I’ve lived in the US all my life (though I have been to the UK once. I was actually there when Tony Blair was elected, coincidentally enough. But, I digress…) so I’m just going by that limited frame provided by shows, movies, whatnot. But I’m used to you all pronouncing the word “status” as “stay-tus” while Americans says “stat-tus.”
But I’ve noticed that I’m hearing “stat-tus” a bit more from younger Brits. I recently was on YouTube where the English video narrator on a UK channel pronounces the band name “Stat-tus Quo” and one of first comments I glanced at corrected their pronounciation.
So is this a case of the US “stat-tus” pronounciation creeping into UK verbiage? Do the “stat-tus” people annoy the “stay-tus” folks with the way they say the word? Is it a generational thing where more younger people say “stat-tus” to the chagrin of their “stay-tus” elders? Do the snooty, judgemental upper class types take it as a sign of poor education?
Just wondering…
6 comments
Case in point: po-TAY-to
So, yeah, stay-tus
It’s fairly unequivocally ‘staytus’ in British English. Only exception would be some regional accents might sound somewhere between the two.
But yes, if you’re seeing younger Brits on social media using stat-us it’s conscious it unconscious emulation of American, for whatever reason.
Northern. So StAtus.
Yes, it is a generational thing. Younger people in the UK follow a a lot of US soaps. (So do older people, but bear with me.) Older people have frozen their understanding of language, and they change more slowly. Young people may not yet have done so, and they hear words pronounced in the US way, that adopt that. Especially in a drama that they enjoy, and where they like the characters.
Occasionally this causes some inter-generational friction, but that is usually put to one side.
I saw a film once [see that? not “movie”] where a stuffy parent rebuked his daughter for saying “OK”. Say “very well” instead. I can remember when “have a nice day” became commonplace in the UK. Some older people took huge exception to that. I once read — “I will decide for myself whether to have a nice day or not” which of course was a stupid thing to say.
I was brought up to undersatnd that horripilation was “Goose pimples” but now nearly everyone says “goose bumps.” In a shop “Can I get … ?” instead of “I would like … ”
I don’t think anyone interprets it as a lack of education, although people who want to be offended might say this to rationalise their view.
Whatever, don’t worry about it. It’s all part of life’s rich pageant.
My stance with words of different origin is to pronounce them as they are pronounced in the original language.
Since status is purely latin, then the american pronunciation is more correct.
All stay-tus in my part of the UK.
Honestly though, I’d accept stat-us if it keeps dah-ta at bay. And I’ll accept most things if you promise to keep vee-hickle. 🙂