With so many foreign brand names, designers, and terms, the world of interior design and home decor can be a linguistic and phonetic minefield. How do you pronounce the German appliance company Miele, for example? What about famed furniture maker Michael Thonet? Up until this week I said MEE-lee and Tho-NAY — not any more!
Identifying the authentic pronunciation is only half the battle, of course. Volkswagen is pronounced quite differently in Germany but German Americans living here are probably loath to say "I am driving a Foks vaagen" because it would sound pretentious and smug. On the other hand, shouldn't we make an effort to pronounce foreign words or names with some degree of accuracy? Is Arne Jacobsen going to go the path of Des Plaines, Illinois (hilariously pronounced Dez Playnes)? Is there a limit to the Americanization of words?
Well, it depends. Here are my guidelines:
1) Try to at least learn the correct way to say the word or name in its native tongue (even if you don't use it).
2) Decide whether this accurate pronunciation will be understood by most of the Americans around you.
3) Consider if your pronunciation will make you sound like a pretentious tool.
4) Take into account how widely known the name or word is. How instilled and established is the American pronunciation? For example, the Swedish pronunciation of IKEA (ee-KAY-uh) would sound pretentious because IKEA, as said with an American accent, is a household name here.
Case in Point: Miele. I recently learned from a German friend that the correct pronunciation of this German appliance company is "mee-luh". I doubt this pronunciation would confuse those around me. And I don't think saying "mee-luh" would make me look like a pedantic snob in part because people seem generally flummoxed about how to pronounce this particular brand. Americans have not yet settled on an acceptable Americanized version. Moreover, Miele (unlike Volkswagen) is not a household name nationwide.
Below is a list of difficult-to-pronounce or oft-mispronounced names and words in the home decor trade. With a little research (with help from polyglot friends, useful websites, and phone calls to company headquarters), I have taken a stab at the accurate pronunciations. Tell us if you disagree with my pronunciations or have any additions to this list!
Brands & Designers
Le Creuset: (French) Ler Crew-say.
Miele: (German) Mee-luh (to rhyme with Shiela).
Braun: (German) Brown
Charles and Ray Eames: (American) Eeemz (rhymes with "dreams")
Harry Bertoia: (Italian-American) Ber-toy-YA
Frank Gehry: (Canadian-American) Like the American name Gary
Arne Jacobsen: (Danish) Arn-aye YAH-cop-son
Hans Wegner: (Danish) Hans (ending in "s" not "z") Vine-nehr (with glottal stop at the end of "vine")
Le Corbusier: (Swiss) leh Core-BOO-zee-ay (hear it pronounced)
Georg Jensen: (Danish) Gyor Yen-sen (hard G on Georg)
Eero Saarinen: (Finnish American) Arrow Sar-in-en
Michael Thonet: (German, Austrian) Perhaps because we associate the Thonet bentwood chair with Parisian bistros and because his name looks so French, many Americans pronounce Thonet as Tho-NAY. But Thonet himself used the German pronunciation (TAWN-it). An Apartment Therapy reader named Harley confirmed this once on an Open Thread, “Anke says that the correct pronunciation rhymes with LAWN-at, the ‘h’ being silent.” Hear the name pronounced on Pronounce It Right.
Jargon and Vocabulary
Biedermeier. Bead er myer
Chaise longue: sheyz lawng, not sheyz LOUNGE
Bombe: bahm-BAY.
Chiffonier: shi-feh-NIR
Faux bois: foh-BWAH
Ikat: EE-kaht
Kilim: kee-LEEM
trompe l’oeil: tromp-LU-ih
Images: Clockwise from top left: 1stDibs, Amazon, Trendir, 1stDibs, Miele.
Resources:
Design Addict
Plinth and Chintz
Pronounce it Right
Time Magazine
Ellen's Thirties Style Small Space
Juan's Garage Turned Modern Guest House
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Commercial Flour Sa...
10 Picnic-Ready Salads to Eat Outside
Recipe: Thai Ginger Chicken Stir-Fry
I only have a JD and speak only 2, and I found this very helpful, which I think was the point of this entry. Thank you.
I found this very helpful. Now I won't get the stink eye when I go up to Hudson.
Pet peeve; hearing Americans say Iraq/Iran or Ste Croix.
It's E-rack/E-ran and Saynte Craw (rolled 'r').
