BS: How to pronounce 'Teague'

Subject: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: GUEST,Marie in the US
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 12:26 PM

Hello, I live in the US am going to have a baby boy in November and like the name "Teague". I thought it rhymed with "league". Is it ok to pronounce it this way? I know one popular way in Ireland to pronounce it is like "tiger" without the "R". But I like the sound of it the first way. Is that exceptable-does anyone have any advice for me? Thanks.

Subject: RE: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: Brían
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 12:32 PM

That's hard to describe inn type, but here goes: Say tie and finish it off with a g sound(g as in go).

Brían

Subject: RE: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: Declan
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 12:40 PM

The name in Gaelic - which is equivalent to the English name Tim or Timothy is spelled Tadhg an is not pronounced exactly like the start of Tiger but is quite close mot more like thigh (as in femur) with a g on the end. I've never heard it pronounced to rhyme with League. In Northern Ireland the word Taigue (pr Tay-g) is used by loyalists as a generic (and not very complimentary) name for Roman Catholics. This is based on a corruption or anglicisation of the name Tadhg. In Scotland the equivalent term of abuse is 'Tim'.

Subject: RE: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: Big Tim
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 01:08 PM

"Tim" is not a term of abuse here in Scotland. It's a term that most Catholics are happy, proud even, to be associated with. It does tho, here, have sectarian, in the literal sense of the word, meaning. I rhyme it with "plague". The actual name "Timothy" has no sectariam connotations in Scotland, couldn't speak tho for NI. Marie, the name will be not problem in the US but if you use, NEVER EVER consider emigration to Northern Ireland or the West of Scotland!

Subject: RE: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: GUEST
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 01:08 PM

Tag, simply.

Subject: RE: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: GUEST,leeneia
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 01:16 PM

"does anyone have any advice for me? Thanks."

Now wait a minute. Here you are, going to have a son (though you can't always trust those sonograms.) And you want to give the child a certain name although you don't know where it comes from, you don't know how to pronounce it, you don't know what it means in its original language, it is not in your family, and many people won't know how to pronounce it as they encounter your child for the rest of his life.

My advice is to get a book of baby names and give this matter more thought.

Subject: RE: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: Grab
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 01:22 PM

From someone called "Leeneia"... is that talking from experience? ;-)

Graham.

Subject: RE: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: khandu
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 01:42 PM

Around here it is pronounced as rhyming with "league".

khandu

Subject: RE: BS: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: katlaughing
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 01:58 PM

lot of assumptions there, leeneia! Besides, there's nothing wrong with naming someone just becuase one likes the sound of the name.

In the US, as khandu says, it would rhyme with league, as in the Red-headed League.:-)

Subject: RE: BS: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: GUEST
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 02:05 PM

Always heard it rhyme with league in western US. Sometimes heard Taig in Canada, but usually rhymed with league.

Subject: RE: BS: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: Rick Fielding
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 02:05 PM

Ahhh, just name the kid "Richard"....half the English world already has!

Cheers

Rick (who hates Ricky, Dick, Ritchie, and 'dickles'!

Subject: RE: BS: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 02:13 PM

League? That's as bad as pronouncing "Sean" to rhyme with "bean". Though I suppose it depends how they pronounce league in the Western USA.

There's the variant Thady (as in The bold Thady Quill) which would be less likely to be mispronounced. Of course he might get called Sadie at times...

Subject: RE: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: GUEST,Marie in the US
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 02:16 PM

To Leeneia-I am just investigating baby names via the internet....lighten up! There are two boys I know that pronounce the name "Teague" like league in the school I teach at. After researching on the internet, I see this may be an incorrect "Americanized" pronunciation and thought it may be helpful to post on this board. I see nothing wrong with this. Unless a baby is to be named after their parent/ancestor, I suspect many new moms consider lots of different names from various regions before deciding.

Subject: RE: BS: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: fiddler
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 02:24 PM

I have freind with this surname (I think it is spelled this way) who goes bannanas if it is pronounced as League but insists on
teaj..... hm.....

Leeneia doe have a point - I get a bit of skitting as I am called after my grandmother - Duncan - Scots yes - how did you gues, but how can a grandmother have a boys name and how can a boy be called after his grandmother. Actually this one is all in good fun but.

I have a a Frances daughter hwo hates it!
A Mary Louise daughter known as 'wobble' or louise on Sundays - so can we get it right as parents proabbly very rarely.

Someone has probably written a song about it.

My name is sue - how do yuo do!

Subject: RE: BS: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: Malcolm Douglas
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 02:27 PM

Usage in language determines correctness (eventually). Teague is not an uncommon surname, and people bearing that name and not born in Ireland (probably the majority; as a surname it has been current in England, for example, since at least the 18th century) will frequently pronounce it to rhyme with league. Rather pointless telling somebody whose family hasn't lived in Ireland for centuries that they are pronouncing their own name wrong, I'd have thought.

Subject: RE: BS: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: pattyClink
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 02:33 PM

So if you had to sing the eighteenth century English song "Lilibulero" which has the line "Ho, brother Teague" in it, how would you pronounce it?

Subject: RE: BS: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: GUEST
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 02:39 PM

Mcgrath, I named a son Sean in honor of an antecedent. A mistake! Here in the west it is often pronounced "Seen." He is thinking of anglicizing the spelling to Shaun.
With last names, several generations may have passed since the European pronunciation was used. There is no way that these will be reinstated.

Subject: RE: BS: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 02:54 PM

Having people mispronounce your name is no big deal, you either correct them or you don't, but you don't change the way you pronounce it. (And McGrath is a case in point - we've had a thread about that.)

Surnames are different, because the way you pronounce your surname is the way your parents pronounced it, and that means it's the right way, whatever way that might be. But when you introduce a new first name into a family I think there's a duty of courtesy to make sure its pronounced the same way as people who have that name already think it should be pronounced. (Which can of course vary. There's no "correct" way any more than there is a "correct" version of a folk song.)

Subject: RE: BS: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: GUEST,cookieless margo
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 03:48 PM

There was an officer in the civil war named "Kennisaw Mountain Landis" obviously named for Kennisaw Mountain. Geographical names are good 'cause every one knows how to pronounce them. (My son's name is Forrest) I like Raineer (but there's a prince with that name already). I was born in Adrian Michigan and considered naming my son Adrian. Lots of places to give you ideas... Margo

Subject: RE: BS: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: GUEST
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 04:59 PM

Raneer? Perhaps Rainier III?

Subject: RE: BS: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: harpmaker
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 07:33 PM

Guest says "Tag" I think it should be "Teg".

Subject: RE: BS: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: Malcolm Douglas
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 09:51 PM

Re. pattyClink's question about the pronounciation of "Teague" in Lillibulero (it's a 17th, not 18th century song, by the way).

Not having been around in those days, I can't say for sure. Normal spelling conventions of the time (given that we're talking here about the name as spelled in English rather than Gaelic) would suggest something closer to Taig than Teeg, Tag or Teg. At that time, tea was generally pronounced tay; that pronounciation has been retained quite widely in Ireland, though in England it has largely become tee.

Subject: RE: BS: How to pronounce 'Teague'
From: belfast
Date: 12 Oct 02 - 08:41 AM

I hadn't noticed it until I started reading this thread, but round here there are two different pronunciations. The surname Teague and the generic pejorative term for Catholics (usually spelt "Taig") is pronounced to rhyme with Hague (as in William) or Craig. The forename, usually spelt Tadgh, is not common but would be pronounced Tag, rhyming with bag.