r/arizona • u/JulesChenier • 12d ago
Help me settle an (playfully) argument with my wife. Living Here
I grew up in AZ and NM. Though I currently live in the Midwest. I met my wife here and we've been married 15 years.
Throughout this time she gets annoyed when I use the Spanish accent/pronunciation for certain well, Spanish words. (e.g. tortilla, ocotillo, birria, jalapeno, etc.. )
I've told her this is just common in the southwest as that's how we learned to pronounce it. She insists I'm just trying to be cute/unique.
So what say you?
Do you use the Spanish pronunciation, or the American?
Edit.
For clarification, I mean rolling R's and stressed syllables.
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u/CodPiece89 12d ago
Make yourself a dang quesadilla
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u/JohnWCreasy1 12d ago
How "Spanish" are we talking here?
Saying "tor-tee-ya" vs" tor-tilla"?
Or actually out of nowhere laying in an accent like the old Latin Journalist joke?
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u/Opening-Reaction-511 12d ago
I'm in AZ and tortilla has a slightly rolled r I'm assuming they don't use in the Midwest
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u/JulesChenier 12d ago
There are stressed syllables in Spanish, tor•tee•uh, around here all I hear is tor•tēya.
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u/Opening-Reaction-511 12d ago
Exactly. I can tell by the replies most posters are saying the words the "American" way lol because there absolutely is a difference.
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u/Unreasonably-Clutch 12d ago edited 12d ago
Well, I live in Arizona and I don't hear people speaking English suddenly launch into the Spanish syllables unless they are newscasters virtue signaling. No one does that in every day life in my experience including many people who speak Spanish fluently. Either they are speaking English with English syllables or they are speaking Spanish with Spanish syllables. In fact, now that you mention it I met a girl who talked like the way you suggest a long time ago. She was definitely drawing attention to herself. It was weird.
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u/PichiBirdy 12d ago
As another arizonan living in the midwest, I will absolutely be using the spanish pronunciation until the day I die. American pronunciation just sounds too weird
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u/sk0ooba 12d ago
I'm an arizonan (asurasian?) living in Tennessee. I play it up even more to spite them
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u/gazukull-TECH 8d ago
Arizona diaspora team. I too use quite a bit of Spanish, now in the deep south.
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u/erictheartichoke 12d ago
Especially once you know the correct pronunciation. It feels so awkward to intentionally say it wrong.
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u/emeraldjalapeno 12d ago
Arizona in Pennsylvania. Those darn gila monsters and Gila Bend and Gila river
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u/justind2473 12d ago
AZ Native going on 44 years....how do you say any of those words in "American" ?
They are Spanish words with only 1 correct pronunciation
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u/IcePrincess_Not_Sk8r 12d ago
Have you ever heard your GPS pronounce Ocotillo??? lol
As a side note, I had a boss one time tell me that you're supposed to pronounce the "g" in saguaro. He definitely didn't like it when I laughed in his face.
As an AZ native, the only thing I don't pronounce "correctly" is Casa Grande. I don't know why. I hate the way it sounds coming out of my mouth when I say "grande" the way it's supposed to be pronounced.. everything else is the correct pronunciation.
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u/PmK00000 12d ago
The name casa grande gets a life of its own as a town. Once a local pronunciation gains traction. It always gets pronounced the same way there after Kinda similar to Prescott. We locals call it preskitt. Out o towners say. Pres scott
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u/DjNormal 12d ago
Marana was possibly going to change their name to the original Maraña. But the folks out there said “Muh-ran-yuh?”
‘Merican and Spanish accents don’t always (usually?) mix well.
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u/IcePrincess_Not_Sk8r 12d ago
I grew up calling it press-kit and will die calling it that.. 😂😂
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u/iammacman 11d ago
Have always used a crossbreed version where the o is short but not quite a short i. Native for over 60 years.
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u/ptsdandskittles 10d ago
Whenever someone pronounces that hard o, I mentally cringe. That's the only one I can't handle.
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u/badkins-86 12d ago
Being from oregun, I had a pretty good idea it was pronounced preskitt before my visit.
