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Say I am reading the following sentence:

Tokyo has served as the Japanese capital since 1869.

For the word Tokyo, if I happen to know how to pronounce it in Japanese (the pronunciation is similar to, but different from, the pronunciation in English), should I pronounce it in the Japanese way or the English way?

Glorfindel
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Zuriel
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    How would you answer this question if someone posted its equivalent on Your First Language.SE? I believe the answer to that question should be the same as the one you would give to the one you're asking. –  Sep 21 '19 at 01:37
  • Some languages are easier for English speakers than others. –  Sep 23 '19 at 20:12

1 Answers1

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Always consider your audience. If your audience won't understand the pronunciation as meaning "Tokyo," then pronounce it in its anglicized fashion so that it will be understood.

If, for example, I were to pronounce "Lisbon" as "leezh-BO-uh," how it's pronounced in Portuguese by the Portuguese people, I wouldn't be able to reasonably expect an English-speaking audience to understand that, so I would instead pronounce it "LIZ-bun," how my English-speaking audience would understand it.

The purpose of communication is to be understood, not to be not understood. Don't forego your overall goal of communication in exchange for futile pedantry.