How do you pronounce the Greek name "Phoebe"?

How do you pronounce the Greek name "Phoebe"?

 

Maybe you pronounce it as in the famous TV-film "Charmed"?

 

I pronounce it this way:

Foebe (Fööbe)

 

What I wonder: Why should the French say: Fibi or Feebee?
They have got the letter oe in their own alphabet and can pronounce it easily.

On the other hand the French are famous for not liking the English language - and for pronouncing it in their own way.
So why should they pronounce "Phoebe" the English way?

 

I have always heard it pronounced like Feebee. Don't think I have heard it pronounced any other way TBH.

 

Here Phoebe Caulfield appears.

 

There is a German journalist by the name of Phoebe Gaa.
She is pronounced "Foebe = Fööbe".
I will try to find a link.

 

Title: Parlamentswahlen in Russland: Schaltgespräch mit ZDF-Korrespondentin Phoebe Gaa

Here you can hear Phoebe as Fööbe.

 

Some Info:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoebe_(given_name)

 

19

 

Which is the perfectly correct English pronounciation.
The traditional German pronounciation is: Fööbe.

But because of some TV series many Germans now call any Phoebe so: Feebee.

For 2 reasons, I think:

a) they do not know the German pronounciation
b) they know both pronounciations, but whenever the English pronounciation differs from the German pronounciation, they slavishly take over the English pronounciation, as they think: Only English is correct.

 

Now 59 views.

 

How to pronounce "Phoebe" in German

 

My answers:

• Fööbe - with an öö sound as in Goethe or in the French word "voeux" in "meilleurs voeux!"
• Fööbe - if the girl is from a German-speaking country
• Feebee or Fibbi if the girl is from an English-speaking country

 

Fun fact:

If you tell a "modern" German of today that Phoebe is spoken as "Fööbe" in German, you can expect some disbelief.
I suspect "modern" Germans get their education from TV-series for teenagers or toddlers - and from no-where else.

 

now: 70 views

 

Puh-Ho-Eh-Buh-Eh

As an aside, I used to work with a Siobhan (roughly pronounced Sha-vorn) and would routinely answer phone calls asking for her. We always had fun when I passed the calls to her; "I've got a call for you Cybehan."

 

I also know a Siobhan - and yes, I know that she was called something like She-vorn.

 

Roughly POIBE then?

 

I should probably point out that was a joke. I'd actally say Fee-bee, like most native English speakers I expect.

 

This Feebee/Fööbe thing is a very German thing.

Elsewhere people think: "The way I say this word is probably right."
In Germany people usually think, if there are two versions: "The way I say this word is probably wrong."

 

I am interested in languages.

Soon I will have another question.