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ArchivesRe: The name Mariah
in reply to a message by Jessica
Maria can be pronounced either MaREEa or MaRYEa. Sticking that H on the end is an attempt to get people to say MaRYEa, though how it would work is quite beyond me.
In English, the traditional pronunciation used to be MaRYEa, as we can see from the old slang term for a police vehicle: a Black Maria. Then as people made increasing contact with speakers of Spanish, Portuguese and Italian, their MaREEa pronunciation became standard.
In English, the traditional pronunciation used to be MaRYEa, as we can see from the old slang term for a police vehicle: a Black Maria. Then as people made increasing contact with speakers of Spanish, Portuguese and Italian, their MaREEa pronunciation became standard.
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