And if any of you plan on visiting Montreal, the street "Pie IX" is not prounounced 'pie nine', as I often hear; it's pronounced 'pee nuf'. "Place des Arts" is not 'place dess arts'... it's 'plass days ahrz'.
Thank you.
Does anyone care what degree and number of languages I speak? ;-)
I would think that those who are highly educated and value language enough to be multilingual would appreciate this post's attempt to educate people about correct pronunciations. I certainly did.
Volkswagon isn't a brand. It's Volkswagen.
Le Crueset isn't a brand. It's Le Creuset.
I try to pronounce names correct but I don't really think about it. In the Netherlands quite a lot of words are 'borrowed' from other languages (German, English, French) so it's probably more natural for me as for the average American. Some brandnames are just hard to pronounce (Like Iittala) for people who are not from that region.
A lesson on pronunciation...
Wait, let's start on spelling, shall we?
Des Planes, Illinois > Des Plaines
Volkswagon > Volkswagen
Ah, yes! My bad on the spelling! Will correct now...Thanks!
Oh my god - you said PENDANTIC - I am a pedant and can tell you with authority, you got that one very wrong.
"Braun" is not "brown", it is "brawn". Trust me, I'm German.
I just stumbled upon a great website for this sort of thing: http://www.forvo.com
For the record, a somewhat not-so-nice comment preceding mine (which now has been removed) alluded to something about his/her possession of a PhD and being able to speak 5 languages making the post unnecessary! Anyway, thanks again for the write-up. I really think it's great info to have.
Very good post. Nothing is more pathetic like self called interior snob, foodie or fashionista can't pronounce names of classic brands, famous designers or chefs.
I would say you got everything in French except for one:
not Chiffonier: shi-feh-NIR
but Chiffonier: shi-foh-NI-ay
And it should be Le*h* Crew-say, but, close enough.
(Agree with modestalmond on Montreal pronounciations! But if you want an American -- such as my husband-- to find it, you shouldn't call it Marché Bonsecours, you should say "marchay bonne-saycourse". :)
Thank you for the useful post... and the reminder of how the most flattering light is that in which we appear generous, polite, and forgiving of each others' foibles (and accents).
Violette is right about the correct pronounciation for Chiffonier and Le Creuset, tho there is no emphasis in French, rather you elongate the last syllable a bit.
Chaise Longue is more like "chez long" with a hard "g" at the end.
Trompe l'Oiel is "tromp loy"
The one I hate on design shows is when they say "armoire" as "arm wah" to make it sound more French and thus give themselves some sophistication. It's pronounced pretty much how it's spelled "arm moir". If you want to impress and annoy, throw in a couple of nice French Rs!
AHAHAHA ...how amusing that you even need a post a like this. I love the irony of it!
This is the single most useful post on AT so far this year. Thanks!
Some of the phonetics are a little dodgy (eg Braun is "brawn", not "brown") but at least it gets people thinking about the correct pronunciation of these words. If I hear ONE MORE PERSON talking about their "chaise lounge"...
kenzilisa, thank you so much. in my town there is a famous French restaurant called "L'Etoile," and everyone trying to "sound more French" calls it "Lay-Twah" instead of "Lay-Twahle." Drives me crazy, even with my rudimentary knowledge of the French language.
And I totally agree that this is one of the best AT posts ever.
French words employ sounds we don't use in American English. For help, here's a great resource:
http://french.about.com/od/vocabulary/a/audiodictionary.htm
You can look up "etoile", "chaise", or "long" (don't worry, it's the same word), and click to hear the word pronounced properly.
great post. very interesting!
My family is Italian and My Grandfathers name is Miele. We pronounce it Mee•le
Sorry, Double post. And Miele means Honey in Italian.
Living in Houston, I love hearing the way people slaughter Ligne Roset and Roche Bobois. Gaggenau always seems to stump people and I confess I'm not entirely sure how it should be pronounced (G's as in go or giraffe?)
Yeah I always assumed Miele was the Italian word and pronounced it as such.
I learned about Thonet from my History of Interiors professor and totally didn't know what she was talking about until she got to the slides. Then I felt like a dork.
I think you just have to do your best without going overboard and sounding ridiculous - and the article is very helpful to avoid really messing some of these up. The problem is that a lot of the sounds involve forming your mouth in different ways than we do in English - so it's almost impossible to get right. Also depends on your native accent, e.g."Brown" might sound like "Brawn" in the author's accent :)
Aaah, reading this made me giggle. I found myself frowning and shaking my head, and then imagining an American accent and changing the direction of my head nodding!