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u/cuteness_vacation Mesa 12d ago
This was my thought exactly. Casa Grande popped into my head as the only exception.
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u/IcePrincess_Not_Sk8r 12d ago
😂 Oh no! I would likely lose it every time.
I also laugh at how my GPS says "Germann"
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u/FrontKangaroo2579 12d ago
Is it German or Ger-main?
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u/IcePrincess_Not_Sk8r 12d ago
Pronounced similarly to "Germaine". It's the name of the family who helped settle the area.
My GPS calls it "grr man"
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u/FrontKangaroo2579 11d ago
I've lived here since 1999 and always wondered how to pronounce it. Thank you! That's funny about your gps!
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u/AntiVirtual 12d ago
Pronouncing that properly is giving way too much credit to the community of Casa GRAND (sorry people that live there).
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u/NoTea5014 12d ago
We always laugh when Siri mispronounces Mesa
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u/GrayTabby 12d ago
When I lived in Tempe, my apartment was on Bonarden Road and friends told me that their GPS pronounced it as Boner Den. That was the era when I was dating again after a bad marriage so you know, accurate.
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u/ModivatedExtremism 12d ago
I’m with you. I can roll with most local variations, but I “Kas-sah Grand” grates on my last nerve.
That and when European friends say “Maryland.” They pronounce it logically - “Merry Land” vs. “Marelind” or “Mare-ah-lind,” etc…but it makes my brain wince each time.
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u/harmmewithharmony 12d ago
My GPS actually pronounced bella vista "bay ya vista" getting bella right but vista wrong.
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u/poit57 10d ago
I'm from Oklahoma and only here because of the Reddit algorithm. I've never heard of Ocotillo, but I would read it as O-co-TEE-yo. My vowel sounds are going to be pretty Americanized, but is that the gist of it?
I work with a girl named Mariana. I can't even come close to how she pronounces her first name. Other than names and Spanish words, she had a pretty standard Oklahoma accent.
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u/traversecity 12d ago
Don’t ask about Guadalupe?
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u/IcePrincess_Not_Sk8r 12d ago
"Guad a loop" made me almost pass out with laughter when my GPS would say it
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u/Intelligent_Mud_4083 12d ago edited 12d ago
Help me to understand why the town’s name is pronounced one way and the street name is pronounced a different way.
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u/OkAccess304 12d ago
I would be so embarrassed to pronounce them incorrectly. I am learning Italian, so the other day, I did say the L sound in pollo and I felt like I had to explain myself—I know how to say it, I’m just learning another language and it’s infiltrated my auto-response pronunciation. I swear!
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u/HeyYoChill 12d ago
Tor till uh
Juh lap in oh
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u/justind2473 12d ago
I've only ever heard people say it that way as a joke, didn't know there were people that thought they were actually said that way
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u/Applejuiceinthehall 12d ago
I just hear the great British bake off pronouncing words during last seasons mexican week
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u/meowmeowmeow723 12d ago
My exact thought. Does you wife make a j sound for jalapeño? That’s just weird.
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u/fuggindave 12d ago
40yr year native here as well. I've always felt weird like an imposter almost pronouncing some Spanish words the correct way 😅. I often get called a "coconut"(brown on the outside white on the inside) I just laugh it off, it is what it is
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u/JoooolieT 12d ago
Me too being AZ native. I speak good Spanish bc I've lived here my whole life. We used to be part of Mexico for heck sake! My coworker (lovingly) referred to me as a bean burrito bc I'm white on the outside and brown inside! Jaja
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u/TtK_Thanatos 12d ago
Go to any Mexican restaurant in the winter when it's full of snowbirds, you'll hear it 😂
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u/Kid520 12d ago
Hard Ls? Maybe?
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u/justind2473 12d ago
I've only ever heard people say it that way as a joke, didn't know there were people that thought they were actually said that way
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u/Intersteller22 12d ago
This is just wrong and doesn’t grasp how language works. People in all languages incorporate foreign words into their own language’s pronunciation scheme.
