Saturday, March 5, 2011

Made in USA but name made in Brazil

Dear Ms. Church

I am a volunteer EFL teacher here in Brazil and I have a little problem.  My problem involves the pronunciation of Brazilian names.  I recenlty took on a new class, even though the class is voluntary, at the start of the class I create a register to help me remember the students names (these registers are pretty fluid, students leaving and joining over the course of a couple of weeks).

We started the class with introductions as I normally do and me writing the student names down on the register.  There were the usual Marcios, Evertons, Cybelles (pron SI - BELL - EE, 3 syllables), Clebersons etc. Until I got to a girl called: Madeinusa (pron: MA - DE - IN - US - A, 5 syllables).  Once  I had practiced the pronunciation, she helped me spell it and I wrote in down on the register - to my somewhat horror,  I realized that her name was "Made in USA".

My question is this.  Should I pronounce her name as a Brazilian would or should I pronounce her name as an American would if he/she read her name from a list.  If she ever went to the US, that is what people would call her

Gentle Reader

Of course you should pronounce her name as a Brazilian would.  You are in Brazil.  Yes, you are teaching English but names are very personal and part of our identity.  The spelling of her name may be amusing to English speakers and I see nothing wrong with pointing this out to her but I believe it would serve no purpose to refer to her as "Made in USA" during your lessons.  Can you imagine: "Let's work in pairs, Cleberson, can you work with Made in USA, please?"

Once when Ms. Church was working in Japan she remebers having a student named Nobohiro who insisted on everyone in the class calling him "Nob".  Ms. Church, is not British, but she is keenly aware that in British English a "knob" (same pronunciation as Nob) is slang for a, uhhhhum, penis.  Ms. Church went along with the nickname until it became known that the class would be doing a homestay in England and then decided that it was her duty to (quite uncomfortably) inform the student of the slang meaning. 

1 comment:

  1. kkkkkkkkkkkkkkk Seu Blog é muito bom! Ri muito com a "Made in usa" kkkk Parabéns, e todo amor que houver nessa vida pra você =)

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