. In fact I think I have name for it; culturally disadvantaged.
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