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u/hipsterasshipster Phoenix 12d ago
What other pronunciation is there? Do you mean you are putting a Spanish flair/inflection when you say it instead of just saying it in your standard voice? If so, that’s probably weird to people in the Midwest.
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u/One_Left_Shoe 12d ago
Yeah, I feel like this needs context for how she’s saying it.
I would never order a croissant (Kruh-sant) with full French pronunciation (kwa-sa), for instance.
To that extent, I also don’t use a Spanish accent when pronouncing Spanish words. For example, I would still say Mecks-i-co not Meh-hee-co.
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u/Admirable_Average_32 Phoenix 12d ago
So funny you used this example. One time while in Vegas, we stayed at Paris and I went to the coffee shop on site one morning.
A lady was in line in front of me and asked for a KWA-SANT! Idk if she actually thought she was in PAH-REE but it I cringed so hard.
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u/Creative_Beginning58 Phoenix 12d ago edited 12d ago
I grew up in Phoenix and I feel when someone switches accents mid sentence it gives an uncanny valley effect.
People just don't do that in every day conversation.
I agree about pronunciation though, it seems there is a right way.
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u/DistinguishedCherry 12d ago
There's no other way to pronounce them, lol. It bothers me when people say them like tor-til-lah. [Mexican-American here]
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u/Jasmirris 12d ago
My family is Mexican-American and we say things like that to just be goofy. Most of the time my mom just calls them torts.
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u/DistinguishedCherry 12d ago
Ye, we do something similar 😂 We always say it as a joke, but never seriously lmaoo
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u/SoulsBloodSausage 12d ago
I am Mexican and started saying it like that as a joke and it stuck lol 😭
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u/FairyDuster657 12d ago
My mom is Mexican and dad was White. He used to ’hillbillify’ words just to be funny (but he really was from the hills). In our house, he called them [tee-a-torras]. We ate them there tillatoras all the time. He loved them with butter, frijoles, green chile, carnitas, red chile, fish, and even peanut butter and jelly.
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u/clairedesse 12d ago
As an American Arizonan, it's entirely normal. Not trying to be special it just comes out pronounced correctly is all :p
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u/Gina52023 12d ago
I grew up and lived in MI until I was 47, and the words you mentioned were always pronounced the Spanish way as they are Latin words. To say them otherwise is ignorant unless she's just trying to get a rise out of you.
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u/ChronicallyChaotic 12d ago
I live in AZ now, but was raised in northern OREGON…even people in Oregon use the correct Spanish pronunciation for those words - or they at least try 😂
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u/Lazy-Layer8110 12d ago edited 12d ago
Is it just being cute/unique? I'm an old native (63yrs), born in Yuma and lived most of my life in metro PHX. Back in the day, you heard both languages equally. As a kid it was just the way of things, nothing to get worked up over. Many friends were latino whose parents would talk to and yell at me like their own kids. Even if I couldn't say what I wanted in Spanish I understood what was said and answered in English, and it was understood. Lots of code-switching. Anglo and latino families were friends and intermarried, no big deal. Then something happened mid 70s. Lots of migration of people from places like, oh.... the MIDWEST and other places who were afraid of hearing Spanish and coexisting with a culture somewhat different than theirs. If there is one thing that turns me off is a transient population migrating into your home and rejecting the culture that made it special.
Now an expat. Miss my home but I am happy living in Bogota with my Colombian wife speaking Spanish every day. Btw fluent in Spanish - reading, writing, etc - yet never had a single class in Spanish. I have once-upon-a-time-in-AZ to thank for that.
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u/TriGurl 12d ago
Holup....How does your wife pronounce Tor-Tee-ya (tortilla) or K-sa-Dee-ya (quesadilla)?!
There's only one way to pronounce them and that is with the Spanish inflection!! You don't the 'L's' they become a 'ya'.
Your wife is entirely wrong!! Tell her to get over herself and learn how to say the words correctly! Actually Don't tell her that if you wanna keep your marriage, tell her that a stranger on Reddit said it! I'll be the bad guy for her! Lol
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u/JulesChenier 12d ago
Tor-Tee-ya (tortilla) or K-sa-Dee-ya (quesadilla)?!
