MANdolin or mandoLIN?

[Strabo]

Which is it?

All the bluegrassers here in the South call it a MANdolin.

Other folks I know call it a mandoLIN.

Is there a right way and a wrong way to say it?

Does it matter who you are, where you're from, where you are, what kind of music you play? Is it different if it's an F, an A, or a bowlback?

And does it make a difference?

[Toni Schula]

I never call it ManDOlin.

[Mike Stewart]

And does it make a difference?

Do either of the pronunciations cause confusion to you the listener? Do you ever catch yourself responding, "oh, a MANdolin...wasn't sure what you were referring to there for a minute." No? Then it doesn't make any difference.

Folks will say their preferred pronunciation is correct, and the others are wrong, and nothing much will have been accomplished. For the software developers out there, I refer you to "vim vs. Emacs". For the non-programmers, think "Coke vs. Pepsi", I guess.

[JeffD]

I switch between them, depending on who I am playing music with.

[Jairo Ramos]

it's odd...when I read in english, I read MANdolin, but in spanish is mandoLINa, and italian mandoLINo.

By the way, how do you manage the mandolin in english, like a female or male noun? in spanish is female, La Mandolina, and in italian is male, Il mandolino...

[kurth83]

Cambride dictionary for US pronunciation is mandoLIN.
British pronunciation is the same, but with a British accent. :-)

So proper (non-southern) US English is mandoLIN.

But those living in the deep south probably don't care what Cambridge says.

Nice to know the correct bluegrass pronunciation. :-)

Personally, I would not be put off by either version.

[Tobin]

I never call it ManDOlin.

But most folks do use that emphasis for a manDOla. We don't say MANdola or mandolA.

I love contradictions in the English language.

[JeffD]

Isn't it more like "MAN'lin" ???

[Mark Gunter]

By the way, how do you manage the mandolin in english, like a female or male noun? in spanish is female, La Mandolina, and in italian is male, Il mandolino...

Most nouns have no grammatical gender in English Jairo, which is why we use only the one definite article the as opposed to your Spanish el (masc.) and la (fem.). If a person wants to anthropomorphize their instrument by nicknaming it, they'll use female names, male names, or animal names like hoss - whatever they want.

[Kevin Stueve]

removed

[Seter]

I feel like I pronounce it with almost equal emphasis on all three syllables. All variations sound normal to my ears though.

[Jairo Ramos]

Yes, I know that...I didn't explain myself well...I wanted to know how you treat your mandolin: When a person wants to anthropomorphize their instrument by nicknaming, treat it as a female object or male object?

[CES]

Yep, it's amannalin'

[Austin Bob]

Gosh, and all this time I thought it was yoo-kuh-ley-lee.

[Jairo Ramos]

Well, I suppose that in the south is a male object, Man dolin, and in the non-southern US is female, mando LYNN.

[John Soper]

Down here, it's "Mannerlin"; but I do believe that Bill Monroe put the MAN in Mandolin!

[DHopkins]

By the way, how do you manage the mandolin in english, like a female or male noun? in spanish is female, La Mandolina, and in italian is male, Il mandolino...

Mine are female. They're sensitive, sometimes hard to handle and cost a lot of money.

(This ought to get something started.)

[MediumMando5722]

My instruments have no gender or special names. My Les Pauls are "the green Les Paul" or "the '62," my Fender is "the red Strat," my Peavey is "the black Strat," my mando is "the Eastman," and my banjo is "the banjo."

[Jairo Ramos]

mine are female. They're sensitive, sometimes hard to handle and cost a lot of money.

(this ought to get something started.)

lol

I think the same...

[Tobin]

Gosh, and all this time I thought it was yoo-kuh-ley-lee.

Oy! We need a "no thanks " button!

[Phil Goodson]

My experience is people mispronouncing the word as in this sentence: "Is that a banjo?"

[T.D.Nydn]

I personally don't care for the word " mando" ,,

[F-2 Dave]

Amanda Lynn.

[CarlM]

If a person wants to anthropomorphize their instrument by nicknaming it, they'll use female names, male names, or animal names like hoss - whatever they want.

Or Crusher. Hopefully that one is not female gender.

[Jacob]

Here in Appalachia, English pronunciation retains influences from Gaelic, where words are stressed on the first syllable.
Thus one hears "police" not "police", and "mandolin" instead of "mandolin".