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Possible Duplicate:
Pronunciation of years in English

Hello

As I know, I can read 1991 as nineteen ninety one.

How can I read 2008? twenty o eight? or twenty and eight simply?

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Nano HE
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2 Answers2

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It's usually referred to orally as "Two thousand eight" or informally as "Oh Eight".

Robusto
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    Which is odd, really, when you consider that we've had no trouble saying that the Battle of Hastings happened in "ten sixty-six". I have a feeling we'll settle down into the "twenties" once we hit the teens. It's just awkward going from the end of the "twenty" to an "oh" or an "aught"; we're not good at glottal stops (which is why we have an and a version of the with a long e to give us a palatal approximant to work with) and "twentioate" sounds sloppy to our delicate ears. – bye Feb 24 '11 at 02:37
  • @Robusto: Everywhere I hear it, is includes "and", prior to the "eight". – Orbling Feb 24 '11 at 02:45
  • @Orbling: That must be a British usage. – Robusto Feb 24 '11 at 03:03
  • @Stan: "Ten" is only one syllable – Adam Feb 24 '11 at 03:12
  • @advs89: And that is relevant how? "Twenty" is two syllables, "two thousand" is three and "two thousand and" is four. Even if you want to invoke the Principle of Least Effort, "twenty" still wins. – bye Feb 24 '11 at 03:22
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    You were saying that "we had no trouble saying ... ten sixty-six." I was suggesting that maybe it's because "twenty sixty-six" would be an extra syllable. "'66" is shorter than "twenty sixty-six." "Ten sixty-six" is, perhaps, acceptable because it's shorter (and therefore more "catchy"). I'm just making wild speculation though. – Adam Feb 24 '11 at 03:49
  • I could see myself saying "ten sixty-six" but not "twenty sixty-six." The former is just too long and doesn't have that same rhythm that works for "ten sixty-six." – Adam Feb 24 '11 at 03:51
  • @Stan How would you pronounce 1008? I think "twenty sixty six" may catch on once we get there. There are already "twenty ten" and "twenty eleven". I think it's just the first decade that's causing problems. – Adam Lear Feb 24 '11 at 04:09
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    @Anna: I would say "one thousand and eight" (because I come from a place where the "and" is more prevalent than not. It's the "oh" -- it just doesn't feel right, does it? – bye Feb 24 '11 at 04:15
  • @advs89: "Sixty-six", naked, is ambiguous. (And it was a very good year -- first bike, first golf clubs, first camping trip.) Where were you when the rest of us (well, the rest of us programmers, at any rate) were scrambling to save the world from Y2K? – bye Feb 24 '11 at 04:18
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    @Stan Rogers: I was in elementary school, actually. (where they apparently weren't teaching me about the ambiguity involved with abbreviating years) – Adam Feb 24 '11 at 04:30
  • Okay, no sense for rhetorical questions... – bye Feb 24 '11 at 04:32
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    I knew it was rhetorical - I just chose to answer it regardless. – Adam Feb 24 '11 at 04:48
  • @Robusto: The "and" is used when it is below the ten on the years and the word thousand is being used. This year people just call "twenty eleven", now we are back in double figures. 1908 would be "nineteen OH eight", 1008 would follow the same convention, 2000-2009 seems to have been special. – Orbling Feb 24 '11 at 10:57
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Unless you are in America, it is probably 'two thousand and eight'. In America, 'two thousand eight'. Who knows why they decided to do it differently, but they do. But, this year is (currently) 'twenty-eleven' as often as, or more often than, 'two thousand [and] eleven'.

Jonathan Leffler
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