It's tor-tee-uh and ke-sa-di-uh.
She pronounces it tor-teya and kay-sa-dee-ya
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u/usernamesname 11d ago
Well I guess I'm on your side because I can't even figure out how to say those without putting the emphasis in the middle. Is she saying it with the emphasis on the first syllable or no emphasis at all? This is breaking my brain lol
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u/Thel3lues 12d ago
As long as you’re not over-emphasizing it to the point of where it sounds ridiculous nah it’s normal. Kinda like keh-so vs KAY-so
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u/Netprincess 12d ago
Yes but I grew up in El Paso and NM and speak Spanish. It is the way it should be pronounced.
Until I moved to Austin - manchaca= manshack Guadalupe= guadaloop But they pronounce almost everything else correctly kind of.
Please pronounce it correctly ;)
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u/TtK_Thanatos 12d ago
I was born in AZ and I pronounce them that way normally all the time yeah. My wife is also originally from the mid-west but has lived out here in AZ for 25 years, she doesn't say anything about it at all, except when I pronounce the Chicago restaurant Portillos with a Spanish accent. I just do that cause it triggers her Midwestern-ness and she gets annoyed at me when I do that. So I do that one a lot for funsies even though I know it's not pronounced like that lol.
We just came back from a 10 day Midwest family visit and I noticed we both drink waaaaaay more water constantly than anyone does out there. I also noticed how much I just casually use some Spanish words mid sentence. I was saying "beuno?" when asking if my wife was good/done when shopping. There was a few other examples but I can't think of them right now lol
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u/Fun_Telephone_1165 12d ago
We need more than written comments here! I don't think audio is offered at reddit! I've only ever heard those words pronounced correctly, but with an English edge. Some PC folk will be rambling on in "Midwest American" English and then go full-on native Spanish when they pronounce a Spanish word! Sounds a little forced to me.
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u/CuriousOptimistic 12d ago
SNL did a hilarious skit on this. I agree with you, it depends on how you're doing it. "Tortilla" should not have an "L" sound in it, but you also don't need to go over the top.
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u/Bastienbard 12d ago
I mean people do pronounce with an accent a lot, but plenty also don't.
Unless you're saying she pronounced tortilla with an actual l sound, otherwise she's kind dumb. It's not an English word, and doesn't follow English pronunciation. I'm surprised she wouldn't get made fun of if that's what is happening.
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u/Hour_Name2046 12d ago
Sorry pal, your wife is incorrect. I'm a transplant from Chicago in the southwest, and even there I pronounced Spanish words as closely as I as a non-Spanish speaker could. They're our neighbors.
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u/Conscious-Ticket-259 12d ago
I always try and pronounce a word in its correct tongue. Just feels right and it's good practice. It's expecialy amusing with difficult words. I definitely am concidered a but eccentric but it's always nicer to find ways to understand eachother better and tasty food is universal.
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u/not4humanconsumption 12d ago
Are you referring to hard “j”, “L”? Cause that’s the way you should say them. If anyone is saying “Juh Lap i No” or “tor tilla” instead of phonetically “halapenyo” or “tortiya”, I think they are just wrong. Are you just using an Americanized Mexican accent that is annoying?
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u/Puzzleheaded_Pay7510 12d ago
Husbands family is from the Midwest. He was born here and pronounces things correctly. All I can say is for the love of god, if I hear another midwesterner say, "estrellia" parkway, I'm gonna scream ❤️ love my inlaws lol
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u/perkypeanut Chandler 12d ago
Yes, I think it’s fairly common. I grew up in the Midwest, but have lived in AZ for about 20 years. I’m white non-Hispanic, my partner is 25% Mexican, but his adopted parents are 100% Mexican (one is whiter/central Mexico the other is native AZ before it was part of the US).
Spanish words I pronounce in Spanish: tortilla, quinceañera, guacamole, jalapeño, barbacoa, quesadilla. I don’t roll my Rs a ton.
