 Poster: A snowHead
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Any other Snowheads continually exasperated that folk think that there's a resort in France called Courcheval??
Come to think of it, I might start a movement to call a nearby resort Meribal.......
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Or Vel Thorens.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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it's no use getting wound up about poor spelling. Loads of it about. If people can't spell in English there's little hope that they'll do better in French. Though I did just add a pedantic note about superfluous apostrophes to one of my posts!
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I heard a South African went to the three velleys.
I'm with you, mountainaddict. People always seem to say it that way too. 
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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mountainaddict, well according to the Courcheval Tourist Offie you can spell it either way... http://www.courchevel.com/courchevel/courcheval.html
A bit like Chamouny/Chamonix, Champolux/Champoluc, etc....
Last edited by Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do. on Thu 14-02-08 13:51; edited 1 time in total
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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I thought it was Comradevel
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David Murdoch, Ouch!!! How does he feel now 
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Spyderman, 
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Poor spelling on web forums - not sure it's the most pressing of the world's problems 
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Don't start me on this. My workmate was convinced that i was going skiing to The Gents.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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First non Swiss (or visitor) to pronounce Chateau d' Oex correctly wins the pize 
Last edited by And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports. on Thu 14-02-08 14:13; edited 1 time in total
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boredsurfin, I can... and it's only 8 kms away .. a decent bottle of red please...
Spelt ...'Full-of-Brits-and hot-air-balloons'
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You know it makes sense.
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I've been correcting my family's pronunciation of La Thuile ever since I booked the trip 6 months ago. And I never figured out how to say 'Sauze D'Oulx' during my whole time there.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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The (resident) resort manager for one of the most respected UK ski operators in possibly the best known ski resort on this forum calls it "La Rozeeay"
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Poster: A snowHead
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boredsurfin, shat-oh-day. Dunno how you pronounce that stupid name though...
I have problems with Champéry/Chambéry. My French housemate is continually correcting me despite the fact I pronounce it exactly like he does. Shom-bai-ree, Shom-pai-ree...
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Sharkymark, Troyes ? Reims ? same problem
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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boredsurfin,
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Troyes ? Reims ? same problem
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No. One of these (a prize will not be offered for a correct answer) has a specifically English version of both spelling and pronunciation. As Professor Higgins says in 'My Fair Lady', 'The French don't care what they say, so long as they pronounce it properly.' This can certainly not be applied to the English!
[edited for clarity]
Last edited by Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see? on Thu 14-02-08 15:01; edited 1 time in total
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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If you want great fitting boots you have to put up with poor spelling 
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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There was a barman in Val d'Isere who refused to know what the feck I was talking about when I said I was popping back via POLIN-YEE
He then finally figured it out. "Ah POLIYN-I - why did you not say?"
Poligny, and no doubt many other 'gn' sounds in French cut the 'y' (as in 'ye olde') at the 'n' rather than running it in to the following vowel.
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spyderjon, Saucer of milk?
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crosbie, nah, he was having you on. If you say the name quickly (a French person wouldn't pause even minutely before the last syllable, nor would he stress it) there is surely no difference between the two pronunciations. Also, I'd defy anyone with a normal tongue to pronounce the diphthong IYN!
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Hurtle, I'm not suggesting there's any pause by the hyphens, just using them to clarify where the difference lies.
Anyway, I'm now careful to pronounce it Poliyn-i rather than polin-yee. It can be done (without pausing or stress).
I daresay French have difficulty with some of our place names...
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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David Murdoch, That's really weird. The French version of that Courchevel website doesn't mention the name Courcheval at all. Maybe your bit was specially designed for ignorant Brits?
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Even the French don't agree on whether the final z is sounded in Avoriaz. Maybe it's a Savoie dialect thingy.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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crosbie, Sorry, I think I expressed myself badly. Having practised this out loud a bit, and Martigny too (sad, or what?!) I think that the 'Y' sound is virtually imperceptible anyway, but that - as you imply - the sound you end the name on is indeed 'ee' and not 'yee'.
I can't believe I'm having this discussion.... But then I do set a lot of store by good pronunciation and French people often say that they can't tell I'm not French (no particular talent on my part, just learned very young and had lots of family in France.)
And yes, a lot of the final sounded consonants are a regional thing eg the 's' in Gigondas is always sounded locally, but often not elsewhere in France. Also, in Belgium and in France, some people pronounce the 'x' in Bruxelles as 'x' and some as 's.' Dead confusing, but I guess not as impenetrable as some of our quirks of pronunciation.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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crosbie, Heh they can't even agree on the e at the end of La Plagne, so there's not a lot of hope for any of us really
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boredsurfin,
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the e at the end of La Plagne
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That's more a question of regional accent than of pronunciation. The Midi accent, for example, will always sound that 'e' quite strongly. Also, I think this is a case where there really is an audible 'y' sound indicated by the 'gn', and that's difficult to achieve if you don't sound that final 'e' at least a little bit.
[Memo to self: shut UP, this is paralysingly boring.]
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You know it makes sense.
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Hurtle, No it's not! boring I mean.
At Christmas a girl in the tourist office managed to pronounce La Plagne with a real 'metallic whang' sound to it and no final e at all, apparently she was from Marseilles (sp)
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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boredsurfin, Aah, you say the nicest things. The girl from Marseille (sp ) was obviously the exception that proved the rule!
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Poster: A snowHead
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The best example I can think of where a slight difference in ordering occurs in English is in pronouncing the word 'where'.
John Humphrys (or is it James Naughtie) on Radio 4's Today programme always irritates me when he says 'hwair' instead of 'wair'.
It seems that because there's an 'h' in it, folk have to try to pronounce it, and because it can't occur after the W they slip it in before.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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boredsurfin, did it sound like "la pleng"? That would be the Provencal accent. Tray byeng it is too.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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crosbie, I think it's the latter, on account of his hailing from north of the Border, hwair they can't help pronouncing it like that, for some reason. But you're right, it's never occurred to me that people who aspirate it actually put the 'h' in the wrong place. Well spotted.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Wear The Fox Hat,
Bang on. But an 'e' on the end of a word is - usually - sounded in the south, even in non-'gn' words like 'baguette'. Otherwise, the final 'e' is only sounded in such words when recited or sung (in classical music, a note is often actually assigned to it.)
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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It's NOT ****ing CourchevAl!!, it's M&S Courchevel.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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Talking of M&S I also hate the contracted 'oo' as in:
"It's not just fud but M&S fud."
Oh and don't mention other terrible mis-orderings like 'Excape for escape' or 'aks for ask'.
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Reims = Rahnss ?
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mountainaddict, skiing in a resort mentioning a "horse" or not, I know where he meant and I am sure you did also, so get over it!
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Before I started skiing I was convinced that Val des Ayres was a good place to go to. 
My "favourite" (not) resort is of course Marybelle (sometimes even contracted to "Maybelle")
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Nick L, I like the tour ops versions
Val despair
Merry hell etc
and of course the ops themselves, the best being, First Choice... Last resort
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FAQ
