History Main / NoPronunciationGuide

* Felix Kjellberg, also known as ''LetsPlay/PewDiePie'', is constantly having his last name mispronounced as "Keelberg", "Kelberg" or "kuh-jel-berg". It's actually pronounced "Chell-berg" with a soft 'g' at the end.

** From a part of the manga that hasn't been adapted: Is Tserriednich's name pronounced "TSER-ed-nik" or "terrorsandwich"?

* ''Manga/RevolutionaryGirlUtena'''s English dub pronounced the titular character's name as "OO-ten-a" throughout the entire series, despite being pronounced as "Oo-TEN-a" in Japanese. In the beginning, they also mispronounced Touga's name as "TOO-ga" before quickly correcting it to "TOH-ga" after a couple episodes. Saionji's name was also mispronounced as "Say-OWN-ji" in the first 13 episodes before being corrected to "SAI-OWN-ji" following a break in dubbing. At the same time, Anthy's last name, Himemiya, was mostly corrected to "He-MEM-ee-ya" after 13 episodes of "Hee-me-MEE-a" and in one case, "Hee-me-MAI-a."

* ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'': NA-ru-to, or na-ROO-toe? By this point, it's hard to tell. It's the first one, going by Japanese tendency to stress the first syllable of any givne name, as oppose to the English custom of of stressing the second if hte name has more than two syllables.

* Defied by LetsPlay/{{Cicabeot1}}, on her [=YouTube=] channel description it includes the pronunciation "si-cah-bee-oh-tee-1".

* In ''Film/PumaMan'', Kobras (Creator/DonaldPleasence) uses the British pronunciation "Pyew-ma" while everyone else pronounces it as "Poo-ma", which [[Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000 MST3K]] poked fun at throughout their viewing.

--->For the family itself, there is no confusion whatsoever: the A is short as in “cart”, the R is slightly rolled, the S has a hint of the Kislevian Zh, and the last syllable rhymes with “wine”. This is a matter of deep family pride, and it is not unknown for Von Carsteins to flay the tongues of those who make the last syllable rhyme with
“seen".

-->For the family itself, there is no confusion whatsoever: the A is short as in “cart”, the R is slightly rolled, the S has a hint of the Kislevian Zh, and the last syllable rhymes with “wine”. This is a matter of deep family pride, and it is not unknown for Von Carsteins to flay the tongues of those who make the last syllable rhyme with

** International dubs derived from the franchise's old European French dub, including an English version [[FanNickname commonly nicknamed]] "Big Green dub", offer far too many odd pronunciations and name misinterpretations to list here. For some examples, Launch mostly became "Lunsh", Ginyu became something like "Jeenoeh", Yajirobe was sometimes Yai or Yairobe, and Pikkon became Paul Kuhen (after his Japanese name Paikuhan). Perhaps most infamously, Goku's birth name Kakarot was only used in a single episode of ''DBZ'', rendered as "Cachalote" or "Ka-sha-low". Since Cachalot or Cachalote means sperm whale in some languages, the name undoubtedly left many viewers confused.

*** The Fourth Doctor had an unusual habit, unique amongst all the Doctors, of pronouncing the name of his own home planet "Gallifrey" as "Galli-free". Perhaps a mistake? Perhaps the [[RaisedCatholic religiously-orientated actor]] interpreting it as a reference to "Galilee"? Other characters and Doctors all say "Galli-fray". This was fondly remarked upon enough to get a MythologyGag in the audio drama "[[IntentionallyAwkwardTitle Dr. Who and the Pirates]]", in which the Sixth Doctor [[PainfulRhyme forces a rhyme in a song]] by using the "Gallifree" pronunciation for that one line alone.

* Myth/GreekMythology: The name of the Hecatoncheires (literally [[MultiArmedAndDangerous "Hundred-handed ones"]]) tends to confuse a lot of people (it's "HECK-uh-TON-Ker-Ez"). It's not much easier to spell, either.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Exalted}}'' has everyone's favorite middle-management fate ninjas, the Sidereal Exalts. In the best White Wolf tradition, the preferred fan pronunciation (sid-EHR-ee-al) has largely trumped Webster (sigh-DEER-ee-al), even among those who know better.

** The [[DemonLordsAndArchdevils Demon Lord]] Baphomet's palace is called The Lyktion. Is it "Lick-tee-on"? "Like-tee-on?" "Lick-shun"? "Like-shun"? Something else all together?

* ''Franchise/PowerRangers'': In the episode "Lions and Blizzards", from the original ''Mighty Morphin'' series (season 1), when Rita creates the monster known as Goatan, the lion-goat, Alpha 5 describes him as her 'evil Chimera monster'. However, Alpha mispronounces the word 'Chimera' as 'shih-MAY-ruh' when he says this. In the first part of the two-part episode "Heir Apparent", from ''Mystic Force'', Imperious summons the Chimera (a monster composed of the souls of all of the monsters ever defeated by Leanbow, the father of the Red Ranger, Nick Russell [Bowen]). When Imperious does this, he pronounces 'Chimera' correctly ('kye-ME-ruh').

* ''Franchise/PowerRangers: In the episode "Lions and Blizzards", from the original ''Mighty Morphin'' series (season 1), when Rita creates the monster known as Goatan the lion-goat, Alpha 5 describes him as her 'evil Chimera monster'. However, he mispronounces it as 'shih-MAY-ruh'. In the first part of the two-part episode "Heir Apparent", from ''Mystic Force'', Imperious summons the Chimera (a monster composed of the souls of all of the monsters ever defeated by Leanbow, the father of the Red Ranger, Nick Russell [Bowen]), he pronounces the word correctly (the 'key-ME-ruh'). When Imperious does this, he pronounces 'Chimera' correctly ('kye-ME-ruh').

