Guangxi Shane Posted January 31, 2015 at 10:35 PM Report Share Posted January 31, 2015 at 10:35 PM Both dictionaries I've checked say that the proper pronunciation of 夏威夷 is Xiàwēiyí. After dutifully learning this pronunciation, I was surprised when, a couple of nights ago, I met a native Chinese speaker from Shanghai who insisted 威 should be pronounced with 2nd tone. Which is correct? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hofmann Posted January 31, 2015 at 10:43 PM Report Share Posted January 31, 2015 at 10:43 PM Complicated answer: Both. Practical answer: You. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guangxi Shane Posted February 1, 2015 at 06:10 AM Author Report Share Posted February 1, 2015 at 06:10 AM So... either first or second tone is correct? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hofmann Posted February 1, 2015 at 07:20 PM Report Share Posted February 1, 2015 at 07:20 PM In Standard Mandarin, first tone. Maybe not in whatever variety that native speaker was speaking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ceciliamiao Posted March 31, 2015 at 03:35 AM Report Share Posted March 31, 2015 at 03:35 AM Maybe it's his accent. But first tone is definitely the right one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tooironic Posted April 4, 2015 at 10:55 AM Report Share Posted April 4, 2015 at 10:55 AM Mainland and Taiwan dictionaries all say Xiàwēiyí. Forvo.com, which has readings of actual native speakers from different regions, also only has xiàwēiyí. See here and here. Your friend is wrong. It happens. Even native speakers pronounce words wrong from time to time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guangxi Shane Posted April 7, 2015 at 12:00 PM Author Report Share Posted April 7, 2015 at 12:00 PM Your friend is wrong. It happens. Even native speakers pronounce words wrong from time to time. Yeah, it happens in English as well. I've known native speakers of English who pronounced "aluminum" as "aluminin." One of our former presidents pronounced "nuclear" as "nucular." It's not surprising that it's the same in China. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lingo-ling Posted April 13, 2015 at 11:13 AM Report Share Posted April 13, 2015 at 11:13 AM I've only ever heard it pronounced Xiàwēiyí. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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