How to pronounce KATO ?

Tbone Nov 27, 2006

  1. David Leonard

    David Leonard TrainBoard Member

    548
    3
    20
    I agree with "KAH-toe." It just seems respectful to pronounce names as those who hold them determine. Titles--well, that's another matter.

    I once knew a guy whose last name was spelled C-o-r-n. People asked him how to pronouce it. The answer? "Corn"!

    My own last name, Leonard, usually comes out "LEE-oh-nard." That's when I know it's a telemarketer.
     
  2. Lark

    Lark TrainBoard Member

    150
    0
    15
    It's...

    ...Kato! Just like it's spelt. KAY TOE, with no space. Just ask me.

    OKah?

    Okah.

    Mark- or MACK if you're from BAstan, or Mauch if you're from Paterson.
     
  3. Chris333

    Chris333 TrainBoard Supporter

    2,541
    252
    49
    I did not know that...till now.
     
  4. sandro schaer

    sandro schaer TrainBoard Member

    2,020
    87
    43
    guys...


    if you can't pronounce kato then buy atlas .... :)
     
  5. Metro Red Line

    Metro Red Line TrainBoard Member

    2,494
    696
    46
    Don't you mean, OTT-LOSS? :)
     
  6. steamghost

    steamghost TrainBoard Member

    814
    15
    20
    You should know that Hiroshi (HEE-ROE-SHEE) Kato really hates hearing his last name mispronounced. Guess who he is? You're actually calling him by a different name. Maybe that's why US stuff is low on the list for them.:D
     
  7. BillN

    BillN TrainBoard Member

    15
    1
    14
    "My understanding is that the whole English spelling of Japanese words was imposed on Japan by the US after WWII. Kato or any other Japanese word spelled with our alphabet is a phonetic approximation of a traditional Japanese sound."

    This was all sorted out about the 16th century by Nobunaga, who was Shogun of Japan for awhile. The phonetic translations only have one problem syllable out of 48 (fu, which sounds like a cross of fu and pu)

    And it is Kah-Toe, each syllable spoken shortly. Some Japanese syllables have a different meaning when drawn out.

    Posted from 20 minutes south of Yokohama, Japan. (by train :>)
     
  8. MOPACJAY

    MOPACJAY TrainBoard Member

    349
    31
    14
    Personally, I pronounce KATO "re-li-able",with the emphasis on able.Great engines!
     
  9. MK

    MK TrainBoard Member

    3,494
    4,790
    82
    LOL @ Jay!!!! :D
     
  10. EricB

    EricB TrainBoard Member

    872
    2
    23
    I can't belive this thread has reached 5 pages.
     
  11. Metro Red Line

    Metro Red Line TrainBoard Member

    2,494
    696
    46
    There's a lot in this hobby that's mispronounced. One of my friends back in Jr. high had a simple HO layout and pronounced couplers, "co-plurs."
    I think the problem is that most things in this hobby are visual, which includes literal text. It's not like there's a Model RR cable TV network or radio show out there to guide our spoken vocabulary.

    I used to pronounce "Kadee" as "kuh-DEE."
     
  12. BNSF FAN

    BNSF FAN TrainBoard Supporter

    9,888
    29,158
    148
    This is a really interesting thread. I would never have thought that a thread on how to pronounce a name would go 6 pages long. Cool! :D
     
  13. mdrzycimski

    mdrzycimski TrainBoard Supporter

    579
    3
    28
    I used to pronounce Walthers as Wal - Thers. Made sense to me. Why else would that H be in there!
     
  14. Charlie Vlk

    Charlie Vlk February 5, 2023 In Memoriam

    791
    132
    29
     
  15. Ed M

    Ed M Passed away May 2012 In Memoriam

    1,836
    273
    30
    You mean to tell me it's not pronounced Wal-thers??? :confused2:


    Ed
     
  16. Pete Nolan

    Pete Nolan TrainBoard Supporter

    10,587
    237
    125
    The "th" in German is often pronounced "t", as in Neanderthal. The "v" is an "f" and the "w" is somewhere between "v" and "w", hence Volkswagen. There are many dialects in German, and a big push in the 90s to standardize spelling. The gutturals, particularly "ch", take a while to master. I thought I was doing a pretty good job with it until I went there regularly in the late 80s. I guess you could say I spoke American standard German while Germans spoke nearly perfect American English or, in Brussels, English English. I can speak Friesen (a regional language in the Netherlands) quite well because of my first wife and my studies of Old English, as the two languages are quite similar, and a good bit of Dutch (my ex-father-in-law). I can speak enough Italian to swear at my cars. My Yiddish is improving from Jeanne's side of the family.

    I guess I'm saying that pronunciation is important. Regional accents within a language are just fine! I revert to my Bostonian accent within 30 seconds of being there, and we all have grand fun here in New Mexico when I come back. International dealings between languages are really smoother if you know something about the pronounciation of the "other" language. In Friesan, I am Piet (two syllables), not Pete, and my first wife was Baukje, not Barbara. It makes a difference.

    Of, course, I'm a writer, and I love language, both properly written and spoken.
     
  17. Pete Nolan

    Pete Nolan TrainBoard Supporter

    10,587
    237
    125
    Since no one took me up on this "Albert Szent-Gyorgyi" is pronounced

    All-burt Saunt Gorg, with both "g's" being soft, as in the second "g" in "garage." The "Gy" and "gyi" are both soft "g's" You could also spell Szent as Sont, not pronounced as "don't" but as "Sawnt." It meants Saint.
     
  18. AB&CRRone

    AB&CRRone TrainBoard Supporter

    1,700
    1
    28
    I'm still wondering about the pronunciation "Shray-der" as in Schroeder Hotel (in Milwaukee). Lucy pronounces her pianist friend's name "Shrow-der".

    And I don't know the correct pronunciation for Alton, IL. Al-ton or All-ton?

    Ben
     
  19. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

    67,558
    22,733
    653
    Kato- I've seen this topic come up before. It's always amused me that we should fall all over ourselves worrying. He couldn't pronounce my name correctly as I say it... I'm not going to worry about this one way street.

    There's no insult in mispronunciation of a name, when communicating across a language barrier. I've had to do it many, many times. It's understood. And good businessmen simply move beyond the moment.

    Boxcab E50
     
  20. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

    67,558
    22,733
    653
    Then you can get into regional dialects, etc. Here's one: Saco, Maine, on The Bridgton & Saco River RR, or Saco, Montana, on the GN/BN/BNSF.

    The first is pronounced SAW-koh. (And if you don't, many locals become indignant. BLEH.) The latter is pronounced SAY-koh. And nobody here worries if you slip up. It's no big deal. We know what you mean. And don't get hung up....

    :eek:mg: :sad:

    Boxcab E50
     

Share This Page