The word "pronounce" for most of us is associated with the French language. And this is true, because it comes from the verb prononcer, which in French means "pronounce". How did the characteristic pronunciation that distinguishes native speakers of this language from the pronunciation of other inhabitants of Europe develop?
A quick look at history
French belongs to the group of Romance languages, formed on the basis of Latin. In addition to him, this group includes Spanish, Moldovan, Portuguese, Romanian, Italian and others.
Latin spread to the territory of Gaul (modern France) in the 1st century BC after its conquest by Julius Caesar. Over time, under the influence of the Celtic language of the local tribes, Latin has changed significantly. This determined the peculiar French pronunciation, which differs from the pronunciation of sounds in other Romance languages.
Features of phonetics
For learners of French, often the most difficult thing is mastering the pronunciation of a special group of semi-vowels, nasals, as well as the characteristic graduated “r”. Great value forthe production of these sounds is given to the correct articulation of the organs of speech (lips, palate, tongue). Only in this way and through prolonged practice can a true French pronunciation be achieved.
For example, when setting the semivowel [j], it is necessary to raise the back of the tongue so that it almost touches the palate, and the lips should take a position that corresponds to the pronunciation of the subsequent vowel, for example, [e]: les papiers [le-pa- pje] – documents.
Foreigners often think that the French are talking through their noses. This is due to the presence of four nasal vowels. In cases where they are followed by the final sonant m or n, the nasal vowels are nasalized: bon, maman, camp. For example, we pronounce a similar sound [n] in the word “dan”. Although, of course, the nasal connotation of the vowel in Russian is less pronounced.
One more value
The phrase “French pronunciation” under consideration can often be heard outside of language learning. For example, here is a small excerpt from Vladimir Kachan's book "Smile, a bird is about to fly out":
Therefore, he endlessly plays records or tape recordings of outstanding Frenchmen and tries to sing along with them, synchronously repeating what they are doing. If some passage does not work out, he twists this place about twenty times until he achieves at least an approximate similarity. Therefore, it is not surprising that their intonations are tightly eaten into his manner of singing. When they ask him later why he sings his songs with a sort of Frenchpronounce, our Russian chansonnier will falsely answer that he has a chronic runny nose and sinusitis.
The works of this author are widely known. He knows how to accurately notice the small nuances of people's lives and show it in an ironic way. In this example, this is clearly visible. Here the phrase "French pronunciation" is an ironic remark. It is in this sense that the expression is used today for those who have a cold and stuffy nose.
Seriously speaking, the mentioned phrase simply means the peculiarity of the pronunciation of certain sounds in French, as mentioned above.