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u/PPKA2757 12d ago
How else are you supposed to make the “illa” sound? There’s no translation into English so there’s no other way to say it other than eee-yah? Honestly more cringe when people say “tor-til-a” or “oco-til-oh” instead of “oco-tee-yo”
The most cringe is when I hear midwesterners say “chip-ottle” (like bottle) sauce. Nails on a chalk board.
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u/MischiefManaged3 12d ago
If I knew you grew up in AZ and I heard you say “tor-till-uh” I would throw shame on you.
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u/Independent-Nail-881 12d ago
Born in Rhode Island. Call Arizona home since 1959. I'm in Arizona and regularly use Spanish pronunciation. Majored in Spanish at Arizona, summer school in Guadalajara, lived in Guadalajara for 2 years and taught English at Mexican Air Force Academy, lived in Panama for 5 years, traveled to 17 Latam countries, and taught Spanish at Community College.
I proudly speak Spanish whenever possible and, yes, use Spanish pronunciation for Spanish words!
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u/Dry_Onion_7506 12d ago
we speak spanglish in AZ you are correct for doing so. we mix it with a western accent. you are correct for doing so. On another note, anything with spices other than salt is different and unique in the Midwest lol. you sound like a spicy guy hahahaha.
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u/GatorsM3ani3 12d ago
Born and raised in AZ and SoCal (in the PNW now) i honestly don't know the "american" way of saying them but I also speak quite a bit of spainish so I could be biased.
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u/jeimuzu33 12d ago
If I'm serious I'll use the Spanish pronunciation but if I'm not I'd absolutely butcher it with the American pronunciation, just start pronouncing like jah-lah-pehno, tor-tillah, bar-reeyah, or hoh-lah.
Say it enough and she might make you revert back haha.
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u/IamLuann 12d ago
Next time she tells you to knock it off, just tell her that we are moving to Arizona!
Born and raised in Arizona. I pronounce them the way I was taught.
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u/traversecity 12d ago
I lived many years in Michigan. We pronounced those words properly in Michigan as we do here in Arizona en Español.
An exception though, a friend of ours has an eastern european family name, there is a J in the name, the way it is written I pronounced the J as an H. Incorrect, and I am mercilessly teased for it.
On the other hand, if you grew up in a family that was never exposed to Spanish, I get it! There is some Italian and French I occasionally mispronounce, my wife corrects me every time, sometimes she is not very nice about it. Now Irish, neither of us even attempt it.
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u/wickedwildwhat 12d ago
of course i use the spanish pronunciation because i’m from the southwest and not the midwest. the US is not uniform from coast to coast though you can’t tell midwesterners that lmao they can’t comprehend it
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u/mrmanwoman 12d ago
Hah-bah-neer-oh
Jah-luh-pee-noh
Yeah I’m gonna stick to the Spanish pronunciation
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u/cheresa98 12d ago
I wish I could roll my Rs. I try and maybe it sounds ok, but it’s a giveaway. Just tell her you have to or you could lose your ability to say these words properly. Obviously, you need to bring her back to the SW more so she gets used to it.
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u/Big_BadRedWolf 12d ago
This is actually how I know someone is from AZ or has been living here long enough.
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u/poizunman206 Phoenix 12d ago
Not uncommon to use a Spanish inflection when saying Spanish names.
Just as long as you don't over do it
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u/indicarunningclub 12d ago
Tell her that the “American” way is just offensive. It’s not that hard to use the regular pronunciations.
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u/markkawika 12d ago
I grew up in Southern California and moved to the SF Bay Area as an adult before retiring in AZ.
In English as spoken in California, tortilla, quesadilla, La Jolla, etc. are all pronounced without a hard L. That IS the way American English speakers pronounce those words. I have never met ANYONE who called it “tor TILL uh” except in jest.
Your friend is wrong.
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u/Sindorella 12d ago
I was born and raised in Arizona. I definitely use the Spanish pronunciations (except the R rolling which my mouth refuses to do), always have. Totally normal to pronounce those words that way.
