Want to find out how MeFites are pronouncing MeFi?

October 1, 2012 10:23 AM

Want to find out how MeFites are pronouncing MeFi?
After years of studying these shibboleths, and tracking my research progress here, I'm happy to share some data results from the 2010 survey. My first published article, Sociophonetic Variation in an Internet Place Name is available in Names: A Journal of Onomastics special issue on Names, Naming and the Internet (Maney Publishing). Enjoy!

Institutional access will be required for many of the links above. For those without Institutional access, please visit either of the first three links (to my personal research website), where you can view a post-print (unrefereed version) of the published paper.

Role: Researcher

posted by iamkimiam (20 comments total)

Oh, Canada.
posted by Area Man at 11:19 AM on October 1, 2012 [1 favorite]

Yaaay!
posted by The Whelk at 11:34 AM on October 1, 2012

at least eight recognized pronunciation variants.

What?!?! You people are weird. Throatwarbler Mangrove is the only APPROVED pronunciation.
posted by blue_beetle at 11:46 AM on October 1, 2012 [1 favorite]

'Netologism' is, like, the definition of eponysterical.
posted by carsonb at 6:53 PM on October 1, 2012

There's a journal dedicated to onomastics?! There is a field of study called Onomastics?! I've been looking for a scholarly journal like this for a project of mine.

Cool to read your research, too, iamkimiam. Would never have guessed there were so many different pronunciations.
posted by Foci for Analysis at 11:00 PM on October 1, 2012 [1 favorite]

Thanks! If you're interested in onomastics, the American Name Society (who put out the Names Journal) has a listserv. It's a very active group discussing and answering questions on all manner of onomastically-related current events, ages-old etymologies and general name-related linguistic phenomena.
posted by iamkimiam at 11:52 PM on October 1, 2012 [1 favorite]

There's a journal dedicated to onomastics?! There is a field of study called Onomastics?!

A professor in my department has been trying to revive our (defunct for many years) Journal of Literary Onomastics. One issue has come out so far.
posted by thomas j wise at 10:03 AM on October 2, 2012

I know some of those words!

(but seriously it's cool)
posted by antonymous at 11:45 AM on October 2, 2012

At least we can all agree on the pronunciation of 'AskMe', right?
...right?
posted by Gordafarin at 12:26 PM on October 2, 2012

Of course! It's "osk meh".
posted by Specklet at 12:38 PM on October 2, 2012 [5 favorites]

So, Kim, how do you pronounce it?
posted by lily_bart at 12:14 PM on October 3, 2012

Well, these days I'm all over the place. I think about this way too much and am hearing way too many instances. I also tend to accommodate to the pronunciation of whoever I'm speaking to, which is funny sometimes when I don't know their pronunciation and my brain just decides to calculate a guess. Which I, of course, think about about too much later.

All that said, I'm fairly biased towards Me-Feye, with a capital M & F.
posted by iamkimiam at 1:28 AM on October 4, 2012

We had an argument about how to pronounce MeFi at the last Baltimore meetup. I was shocked that anyone would even think of pronouncing it any way other than with a long e and a long i, but Meh-Fih had several adherents. I referenced the pronunciation of "AskMe", others did not find this compelling. Teach the controversy!!!
posted by ubiquity at 12:54 PM on October 4, 2012

You say it "AxMe," right? Right?!
posted by toodleydoodley at 6:46 PM on October 4, 2012 [1 favorite]

Act Smee.
Acme.
Ass Knee.
Am Ski.
posted by nebulawindphone at 8:32 PM on October 4, 2012 [1 favorite]

This was a dissertation, right? Does this mean your new username will be iamDOCTORkimTOYOUNOWiam?
posted by I am the Walrus at 7:05 AM on October 5, 2012

When I finish the dissertation, then yes, I think I might like to purchase that username. Look for it in late 2013, accompanied by my snarky and pretentious responses to AskMe's about any topic at all.
posted by iamkimiam at 7:12 AM on October 5, 2012

(until then, you can call me Master.)
posted by iamkimiam at 7:12 AM on October 5, 2012 [3 favorites]

Specklet: "Of course! It's "osk meh".

Cannot be unheard!
posted by Room 641-A at 7:38 PM on October 5, 2012

Sociophonetic. Not sociopathic. I must read things more carefully; I was genuinely alarmed.
posted by Joe in Australia at 6:25 AM on October 6, 2012 [2 favorites]