How Do You Pronounce N-E-W-F-O-U-N-D-L-A-N-D Anyway?

Accent on the first or last syllable; never the middle; and no mumbling ▬ 

Sources: 

→ The Canadian Oxford Dictionary, 2nd ed., 2005, https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780195418163.001.0001/acref-9780195418163. || 

→ Davy Holden [@davyholden]. “How to Pronounce ‘NEWFOUNDLAND’ for Dummys,” TikTok, March 8, 2023, https://www.tiktok.com/@davyholden/video/7208255890695212293?lang=en. ||

→ Introduction. Dictionary of Newfoundland English, edited by G.M. Story, W.J. Kirwin, and J.D.A. Widdowson, 2nd ed with suppl., 1982, https://www.heritage.nf.ca/dictionary/introduction-page-four.php. ||

→ “newfoundland, n.” Dictionary of Newfoundland English, edited by G.M. Story, W.J. Kirwin, and J.D.A. Widdowson, 2nd ed with suppl., 1982, https://www.heritage.nf.ca/dictionary/#3057. ||

→ “Newfoundland, noun.” Merriam-Webster Unabridged, 2024, https://unabridged.merriam-webster.com/unabridged/newfoundland. ||

→ “Newfoundland, noun.” OED: Oxford English Dictionary, 2024, https://www.oed.com/dictionary/newfoundland_n?tab=pronunciation#34723601. ||

→ Vocab Today. “How to Pronounce Newfoundland,” YouTube, Sept. 27, 2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrdNJah3A1c.||▬

Transcript

Hi, I’m Wayne Jones. Welcome to Newfoundland Boy, a podcast about me and the Canadian province of Newfoundland. This is episode 24: “How Do You Pronounce N-E-W-F-O-U-N-D-L-A-N-D Anyway?”

As I’ve routinely mentioned any time on this podcast when I am talking about language, there are kind of, sort of no rights and wrongs. It is always usage that is the overriding criterion, that is, what is right in the spelling and meaning of a word, and in style and grammar—and, yes, also in pronunciation, is what people commonly do. So in effect what I’ll be talking about in part in this episode is really: how can you pronounce the name of the province without a resident immediately knowing that you are from away, not from here?

I might be contradicted on this by my own fellow residents, but I consider that there are two pronunciations that are, to use a categorical word, acceptable. One is with the accent or stress on the first syllable and the other is with the stress on the last syllable. That is:

NEW-fun-land or

new-fun-LAND

And there are variants even in these two as well, with the main one being that many Newfoundlanders don’t pronounce the d in the -land part:

NEW-fun-lan or

new-fun-LAN

And just as there are these two pronunciations that would allow you to blend in quite easily, there are two other pronunciations that would mark you as an outside immediately:

new-FOUND-lund or

NEW-fund-lund

I’m confident that the two former pronunciations won’t get you any odd or disapproving looks if you speak the province’s name in a group of Newfies. There’s also an element of respect to using one of these two as well, or an indication that even if they do know that you’re from another province or country, you’ve made some effort to at least get one of the basics right.

It’s the same as in many other situations that don’t involve Newfoundland at all. I used to be the chief librarian at one of Canada’s universities, and one of the perks was that I was entitled to be among the VIP guests on stage during the student graduation ceremonies. I didn’t speak, I just sat and applauded, but many of the deans or other senior executives at the university often did their research to ensure that they pronounced each student’s name correctly before they made their way across the stage and received their diploma. And, believe me, it wasn’t all Smiths and Joneses.

It’s similar also to how you use the language in other countries, too. Take some time to learn your Merci and your S’il vous plaît before you go to Paris. And before you arrive in Germany, take your time to learn your Danke schön—that’s schön no matter how many times Wayne Newton thinks its shane.

So, back across the Atlantic, and here we are in Newfoundland again. The internet being the way it is, with a plethora of information and opinion, there are two categories of pronunciation sites that contradict my assertion that there are two correct pronunciations of the island’s name.

One are the sites that, intentionally or not, and based on accurate evidence or not, recommend exactly one of the pronunciations that I consider very non-standard in Newfoundland. They are basically recommending a pronunciation for an outsider, and not a pronunciation so that an outsider can blend in. So by that standard, NEW-fun-lund is recommended. For example, one YouTube video makes it clear that “The pronunciation of the word newfoundland in American accent is demonstrated in this video.”

It’s kind of analogous to how any almost English speaker outside of sticklers and professors pronounce the name of a famous writer from the 20th century and a famous painter from the 19th century. For the writer, the author of Lolita, people generally say VLA-duh-mere NA-buh-koff, when some others pronounce it as a Russian would: vla-DEE-mere nah-BUCK-off. And as for the Post-Impressionist painter, people generally say van-GO and not van-GUFF.

Some of the other sites that contradict me are actually Newfoundland-based, but I disagree with them limiting it to one. For example, @davyholden has a funny TikTok video where he makes it clear what the one pronunciation is. Take a listen (it’s only a minute, and actually worth watching the video, which I’ve linked to in the show notes).

In contrast to this is the common short advice that Newfoundlanders give to whoever might ask about the pronunciation, but suggesting what it rhymes with and where the stresses are: “Newfoundland, understand?”

So on the other hand, when I searched out some sources that are less popular and more “academic,” so to speak, that is, as recorded in dictionaries, I found an interesting mix. The Dictionary of Newfoundland English was a bit disappointing in this regard: it offers no pronunciation guidance at all, as it does do for almost all the other words in the dictionary. Instead there’s just the phrase “Phonetics Unavailable” in square brackets. In the introduction to the dictionary, the editors explain this, though I have to admit to not quite understanding what they are getting at:

The phonetic transcription of the word to be exemplified is given in square brackets after the designation of the part of speech. … In the few cases where two or more pronunciation variants have the same strongly stressed vowel … [Phonetics Unavailable] precedes [Phonetics Unavailable].

In the great Oxford English Dictionary, several pronunciations are given, but it’s important to remember that the OED is a descriptive dictionary that shows how words are used and pronounced, not how someone thinks they should be used and pronounced. The American Merriam-Webster dictionary gives only, alas, NEW-fun-lund. And the Canadian Oxford Dictionary offers four: NEW-fund-land (with a bit of stress on the land part), NEW-fund-lund, NEW-fund-land, and NYU-fund-lund.

So there you have it as far as pronunciation goes. As you can see, even the seemingly most simple things, even just a single word and how it’s pronounced, is often more complicated than you might imagine.

And that’s all for this episode. Thanks for listening. And please join me again next Tuesday.