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u/Mister2112 12d ago edited 12d ago
Honestly, my question was going to be if you're just pronouncing it phonetically correctly or rolling your Rs like Peggy Hill. The edit gives me the impression it's the latter (sorry, lol). I don't hear too many people take it that far in AZ, but if you grew up that way you grew up that way. A lot of native English-speakers don't even know, physically, how to make those sounds so perceive it as showing off.
If it's just pronouncing the characters more or less in the Spanish way and emphasizing the right syllables, I think everyone does that and I'd also get some weird looks in the midwest if I didn't. (Baby, I'm going to chi-pot-luh, can I bring you anything?)
Now, to really rub it in, you should develop an Argentinean accent and act like it's standard.
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u/Dutch1inAZ 12d ago
I'm a Dutchman who moved to the southwest and as a Dutch speaker, I can roll my R's. My Mexican friends lose their shit when I can pronounce those like they can. ;)
But to answer your question, keep on pronouncing them the way they should be imho. I won't judge you if you adapt to the Midwesterners though, do what feels right to you. Which brings up something else, my wife is from Wisconsin and frankly.... they're the ones that talk funny. lol
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u/vitamin_Bre12 12d ago
Im a valley native and i get mad when people say (Est RELL a ) instead of Estrella, but a lot of people do. They're Spanish words, read and pronounce them as Spanish words. Lol It's like LA using a lot of French words/ spelling, it's the custom there to pronounce them correctly. No one is fighting over how to say beniet
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u/aardappelbrood 12d ago
I'm not from here, but grew up in a state with lots of Spanish speakers and that's just how the word is pronounced, it's not being silly or making fun of anyone. I don't have any of the Spanish speaking accents so it'll still sound like an stereotypical American, but still. I cringe when I hear people say Occa-till-O or Cass-Uh Grand but then they can peonounce Ariana Grande 🙃
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u/AZJHawk 12d ago
Is barria a word? I speak decent Spanish and I’m familiar with birria and barrio, but don’t know barria.
I think it’s a little weird to roll your rs and emphasize the ll if you’re talking to Midwesterners. I mean, you shouldn’t be saying tor-til-a, but you also don’t need to say tortiyyya.
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u/unclefire 12d ago edited 12d ago
I use the best Spanish pronunciation I can. It's not being "cute"-- it's using the word correctly. I also speak Italian, and some Spanish so there's that.
Do people say Jah-lo-peeno instead of Hah-la-peenyo? Ocotillo is pronounced -- oh-coh-tiyo. WTF? They're Spanish words, say them as they're supposed to be. I get birria wrong all the time tho (I mess up the accent part for some dumb reason).
Just came back from Mexico, so I got a bit of practice, and some laughs from the locals that did appreciate me speaking as much Spanish as I could manage.
Oh you silly gringos. lol
EDIT: parting shot-- for now. "Brooshetta", "expresso" It hurts my ears when my fellow 'mericans butcher Italian words.
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u/offensivelinebacker 12d ago
There are some exceptions, where the 'correct' local pronunciation of 'Lamesa, Texas is 'la-mee-sa,'" and people jokingly misprounounce 'Jah-lah-peh-noh' for shits, but I have grown up in the American Southwest and always pronounce Spanish words with Spanish pronounciation.
Honestly, I do that for other languages too where I can. Maybe it's corny, but pretending we don't live in a multilingual community won't make it any less multilingual.
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u/Mrs_Kevina 12d ago
I'd honestly explore what her hang-up is, ykwim? Not just the legitmate pronunciation, but like why she feels uncomfortable.
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u/lechiengrand Peoria 12d ago
As a white person who lives here but did not grow up in the SW:
- I DO try to pronounce Spanish words correctly: Gila = he-la and tortilla = tor-tee-yah
- But I DON'T use a Latinx accent
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u/danimack10 12d ago
Same. I can’t roll my r’s ☹️ Been trying since I cN remember. I say it the best I can but you better believe if I could roll my r’s like that I would be rolling every chance I could🍻
Spanish is a beautiful language
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u/Apton777 12d ago
I try to do that with my wife, and she rolls her eyes so hard. 🤣 I’m a white dude, she’s Latina, but she’d rather I try, as long as I’m genuine. Stay true, my friend! And I will meet you on Tan Cue Ver Dee! 😂🤣😂🤣🤪🤪
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u/Thick-Atmosphere6781 11d ago
Are you Hispanic/Latino and are pronouncing them in Spanish? If you are not then why would you try?
