How to Pronounce Iraq and Iran
Ear-raq or Eye-raq? There's No Agreement on the Pronunciation of I-R-A-Q or I-R-A-N
Is I-R-A-N pronounced "Ear-ran" or "Eye-ran"? Some of us want to know before radioactive fallout begins to fall like snow.
From the giant news networks to local yokel podcasters, no one can agree on the pronunciation of these two daily newsmaking countries' names.
Surely there is a dictionary of Middle Eastern dialects and languages, including Arabic dialects and Farsi, that contains the answer.
From Jim Lehrer to Bob Schieffer to Brian Williams to Bob Woodruff, none of the nation's news anchors can agree on how to pronounce I-R-A-N or I-R-A-Q. Usually the Associated Press rules with an iron fist on such matters, but they have been conspicuously absent from this debate or else ignored.
"I Ran" was a much-derided 1980s hit by New Wave band A Flock of Seagulls, and it seems to me the ayatollahs wouldn't want to associate themselves with such a decadent Western rock 'n' roll song.
I may never be able to get married again. Any vows I take will start with the phrase "I, Ron," drawing me immediately to the attention of Homeland Security's crack anti-terrorist team. I'd probably be shot dead as a suspected terrorist before I uttered two more words.
This could get even worse. Is I-R-A-Q pronounced "Eye-rack," "Eye-rock," "Ear-rack" or "Ear-rock"? In theory, I-R-A-N could be pronounced "Eye-ran," "Eye-ron," "Ear-ran" or "Ear-ron."
This is so troubling to me that I can hardly pay attention to the actual news that's being reported on a daily basis. As soon as I hear one news anchor pronounce one of the two countries' names, I start surfing channels to see how the other news anchors are pronouncing the names.
I can't learn anything about current events because I'm too busy trying to figure out the correct enunciation of I-R-A-Q and I-R-A-N.
Enough is enough. I'm making a final ruling and I expect the nation's news anchors, commentators and podcasters to follow my lead. Somebody has to assert some leadership in this situation.
Based on my knowledge of linguistics and etymology, here is my final ruling:
I-R-A-Q is pronounced as "Ear-rock" and I-R-A-N is enunciated "Ear-ron."
You want to argue with me about it? Stick it in your "Ear-rock."
Published by Ron Bain
I am an award-winning newspaper and radio reporter and editor, a freelance magazine writer, a 34-year vegetarian, a 20-year divorcee, an above-average bowler and a libertarian political activist. View profile
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- Multiple pronunciations of these nation names detract from understanding the news.
- Surely there's a dictionary of Arabic and Farsi pronunciations.
- The natural way to pronounce them in English is almost certainly wrong.
20 Comments
Post a CommentI'm an Iranian and know how to pronounce it correctly: /ee-ra:n/ ....that's it...
Yup...gotta agree with the majority here. It's good to see other's who also think that it
is an affront to these people, especially when their country is being occupied.
Those that pronounce it as eye ran are eyegnorant.
It drives me crazy when Americans say "eye-rack". You would think after invading a country they would at least learn how to pronounce its name properly.
We Americans have become so ignorant and its showing up everywhere. We are the only ones who pronounce Iran and Iraq as Eye-Ran and Eye-Rack. No other culture in the world pronounces the "i" as "eye" in a word but "ee". Same thing with digital cameras, Nikon (a Japanese brand) is pronounced as Knee-con and not as Nay-con as most of us have it)
Gee ... I don't know ... How about starting out by learning how people in the countries THEMSELVES pronounce the names of their homelands? When will Americans catch on that the vowel "i" is ONLY pronounced as a "long" sound in the U.S.? Most, if not all, other countries pronounce it with the "short" sound, as in the word "it." Seriously, have you EVER heard a person from the Middle East say "EYE-rann???" The problem with many Americans is that they do not take the time or energy to learn anything about other cultures. WE are the "newcomers," guys! THEY have been here for centuries longer than we have. Maybe we could actually try to learn something from them...
You really needed this whole article just to explain how you THINK it should be pronounced. WOW, I bet you're really annoying in person.
IRAN isn't pronounced either of the two ways it is normally butchered. The correct way to say it if you're Iranian is Ear-Rahn as in raw-n and not ran.
Iraq is Ear-Rahq
I have to disagree that the tensioned history plays a role in the pronunciation.
I believe it is a culture thing. Difference in languages. I'm from Hawaii and people call it Ha-wai-ee, when really its supposed to be pronounced Ha-vai-ee.
As much as i agree that we should pronounce it the right way %28ie. Iran %3D eeron%29 I think shade would have a point if there wasn%27t so much anger behind it.%0D%0A%0D%0APeople from other countries say many places with an incorrect pronunciation. Journalists should get it right as educated reporters%2C but do not get upset at the everyday American.
The correct pronunciation for Iraq is
Iraq One word don't split it ....
ear-aak .
that's how it is pronounced in Arabic
Iraqi accent .