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Oct 31, 2018 · So depending on how you look at it, the way we pronounce or spell bologna is ... a bunch of baloney. I’m more inclined to believe the pronunciation is the problem, though I am of course, biased. At least I can say that thanks to Oscar Mayer, people know how to spell my last name ― even if they don’t know how to say it.
Jul 9, 1988 · It wasn’t always spelled the Italian way, though. Four hundred years ago English followed the Spanish practice and spelled the word “coronel,” sensibly pronounced the way it looked. Eventually this was corrupted to ker-nel, still not bad considering we’re talking about the British, who pronounce “Featheringstonehaugh” “Fanshaw.”
The Arkansas legislature made a big deal in 1881 about fixing for good the true pronunciation of the state name, emphasizing that all three "a"s should be pronounced "with the Italian sound." Yet the unanimous pronunciation of Arkansas by native Arkansans and interlopers alike is "AR-kin-saw." So much for adhering to the letter of the law.
further revisions to definitions, pronunciation, etymology, headwords, variant spellings, quotations, and dates; new senses, phrases, and quotations. Revisions and additions of this kind were last incorporated into Plymouth, n. in September 2023.
By the early 19th century, the current pronunciation and spelling became standard in English. (But in the part of Virginia I come from, there is no “r” sound; it’s pronounced kuh-nul.)
It's from its history. The alphabet we use in English comes originally from the phoenicians (by the way of the greeks, etruscans, and romans). In the phoenician alphabet (technically an abjab, but that's very similar to an alphabet) the letters were named after words that began with or included that sound.
