A Local Breaks Down the Correct, Approved and Appropriate Way To Say the Name of the Mountain Range in Which the Smokies Are Located
I’m a little sensitive about how I pronounce things. I was a big reader growing up – I believe I may be legally obligated to use the term voracious. So, I developed what would be considered a big vocabulary. However, while I knew what the words were, could spell them and use them perfectly in a sentence, I’d never actually heard them. And so more than once, I would be speaking with friends, teachers or whoever and suddenly realize I was careening towards a word I had no idea how to say.
IN THIS ARTICLE
Sometimes, the little social interactions would be a good learning opportunity. Other times, they would be the kind of social failure. For instance, I whiffed on provolone cheese. I went with “provoloni” like Brad Pitt and friends pretending to be Italian in “Inglourious Basterds.” I might have been 7. The waiter’s withering correction has stayed with me now for decades. There was another unfortunate incident when I thought the word cache was pronounced like cachet, but we don’t have time to get into all of that.
So, I am sensitive to those who strive and fail to pronounce certain words in the English language. After all, there are videos making money all over the internet by pointing out the challenges English presents in pronouncing words that look like they should sound similar but are pronounced differently. For instance? Take the actor Sean Bean, pronounced Shawn Bean.
And so, should we be a little forgiving with those who say our beloved mountain ranges’ name a little differently? We should. But being humans, often we are not.
What Is the Right Way To Say Appalachian?
If you ask the linguistic experts, there is no one right way to say Appalachian. Likely, however you heard the word in your head just now is correct, at least to one part of the country or another. It’s important to remember that most of the country perceives the Appalachian Mountains as a Southern thing. But the mountain range extends from Georgia to Maine, existing in 13 states with a wide range of accents. That said, I don’t know that many people from Connecticut get called hillbillies.
Essentially, there are two ways to pronounce it. The Northern way – Appa-lay-shun – and the Southern way – Appa-latch-un. Both are generally accepted as correct.
You want more expert analysis? Dr. Sandra Ballard, who recently retired from Appalachian State in Boone, N.C., spoke with Appalachian Today and went deep on the subject. There’s an interesting backstory to the name. It involves native peoples in Florida and European mapmakers who didn’t let not having much information on North America stop them from mapping it.
“Not knowing precisely where the Apalachee lived, mapmakers splayed the word across large inland areas, leading others to take it to be the name of the mountain region. Spellings on maps from the 1500s suggest ‘appa-latch-uh’ as the older pronunciation,” Ballard explained in the piece. Ha! Since the Latch is the older pronunciation, that makes it the more correct pronunciation, right?
Not necessarily, Ballard said.
“English spoken in Boone sounds different from English in Pittsburgh or Beech Mountain, for that matter. Vowels and consonants roll out as various sounds in different locations, often depending on who settled there and when,” she said.
Are There Any Other Ways To Say It?
There are some smaller regional variances. For instance, some places might put more of an emphasis on the ian-ending. The word comes out with a fifth syllable like Appa-latch-i-an. But most of these follow the two major patterns.
However, in researching this article, I found a video that shook me to my core. A couple of guys named Matteo Lane and Nick Smith were recording a podcast or some such thing when one of them used the Northern pronunciation for the mountains. The other stopped and “corrected” him.
“Where I come from, we pronounce it…” At this point, I fully expected to hear the familiar Appa-latch-un. Instead, the sequence of sounds offended in ways I still don’t understand. Like a waiter who heard a child mispronounce Provolone, I surged with anger and was ready to head butt the screen.
“… Appa–lake–n,” he said.
“Lake.” Hard K. Lake.
“Appa-Lake-in.”
I felt like I’d taken crazy pills. Is this a bit? It’s got to be a bit, right? Either Matteo, Nick or both are messing with us for clicks, right? The guy – I think it’s Nick – says that’s how it’s pronounced in the small town in Pennsylvania where he is from. I tried to verify that this is a thing, but the internet wasn’t helpful.
So, How Should We Say It?
It depends, I suppose, on where you’re from and where you’re at. The Appalachian Journal article suggests a “When in Rome” philosophy. If you’re in the North, use the Appa-lay-shun pronunciation and nary a waiter will be mean to you. In the South? Go with the Latch, baby. And if you happen to be in the part of Pennsylvania where Nick is from? Get out. Those people ain’t right.
How do you pronounce Appalachia? Let us know in the comments! Are you planning a trip to the Smoky Mountains soon? Make sure to check out our coupons page before your trip!