pronunciation of 'Rus'

[GeneD]

Do you pronounce the vowel in 'Rus' as 'a' or 'u'? I guess it might be 'u' like in 'Ruthenia'. Is it so?

 

[emsr2d2]

It's not pronounced as "a" nor like the "oo" sound in "Ruthenia". It's pronounced the same as the "u" in "but/bus/cut/rut" etc.

 

[jutfrank]

Firstly, when GeneD asks whether we say a or u, I'm pretty sure he's talking about the vowels in but and boot respectively. (Or if that's not right exactly, then at least whether the vowel is articulated with the jaw down or up.)

I've always used, and only ever heard, the second pronunciation (as in Ruthenia and Belarus). In fact, I really don't think anyone is likely to use the first way. I'm quite surprised that posts #2 and #3 seem to disagree.

 

[emsr2d2]

Well, maybe it's a phonetics thing. I don't really do phonetics so I don't see how the "u" in "but" can be described as "a". "a" is the sound in "bat". I'm aware that some phonetic symbols don't resemble the letter they represent so it could well be that that's throwing me off.

However, I can definitely say that the "u" in Ruthenia and Belarus don't sound the same as the "u" in Russia. This is the best I can do for my own pronunciation.

Russia = Rusher
Ruthenia = Roo-theen-ya
Belarus = Bella-rooss

From Forvo:

Russian (8 recordings): https://forvo.com/word/russian/#en
Belarus (7 recordings): https://forvo.com/word/belarus/#en
Ruthenia (1 recording): https://forvo.com/search/Ruthenia/

 

[jutfrank]

I don't really do phonetics so I don't see how the "u" in "but" can be described as "a". "a" is the sound in "bat". I'm aware that some phonetic symbols don't resemble the letter they represent so it could well be that that's throwing me off.

I'm just guessing (from experience of Russian speakers) that "a" is meant to represent the vowel in but, which is a sound that doesn't exist exactly in Russian, and so which is usually approximated to something a bit longer like baat.

Anyway, the point is that we pronounce the vowel in Rus in the same way as we pronounce it in Belarus, right?

 

[emsr2d2]

Anyway, the point is that we pronounce the vowel in Rus in the same way as we pronounce it in Belarus, right?

My point is that, in BrE, that's not the case. The "u" in "Russia" is not pronounced the same as the "u" in "Belarus".

 

[jutfrank]

My point is that, in BrE, that's not the case. The "u" in "Russia" is not pronounced the same as the "u" in "Belarus".

Yes, but aren't we talking about Rus, not Russia?

 

[emsr2d2]

OK, I see where I've got distracted now! Since I didn't recognise "Rus" as a word, I imagined it as the first syllable of Russia and have dragged myself down that path ever since. I still don't think it's a word so all I can say is that the "u" in "Belarus" is pronounced the same as the "u" in "Ruthenia".
Sorry for the confusion, everyone!

 

[jutfrank]

Here's a link to a Youtube video about the history of the Rus (people). Go to 4:15 - 4:25 to hear two instances of how the narrator pronounces it. As I said, I've never heard it pronounced any other way. I suppose that the way native-English-speakers pronounce it is trying to approximate the way that Russian speakers do.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_XGmtzZU6mE

 

[GeneD]

Sorry everyone for the confusion my poor knowledge of phonetics and transcription caused. Yes, Frank got everything right. I meant exactly those sounds.

And yes, there is the word 'Rus', and in post 1 I gave the link to the Wiki-article where it's mentioned, but I see my mistake: I should have made the link easier to notice (to make it bolder or something else).

Thanks for the answers. They've helped a lot.