* ''Series/PowerRangers: In the episode "Lions and Blizzards", from the original ''Mighty Morphin'' series (season 1), when Rita creates the monster known as Goatan the lion-goat, Alpha 5 describes him as her 'evil Chimera monster'. However, he mispronounces it as 'shih-MAY-ruh'. However, in the first part of the two-part episode "Heir Apparent", from ''Mystic Force'', when Imperious summons the Chimera (a monster composed of the souls of all of the warriors ever defeated by Leanbow, the father of the Red Ranger, Nick Russell [Bowen]), he pronounces the word correctly (the 'key-ME-ruh').

* ''PowerRangers'' franchise: In the episode "Lions and Blizzards", from the original ''Mighty Morphin'' series (season 1), when Rita creates the monster known as Goatan the lion-goat, Alpha 5 describes him as her 'evil Chimera monster'. However, he mispronounces it as 'shih-MAY-ruh'. However, in the first part of the two-part episode "Heir Apparent", from ''Mystic Force'', when Imperious summons the Chimera (a monster composed of the souls of all of the warriors ever defeated by Leanbow, the father of the Red Ranger, Nick Russell [Bowen]), he pronounces the word correctly (the 'key-ME-ruh').

* ''Series/PowerRangers'' franchise: In the episode "Lions and Blizzards", from the original ''Mighty Morphin'' series (season 1), when Rita creates the monster known as Goatan the lion-goat, Alpha 5 describes him as her 'evil Chimera monster'. However, he mispronounces it as 'shih-MAY-ruh'. However, in the first part of the two-part episode "Heir Apparent", from ''Mystic Force'', when Imperious summons the Chimera (a monster composed of the souls of all of the warriors ever defeated by Leanbow, the father of the Red Ranger, Nick Russell [Bowen]), he pronounces the word correctly (the 'key-ME-ruh').

* ''Fanfic/PokemonOpalAndGarnet'': CLOPIN. If you've seen [[WesternAnimation/TheHunchbackOfNotreDame the movie containing his namesake]] or have taken French- [[HoldYourHippogriffs er, Kalosian]]- you know how it's pronounced. But if you've only read [[Literature/TheHunchbackOfNotreDame the book]] or read this fanfic- and ''haven't'' taken French- then you'll most likely say it wrong. To wit, it's "kloh-PAH~(n)".

* In ''ComicBook/FinalCrisis: Legion of 3 Worlds'', it is revealed that each version of the ''ComicBook/LegionOfSuperHeroes'' has a distinct pronunciation of the planet Winath. For the Reboot version it's "Win-Athe", for the Threeboot version it's "Win-Ath", and for the post-Infinite Crisis version it's "Wine-Ath". It has been noted that this was a joke made on the debate among fans on how the name is pronounced. Readers continue to debate the pronunciation of Winath’s super-heroine Ayla Ranzz.

* In ''ComicBook/FinalCrisis: Legion of 3 Worlds'', it is revealed that each version of the ''ComicBook/LegionOfSuperHeroes'' has a distinct pronunciation of the planet Winath. For the Reboot version it's "Win-Athe", for the Threeboot version it's "Win-Ath", and for the post-Infinite Crisis version it's "Wine-Ath". It has been noted that this was a joke made on the debate among fans on how the name is pronounced.

In written works, sometimes it's not obvious how to pronounce names that are given. Sure, it's easy enough to figure out how to pronounce John Smith [[ItIsPronouncedTroPAY (usually)]], but seeing the name Gauthenia Vrellneick is going to confuse the heck out of anyone (probably).

* Happens briefly in ''WebVideo/CriticalRole'', when the players first meet Clarota. Creator/MatthewMercer's super-creepy [[spoiler: mindflayer]] accent leads to them having trouble hearing the name. They decide to call him Clarence, which Clarota [[ItIsPronouncedTroPAY immediately rejects]]. During Matt's occasional PurpleProse, he also mispronounces words -- including "sigil" (which he says with a hard "g", as opposed to a soft "g"); "cacophonous" ("cacaphonous"); and chitinous (using a "ch" sound instead of a hard k).

Contrast PronouncingMyNameForYou where a pronunciation guide is provided, and ItIsPronouncedTroPay where a "fancy" pronunciation guide is provided. Japanese works tend to also helpfully give a kana reading (hiragana or katakana) of their texts, especially for foreign words or uncommon Japanese kanji words. Rarely you'll find a pronunciation guide in form of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Phonetic_Alphabet International Phonetic Alphabet]] (called "IPA" for short). Contrast also FunetikAksent where (part of) a written work is written with pronunciation in mind, complete with an intended accent.

** Used instory when Shiki notes that, yea, one way to pronounce SHIKI would be the same as his own name, but it's written differently so it wouldn't be obvious. This doesn't translate well at all, leading to the SHIKI/Shiki thing to actually tell them apart in conversations.

Don't expect it to help any when there is finally WordOfGod on how to pronounce some of them -- it might end the discussion, or you might [[InternetBackdraft get folks arguing]] over [[DeathOfTheAuthor whether or not the person who answers is correct anyway]]. {{Fanon}} has been known more than once to [[FanonDiscontinuity override the author's intended pronunciation.]]

** The god Phanes suffers from this to a lesser extent. While a lot of people just pronounce it like "feigns", the correct way it more like "FAN-ess"