I’m quoting this from another thread, as that thread predated the segregation of the whistle board, so as to put the conversation into the “Poststructural Pub.”
My family are from near the town of Pryor. People who are not from around here think the locals pronounce the name differently than the word prior, but this is not the case. Both words are said the same by locals, and rhyme with fire, liar, choir, and almost with tar. It does come across as one syllable in all these words. The town of Miami, Oklahoma is rather infamous, on the other hand, for purposely insisting on pronouncing the name as Miamah, rather than Miamee, which was really just a matter of dialect, much as Missouri is pronounced Missourah, but they came to see the pronunciation as distinguishng it from Miami, Florida.
In fact, as a small child I thought that tar and tire were the same word, and that tires were made of tar, just as glasses were made of glass. Retired and retard also sound much the same as each other.
I find that, personally, I tend to use a more “ah” like vowel in words that have I in the first syllable, such as violent, priority, or liability, and use more of the “y-ending” I in words that have it in the final syllable, but never the “oy” sounding I.
Walden - I grew up thinking you put “tars” on your car, and “tire” is what went on the road. So I know exactly what you are talking about.
We also have some weird town pronunciations around here:
Pisgah is pronounced “PIZ-gee”
and, of course
Louisville is pronounced “LOO-vul” with a kinda swallow sound in the middle.
Some Oklahoma towns and their pronunciations.
Battiest - bat-teest
Boise City - actually this one is said like it looks, I don’t know why people get confused.
Chickasha - chick-uh-shay
Chouteau - show-toe
Cyril - surreal
Erick - ear-ick
Eucha - ooh-chee
Gotebo - goaty-bo
Oologah - ooh - luh - gaw
Skedee - skee-dee
Tahlequah - ta (a as in hat) - luh - quaw
Vici - vigh-sigh
I was reminded this morning of a little incident from my teenage years.. I was standing at the order window (no drive-throughs then) at the local Arctic Circle waiting for my order when a tourist from a car (southern license plate) walked up to the window and ordered a “lamb Coke.” I knew what he meant but had still never heard of such a combination. Who knew that 35 years later it’d catch on and be an actual canned Coke drink–Coke with lime.
