![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() In1991, when those 12-year-olds were 25, another survey showed that 39% of 20-25 year-olds said "zee".Obviously, a large number of them had changed their pronunciation in theinterval, but it is also obvious that even more of them would eventuallychange, because only 12.5% of the people over 30 in that same survey said"zee". Lexical surveys in the region repeatedlyshow a higher proportion of young people with "zee" than of older people.In a Toronto survey in 1979, two-thirds of the 12-year-olds completed theirrecitation of the alphabet with "zee" but only 8% of the adults did. Nevertheless, some children in Southern Ontario learn the American nameand use it for several years. American immigrants to the region, numbering severalhundred annually, routinely report that their name for Z is one of thefirst things they change after arriving there, because calling it "zee"unfailingly draws comments from the people they are talking to. In Southern Ontario, the pronunciation of Z as "zee" is stigmatized,as might be expected. One of the small matters is the name of the last letter of the alphabet.'Z' is called "zed" everywhere in the world, not only in English but alsoin French, German, and most other languages, except in the United States,where it is called "zee". Their resistance involves matters bothlarge and small. The first example is probably more interesting socially than linguistically.In Southern Ontario, the southernmost part of Canada and also the mostpopulous, the proximity of the United States on three sides makes the Americanpresence a constant factor, and one that Canadians feel compelled to resistin order to keep their autonomy. Its elimination or reductionin the speech of individuals normally takes place without conscious efforton their part, and the linguistic effect of the change is minor, but itis no doubt one of the dozens of miniscule changes that contributes tothe perception of their maturity in the view of parents, teachers, andother adults.Ĥ.6.1.1. Thus the early variant might bethought of as a marker of children's speech. The that I willcite here take place in adolescence. Very few changes of this kind have been reported. Theyare, then, regular and predictable changes that might be thought of asmarking a developmental stage in the individual's life. It’s Zed, not Zee.Age-graded changes are usually thought of as changes in the use of avariant that recur at a particular age in successive generations. Just remember to say Zulu when phonetics are needed. You will hear experienced hams say Zed all the time when they’re not using phonetics. Using Zed solves the confusion and it’s widely known and understood. Zed is how the originators of the English language pronounce that last letter of the alphabet anyway, so let’s give the UK a show of support. To avoid this, simply say “zed” instead of “zee” when not using phonetics. Z is easily confused with C and to a lesser extent, G and P and T and V, especially if there is interference or noise. So here is the wrinkle… If there is a letter Z in any call sign, we should not pronounce “zee” when using non-phonetic identification. Once the call signs have been logged and acknowledged properly, we typically identify with call signs spoken normally (no phonetics). ![]() When formally identifying yourself or another radio station with the letter Z in the call sign we use Zulu for proper ITU phonetics.īut we don’t always use phonetics for identification. A side note to the previous post on using a phonetic alphabet– ![]()
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