The flood of e-mail on the Missouree-Missourah question has run about 3-1 in favor of people saying “I’m from there/ grew up there/ have family there, and I’ve never heard anyone say Missourah who wasn’t on TV– they only say that in rural areas in the southwest of the state.” Some of the others claim that “Missourah” is the older, more correct, pronunciation, and the problem is that the rest of the state has been flooded by newcomers. On the other hand, a couple of people remembered a poll that allegedly showed a 50-50 split in preferred pronunciation among residents.
In any event, it’s no surprise that when newscasters decide to go for the cutesy affectation of pronouncing a placename as they think the locals pronounce it, they’re prone to make mistakes. In this case, ‘Missourah’ is– at best– the choice of some locals. Makes the affectation sound even sillier.
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