Oh, and djiftex, Gaggenau is pronounced gaj-in-oh (At least according to my Kiwi accent!)
miele=mee-luh? the luh is wrong,
it's more like meal-eh (like in eh, what are you doing) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37ODyg81x9A
@djftex gaggenau is pronounced gah.gay.now the gah sound like the first part of gaga
@nottonyharrison: hahaha. gaj.in.oh rofl.
Braun is brown and NOT brawn. Pronounced with a hard r (think Nazis in the movies). Greetings from St. Pauli, Hamburg!
haha!
le Creuset is more "luh cr-uh zay" :o)
I wish you wouldn't post these (otherwise useful) posts. I love the American accent, and I used to love it when tourists asked me for directions in Paris ! It was fun trying to understand where they were going. Same goes for Japanese: the Louvre museum is impossible to pronounce, and is said "loo-boo-loo". Took me a while to get it !
Every langage has its specialities. I love it when tourists try to speak French to me because I am French. I find it very polite and considerate. But don't try too hard either; my English is far from perfect, and honestly, as long as we understand each other, I don't care if you ask where the "Pound dess arts" is. I'll show you anyway !
@Loora: Boy, do I wish I ran into you when I studied abroad in Paris! I speak enough French to get by, but there were a few times I had to ask someone if they spoke English (in French, of course). It seems like everyone I asked was offended, and really didn't want to help me out. :(
Riedel glassware = reed-le rhymes with needle!
great post!
Wow. Pretentious much, folks? Or am I allowed to make a comment like that without stating my degree, number of languages spoken, pronunciation pet peeve(s), and/or correcting one of the pronunciation in the original post?
I think it is wonderful and considerate to try to learn proper pronunciation, especially of words that are used frequently. That said, I believe we can all take a page from Loora's book and appreciate and celebrate the differences in language and pronunciation. Sometimes we have to work harder to make ourselves understood, but working together to understand each other is another way to recognize that we are all human.
IKEA is absolutely not pronounced "ee-KAY-uh" in Swedish. Actually, you almost pronounce it the same way they do, except for the "ai" in the beginning. In Swedish, you say "ee-KEH-ah".
I love the book-
There Is No Zoo in Zoology: And Other Beastly Mispronunciations
What a well-intentioned, helpful post! There have been many times that I've had a client or colleague hesitate to talk about a particular item before cautiously pronouncing its name for fear of getting sniggered at.
I think it's a shame that people may not feel comfortable speaking - and learning - about design because of pronunciation ... but it seems like some of the snarky posts above justify the fear.
I've never been afraid to try my best, and ask for the correct pronunciation when required ... I've just assumed that people would understand we're not all linguists and focus on the message we're trying to say, not how we're saying it.
According to all my Turkish friends and my time spent in Turkey, it's "KIH-lim", not "key-LEEM." And no French person I know would say "Ler" for "le." (It's probably better to write "Luh Cray-OO-SAY").
Heh :) most of these words, I've never had the need to say, but I do find myself always saying, "Can you hand me the Ley Croo-Say from the cabinet?" for le creuset...and, unfrotunately, I have that pronounciation ingrained in my head and can't even imagine saying it correctly at this point :)...and I'm okay with that!
Thank you for an informative post. I've never heard most of these words spoken, so I'm glad for a few pointers.
I'm glad everyone else is so worldly and cultured that they are able to pronounce these with ease. I'll remember to be so understanding next time you come into my pharmacy and butcher the drug names (in English, no less!) that roll so easily off my tongue.
No comments on the way things are pronounced, but the name is "Sheila," not "Shiela". Unless you're saying I should be calling people SHY-el-a.
Somebody needs to clue in the people at CFGroup (commercialfurnituregroup.com) who distribute Thonet in the US. When you call their home office in Tennessee, a recorded message pronounces the company name Tho-NAY.
Incidentally, I just posted about designer name pronunciations on my blog recently, if any of you are interested. http://goo.gl/RS5Hr
Where I live we offer "MAHALO" to say "thank you"....thats; "mah" + "hah" + "low"
Im commenting because I missed "Sebo",or "Saeco" (maybe too simple for some, but not I).,and if you have a moment to add on, please, PLEASE cover the top espresso machine groups! Im not even sure how DeLonghi is pronounced? soft "g"?
Keep up the great help..let us run this as a work in progress OK?