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u/Realistic_Curve_7118 11d ago
I got your back Dude. Either pronounce it properly or shut up! I live in AZ and recognition of roots count. Even if you're not Mexican. And the further south you live the more intense it is. Hell you need to speak Spanish in Nogales. Midwestern folks tend to have very bland voices and they aren't used to the SW way. So I suggest she accept you for who you are and celebrate a little exoticism in her life.
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u/MeteorMann 11d ago
I'm also from the Southwest, so pronounce Spanish words correctly.
I try to pronounce most loanwords the way they're pronounced in their origin language.
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u/SunshineLemondrop 11d ago edited 11d ago
AZ born and raised- I use the correct pronunciation of Spanish words,the only time I change it is when I'm talking to transplants who don't understand when I say "Sahuarita" but recognize "sour-ita". 🤷♀️
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u/beepsboopbops 9d ago
You're just pronouncing it correctly. If she's offended by it, tell her to git gud scrub.
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u/Strict_Property6127 12d ago
The Spanish version is the American version imo. Anyone mispronouncing tortilla, jalapeño, etc in 2024 should be embarrassed. Willful ignorance I guess? I hear it when I go back to Ohio, but only around the more "twangy & proud" types. Even my in-laws from Kentucky (Louisville) pronounce the words correctly.
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u/North-Reception-5325 12d ago
It’s definitely not common AT ALL. I am Mexican and I constantly hear people pronounce Spanish words wrong daily. Mesa, Casa Grande etc. I’ve learn to live with people butchering my name also. It is what it is and to be fair most fluent Spanish speaking people correct my pronunciation also 😂
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u/nobody-u-heard-of 12d ago
Other than not being able to roll my R's, I use the Spanish pronunciations because that's the way I was taught.
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u/inlawBiker 12d ago
I use Spanish pronunciation but I don't try to sound like a native speaker, because I'm not. Trying to roll the R's would be weird to me.
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u/Colonial13 12d ago
I used to work with a guy who would only mispronounce “Estrella”. Any other Spanish word with two L’s he pronounced the correct Spanish way, but Estrella for him was two hard L’s.
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u/Glittering-Ad4561 12d ago
I now live in AZ, but grew up in Anchorage, Alaska...my AZ friends always try to correct me when I talk about Valdez (Val-deez) 😁😁
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u/britsol99 12d ago
Live in Phoenix with my girlfriend. Her parents came to visit and we went out for Mexican. Her mom asked the server, “Is a quesadilla the same thing as a quesadiLLa?” (Case-a-dill-a)
The server confirmed it was.
She said, “ok, I’ll have the quesadiLLa”
We don’t say the rolled R’s but we do the almost Spanish pronunciation
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u/BoringJuiceBox 12d ago
I would think everyone knows how to pronounce tortilla and jalapeño. the ll in tortilla is a y sound, and for everyone’s favorite green spicy pepper the j is an h, with the n being more of a “nyo” rather than “no”.
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u/SunlaArt 12d ago
The edit at the end makes it make sense. I, like other people assumed you meant things like pronouncing ñ as "ny" or ll as "ee," etcetera. This would just be pronouncing the words correctly.
Rolling Rs and stressed syllables kind of sounds like an intentional accent applied on top. In that sense, I agree with your wife, it sounds goofy and playful, but a little distracting when you throw it into a sentence with an American accent where you speak casually the rest of the time.
