| Author |
Topic:
The Vietnamese family name 'Nguyen'
|
rsterling78
Registered:
May '02
|
Date Posted:
5/15 10:17pm
Subject:
The Vietnamese family name 'Nguyen'
|
The Vietnamese family name 'Nguyen' -- which, as I understand it, is derived from and roughly equivalent to the Chinese family name 'Ruan' -- is the most common surname in Vietnam.
In English, it is generally pronounced 'Win'. So, why isn't it spelled 'W - I - N'? Since it's just a transliteration of a name from a language that doesn't use the English alphabet, wouldn't this make more sense?
'Nguyen' looks like it should be pronounced something like 'NEG-OOH-YEN'.
How the blazes do you get 'Win' from 'Nguyen'?
|
|
|
Quote Reply |
Active Topic Notification |
Private Message |
Post History
|
Darth_Guy
Registered:
Aug '02
|
Date Posted:
5/15 10:18pm
Subject:
RE: The Vietnamese family name 'Nguyen'
|
|
The pronunciation's actually a bit more complicated that "win."
-----signature-----
Gravity has taken better men than me.
|
|
|
Quote Reply |
Active Topic Notification |
Private Message |
Post History
|
KnightWriter
Title:
Administrator Emeritus
Registered:
Nov '01
|
Date Posted:
5/15 10:18pm
Subject:
RE: The Vietnamese family name 'Nguyen'
- Date Edited:
5/15 10:20pm (1 edits total)
Edited By:
KnightWriter
|
|
It's basically "Chun-win." Just how it is.
-----signature-----
"May you live all the days of your life"
Tracy Flick lost.
"It's kinda hard to stay the course when you've reached the end of the road and you're off-roading in a Kia."--506
|
|
|
Quote Reply |
Active Topic Notification |
Private Message |
Post History
|
Obi-Zahn Kenobi
Registered:
Aug '99
|
Date Posted:
5/15 10:19pm
Subject:
RE: The Vietnamese family name 'Nguyen'
|
|
I pronounce it with an initial, voiced, velar nasal.
-----signature-----
life's a piece of ****, when you look at it
life's a laugh and death's a joke it's true
you'll see it's all a show, just keep 'em laughing as you go
just remember that the last laugh is on you!
|
|
|
Quote Reply |
Active Topic Notification |
Private Message |
Post History
|
rsterling78
Registered:
May '02
|
Date Posted:
5/15 10:25pm
Subject:
RE: The Vietnamese family name 'Nguyen'
|
I'm sure there are nuances to pronouncing the name, but in the real world 'Win' is pretty much what you're going to get from the average English speaker. So why is the transliterated spelling so different from the pronunciation?
|
|
|
Quote Reply |
Active Topic Notification |
Private Message |
Post History
|
Leoni_Don
Registered:
May '08
|
Date Posted:
5/15 10:26pm
Subject:
RE: The Vietnamese family name 'Nguyen'
|
|
There's about five Vietnamese kids in my school who have that last name. There not related though. Scary... jk
-----signature-----
Padawan of TheGuardianofArlon
|
|
|
Quote Reply |
Active Topic Notification |
Private Message |
Post History
|
rsterling78
Registered:
May '02
|
Date Posted:
5/15 10:26pm
Subject:
RE: The Vietnamese family name 'Nguyen'
|
Leoni_Don posted:
There's about five Vietnamese kids in my school who have that last name. There not related though. Scary... jk
I think about 40% of Vietnamese have this family name.
|
|
|
Quote Reply |
Active Topic Notification |
Private Message |
Post History
|
GrandAdmiralJello
Title:
Emperor
• EUC
• JCC
Registered:
Nov '00
|
Date Posted:
5/15 10:35pm
Subject:
RE: The Vietnamese family name 'Nguyen'
|
|
There aren't just nuances to pronouncing the name, but there are also various different authentic pronunciations for it.
-----signature-----
Roma Æterna|SPQR  Imperium Sine Fine "Moribus antiquis res stat Romana virisque" -Ennius, Annales "Tu regere imperio populos, Romanæ, memento;hæ tibi erunt artes; pascisque imponere morem, parcere subjectis et debellare superbos" -Virgil, Aeneid
|
|
|
Quote Reply |
Active Topic Notification |
Private Message |
Post History
|
DarthLassic007
Registered:
Nov '02
|
Date Posted:
5/15 10:40pm
Subject:
RE: The Vietnamese family name 'Nguyen'
|
Darth_nGuyen?
