Ep-Steen Or Ep-Stine?

[mushroom25]

Jeremy Corbyn under fire for mispronouncing Jeffrey Epstein's name
https://metro.co.uk/2019/11/20/jeremy-corbyn-accused-anti-semitism-pronunciation-epsteins-name-11186885/

deliberate slur, or honest mistake? at school I learned that in German, E before I is pronounced "aye" - or is it the case jewish names do not adhere to that rule?

[Deskdiary]

As much as I despise this man, I think it is entirely absurd the amount of flak he’s receiving over this.

[jno]

agree with Gromit, pronouncing the S as SH sounds more German than Jewish to me. But since Wikipedia points out that his parents were indeed Jewish, I can't see how the pronunciation of his name would make him more Jewish.

[ladybirder]

As I said, according to my German friends it should be pronounced by the 2nd vowel therefore Epstein should be 'stine' which actually agrees with what mush is saying.

[Old_Geezer]

Who should care. Best to Abstain.

[Peter Pedant]

hi moosh-eh
it is how the owner says it is pronounced innit?

(a bit like towns - tarnton as Taunton is an exception - and Launceston ( larnston ) in Cornwall is lorn-cess-ton in oz).

there was a thirties' limerick whcih i dont think is anti semitic - which others might recollect

there was a family called Stein
there is gert and ep and Ein,
one writes bunk
the other carves junk
and no one can understand Ein

gertrude stein came out with things like
a rose is a rose is a rose

epstein carved figures for the new BMA house ( 1930) which enraged the London crowd so much that they scaled the walls of the house tore off the statues and destroyed them. no not THAT BMA house, the one in the strand which became Rhodesia House and is now Zim House

[davebro]

Kojak calls one of his men Sapersteen !

[jourdain2]

Nothing to do with any Jewish connection that I can see - it is German in origin. Stein (stine) = stone and, more cheerfully, beer-mug. The 'steen' pronunciation irritates me, but whatever his family wanted is their concern. As a child, my dentist was called Mr. Lever, but his Polish parents were Liebrowich - so he Anglicised it.

[mushroom25]

//(a bit like towns - tarnton as Taunton is an exception - and Launceston ( larnston ) in Cornwall is lorn-cess-ton in oz). //

the county town of Shropshire is pronounced Shrowsbury. which is odd because the nickname of their football team would then be the shrows, which doesn't make sense.

[dannyk13]

Jourdain
//While few names are specifically Jewish, there are certain surnames that are more commonly found among Jews:

Names ending in -berg (Weinberg, Goldberg)
Names ending in -stein (Einstein, Hofstein)

[jourdain2]

^^ Thanks dannyk - I've just learned something. :)

[MargoTester]

Stine- as in beer tankard

[dannyk13]

Margo, not in America where it is commonly steen

[Peter Pedant]

wartime joke of a Pole taking an eye test
can you red out the fifth line please ?
read it out - I now the fellow !

thirty years later a polish director asked us brits why we called one of his colleagues Shamak?
and I said no one can say Przemek

(they can say the p and r and z separately - we couldnt)
o it was short for Przemyslaw
and the el had a thingey froo it so it was a "waw"

[TheDevil]

Dead criminal is adequate enough for me. Stein or not.

[Peter Pedant]

hi moosheh again
Shrowsbury

when I was there at the Hoooooospitallllll ! now in the news, the townspeople kept on telling me it was Shroo
and only the posh private skool was shrow as in throw

I felt like saying no it isnt

[MargoTester]

Maybe Danny but I'm English :-)

[davebro]

Shrow or Shrew - I think it's about 50/50!

[mushroom25]

//Shrow or Shrew - I think it's about 50/50! //

not quite. some of those locals who don't use the "o" version, pronounce the "e" version without the "r".

[THECORBYLOON]

According to Stephen Fry in one of the QI episodes a few year ago, the surname "Tollemache-Tollemache" is pronounced "Toolmake-Tollmash" so how are folk meant to know that?

[maggiebee]

Does anyone really care how it is pronounced? Just call him Paedo!