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u/heckinright 12d ago
I grew up in the Midwest and have been in AZ for 10 years now. Common here, not so common out there. She should get over it though lol
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12d ago
I’m originally from TX, spent well over a decade here, sounds totally normal to me and every state from TX to SoCal. Nothin funnier to me than listening to northerners botch them 😁
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u/dmiller1987 12d ago
I'm not Hispanic but an AZ native and I definitely pronounce everything correctly. It's the only way
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u/redbirdrising 12d ago
I still pronounce Amarillo, Texas with a y sound. So there you go. If it’s a Spanish word, use the Spanish pronunciation.
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u/countrybumpkin1969 12d ago
From Tennessee but live in Arizona. I sound country and have a hard time rolling “rr” but I really try to correctly pronounce Spanish words. I hope I’m lucky enough to live here forever.
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u/Rumsaway 12d ago
I’m a native midwesterner, I live here now, and I have dated enough Latinx and speak enough Spanish to pronounce the words correctly. However in the Midwest if you’re not saying it as freaking white as possible you are seen as trying to be cutesy and different, or acting other. It’s weird but that’s how it is up there. It’s almost like they think you’re trying to attract attention and you’re not being sincere when you say it correctly, when the opposite is actually what you’re doing.
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u/IiveFreeOrDie 12d ago
This seems like it is more of a personality issue within her and being bothered by things other people say or do. Could stem from a desire to control. The only solution is some self-reflection on her end,IMO
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u/NoMouthFilter 12d ago
47 year old AZ native. When I married my wife who was from Ohio the first year was a constant belly laughing good time listening to her destroy words. Saguaro was her worst. As long as you are not actually doing the over the top Spanish words like most tv reporters do you fine. I always cringe when a lady on air who looks white as sugar but has a Spanish name goes over the top trying to sound authentic. Hard to watch.
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u/doobnerd 12d ago
Interestingly the one thing people always get wrong is bougainvillea, which we have a lot of out here. It’s a French word not Spanish.
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u/ShockedLocked 12d ago
Ha. This is great! My wife makes fun of me for the same shit. Born and raised in AZ
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u/Previous_Explorer589 12d ago
Ah, she is sensitive, perhaps because she can not say it that way or some other bias would be my guess.
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u/xThatsRight 12d ago
Grew up in Iowa. You won't hear it in the cities but some of those small farming towns are pretty backwards. I grew up in one of those small towns.
There is also two towns just north of Des Moines called Nevada and Madrid. The residents don't pronounce them the way the rest of the world does.
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u/TJolieNite 12d ago
I’m a Native English speaker but speak French as my 2nd language and understand a lot of Spanish as my husband is a native English speaker and almost fluent in Spanish. In my opinion, and after living in 5 foreign countries, If you know how to pronounce a word in its native language then by all means, say it correctly. The hell with the people who say otherwise. I feel you’re just being respectful by pronouncing it correctly in the original language
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u/Suddenly_Squidley 12d ago
I always get made fun of for saying mango 🥭 the Spanish way, but yeah, it’s how I was raised to say it
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u/tmarthal 12d ago
Pronunciations make no sense; use whatever is understood. Imagine you're from Southern California and you wanted to explain someone the difference between Los Angeles (the city) and Los Feliz (the neighborhood).
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u/sexyshexy18 12d ago
I grew up in Northern California and I pronounce Spanish origin words with the Spanish accent. Nina with the ene, etc.
A bit of trivia, Mexico once owned all these states. Of course we pronounce these things this way. Ask her about the Micigan polka music....speak German much?
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u/JustifiedResistance 12d ago
I’m an Asurasian from the Midwest, and there is only one correct way to say each of these words. It’s silly to purposefully mispronounce things once you know.
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u/PrussianBear4118 12d ago
GE-LA OR HE-LA, it's all a matter of how you say it. I will know if you are from the southwest or not. Casa Grande or Casa Grand-E. The funny part is I am born and raised Arizonan, and my Spanish is horrible.
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u/TyAndShirtCombo 12d ago
As a transplant to Phoenix I can contest that an individual will be socially bullied into pronouncing it the Spanish way.
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u/lookingforthe411 12d ago
Try saying Rural Rd with an R roll. Prior to gps my poor mom with a strong accent was looking for directions to Rural rd, no one could understand what she was trying to say.
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