-----signature-----
Veni, Vidi, Vici. - Julius Caesar
|
|
|
Quote Reply |
Active Topic Notification |
Private Message |
Post History
|
jp-30
Registered:
Dec '00
|
Date Posted:
5/15 10:41pm
Subject:
RE: The Vietnamese family name 'Nguyen'
|
rsterling78 posted:
So, why isn't it spelled 'W - I - N'? Since it's just a transliteration of a name from a language that doesn't use the English alphabet, wouldn't this make more sense?
I agre, becoz evry word in english is speld foneticly to.
-----signature-----
`1234567890-=
qwertyuiop[]
asdfghjkl;'\
\zxcvbnm,./
|
|
|
Quote Reply |
Active Topic Notification |
Private Message |
Post History
|
rumsmuggler
Registered:
Aug '00
|
Date Posted:
5/15 10:44pm
Subject:
RE: The Vietnamese family name 'Nguyen'
|
jp-30 posted:
rsterling78 posted:
So, why isn't it spelled 'W - I - N'? Since it's just a transliteration of a name from a language that doesn't use the English alphabet, wouldn't this make more sense?
I agre, becoz evry word in english is speld foneticly to.
-----signature-----
" Conan, what's best in life?" " Crush your enemies, see them driven before you and hear the lamentations of the women."
W.W.L.D. What Would Lando Do
"Why is the rum always gone?"
Retcons = making the dumb stuff look even dumber.
|
|
|
Quote Reply |
Active Topic Notification |
Private Message |
Post History
|
DarthButt
Title: Manager
• Classic Trilogy
Registered:
Jun '03
|
Date Posted:
5/15 10:46pm
Subject:
RE: The Vietnamese family name 'Nguyen'
|
Also because all Vietnamese words basically have one syllable. 
|
|
|
Quote Reply |
Active Topic Notification |
Private Message |
Post History
|
GrandAdmiralJello
Title:
Emperor
• EUC
• JCC
Registered:
Nov '00
|
Date Posted:
5/15 10:52pm
Subject:
RE: The Vietnamese family name 'Nguyen'
|
oh, and also:
Since it's just a transliteration of a name from a language that doesn't use the English alphabet, wouldn't this make more sense?
If the spelling was changed to be phoenetic, then it wouldn't be a transliteration anymore. 
-----signature-----
Roma Æterna|SPQR Imperium Sine Fine "Moribus antiquis res stat Romana virisque" -Ennius, Annales "Tu regere imperio populos, Romanæ, memento;hæ tibi erunt artes; pascisque imponere morem, parcere subjectis et debellare superbos" -Virgil, Aeneid
|
|
|
Quote Reply |
Active Topic Notification |
Private Message |
Post History
|
Leoni_Don
Registered:
May '08
|
Date Posted:
5/15 10:52pm
Subject:
RE: The Vietnamese family name 'Nguyen'
|
|
I've talked to my Vietnamese friend and they have like 4 a's, 4 o's, 2 v's, and 2 w's lol
-----signature-----
Padawan of TheGuardianofArlon
|
|
|
Quote Reply |
Active Topic Notification |
Private Message |
Post History
|
DarthButt
Title: Manager
• Classic Trilogy
Registered:
Jun '03
|
Date Posted:
5/15 10:56pm
Subject:
RE: The Vietnamese family name 'Nguyen'
|
|
That's how they distinguish all their words, since some of them are spelled the same. If "á" is in a word, it completely changes the meaning than if simply "a" is in the same word.
|
|
|
Quote Reply |
Active Topic Notification |
Private Message |
Post History
|
rsterling78
Registered:
May '02
|
Date Posted:
5/15 11:00pm
Subject:
RE: The Vietnamese family name 'Nguyen'
|
Okay, until I get a straight answer from somebody, I'm pronouncing the name 'NehGooYen.'
rsterling78: Hello there, Mr. NehGooYen.
Nguyen: Hi. Uh, if you don't mind, my name is pronounced 'Win.'
rsterling78: Sorry, if you're going to transliterate it that way, I'm afraid I'm going to pronounce it NehGooYen.
Nguyen: But that's not my name, rsterling78.
rsterling78: rsterling78? That's not my name. My name is Hiram Sergeyevich Kowalewski. It's just spelled 'rsterling78'.
|
|
|
Quote Reply |
Active Topic Notification |
Private Message |
Post History
|
