How to pronounce Ubuntu?

[R S Ananda Murthy]

Hello,

Please pardon me for my ignorance. How do I pronounce Ubuntu?

Thanks for your help,

Anand

[GentleHatemonger]

Hello,

Please pardon me for my ignorance. How do I pronounce Ubuntu?

Thanks for your help,

Anand

I have always pronounced it You-Bun-Too
I could be wrong, though

[wallijonn]

I've been pronouncing it oob-boone-tu

[LongTooth]

You-Boone-Tu is how I say it. Then again, I say Nome for Gnome. I can't bring myself to prononce it like the purist do - Gah-new. But what the hell do I know. We say Ya'll down here in Texas. Go figure. Maybe we should have an African tell how to say it.

[tgecho]

"oo-BOON-too" according to http://www.ubuntulinux.org/support/documentation/faq/pronunciation

Oh well, I kinda liked "you-bahn-too", but that sounds more african.

[spartas]

I've been prouncing it ah-bunhn-too. I know, I've been obliterating the sound of the first u. LongTooth, we say Y'all down south here in Louisana as well, it's just a southern thing.

[wallijonn]

"oo-BOON-too".

That's what I said. :D

oo-boon-too is African. :D

It's us 'Anglicans' which say "you" "bunt" "two".

[fng]

oe-bun-toe (for the dutch people)

[Quest-Master]

I say the "you-bun-too."

Can't say anything else. My friend insists on calling it "own-eh-ban-too" for some reason though. :P

To each his own.

[burlap]

"ubuntu" (for the Polish people)

[jeremy]

In Spanish it's 'ubuntu' too.

[daniels]

Oo-boon-too.

With my Australian accent, this comes out somewhat like 'uh-boon-too'. But more like oo-boon-too than anything else. I believe Jeff's tagline is the best way to describe it -- 'Ooo! Ooo! Ooo! Ubuntu!'.

[Nano]

"ubuntu" (for the Polish people)
Just "Ubuntu" for Spaniards, Italians and many more...

[ubuntant]

Just "Ubuntu" for Spaniards, Italians and many more...
Yes, also "ubuntu" (oo-boon-too) for Ukrainian and Russian people.

[Rhodan]

Well being a South African, the correct way that Ubuntu would be pronounced by the Zulu speaking people (since it is a Zulu word), would be "oo-boon-too".

[ibs]

In Iceland it is Úbúntú.

[BWF89]

You-ben-too

[xsos]

"ubuntu" (for the Polish people)
same "ubuntu" (for indonesian people :D )

[kmi]

According to the documentation it should be pronounced "ou-boune-tou" in France.
(Et pas "u-bune-tu"... ;) )

[dude2425]

I've been pronouncing it as "That Linux Distro"
I just kinda think all the other ways just sound kinda unnatural because it's just such a new word for me.

[ubuntu.daemon]

Ooboon2

[maxim_86ualb2]

"ubuntu" (for the Polish people)
well in slavic languages... we have letter.... uuh ....so it is easy to say ubun2 :) I am originaly from Ukrain

[Michael]

well in slavic languages... we have letter.... uuh ....so it is easy to say ubun2 :) I am originaly from Ukrain
Interesting thread... ;)

ubuntu, oo-bun-tuh, you-bhun-two, juventus, whateva :p

i always used to say ooh-bun-too, and i think i'll keep saying it this way :)

[panickedthumb]

You say toe-may-toe, and I say toe-mah-toe
You say po-tay-toe, and I say po-tah-toe

I say it doesn't matter as long as you use it in good context :)

I don't get how people read the middle syllable as "ban" though. I get bun, boon... but ban? There's no a! Ah well. We should start a thread on how you SPELL it too, cause I've seen some very odd spellings.

[maxim_86ualb2]

You say toe-may-toe, and I say toe-mah-toe
You say po-tay-toe, and I say po-tah-toe

I say it doesn't matter as long as you use it in good context :)

I don't get how people read the middle syllable as "ban" though. I get bun, boon... but ban? There's no a! Ah well. We should start a thread on how you SPELL it too, cause I've seen some very odd spellings.
The sollution , record a person saying it , & upload it... then every one will download & learn the phonetics...

[eklim]

i pronounce it as "U-Bun-Tu"
Hope it does matters :-(

[bored2k]

latin/hispanic ppl lik me should hav no beef wrestling 2 say "Oo[as in n00b]-Un-tOo"

[oVerCaffeinated]

ooo-bun-two

[geokker]

Up until yesterday, I was pronouncing it 'WHY CAN'T YOU REMEMBER THE GODDAM 80HZ SETTING BEFORE MY EYES CATCH FIRE!!!! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!'

[nobodysbusiness]

I think you're all wrong. It's spelled 'Ubuntu,' but it's pronounced 'Throat Wobbler Mangrove.'

(Quick! Name the comedy troupe who did that sketch. Bonus points if you can give the episode number!)

[student]

I pronouce it :
"minesweeper in aptitude" :-P

[poofyhairguy]

ooo-bun-two

This is what I say even though I know it is wrong.

I also call Debian "dee-bee-an" (sounds like an cool demon instead of some dudes wife) and I call Mac OSX "oh-ess-ex." Screw the OSTen thing, it doesn't sound as cool.

(I also call Canada "Canadia" because I never got why "canadians" come from "canada.")

[benplaut]

You-ben-too

correct!

me Ben, too! \\:D/

i do the (correct?) oo-BOON-too

and G'noo
and G'nome
and zore-us

etc...

[bored2k]

correct!

me Ben, too! \\:D/

i do the (correct?) oo-BOON-too

and G'noo
and G'nome
and zore-us

etc...
Off topic: I can't get out of my head the idea of Cookie monster being nothing more that an angry french who likes Croissants.. and fortune cookies..

[benplaut]

Off topic: I can't get out of my head the idea of Cookie monster being nothing more that an angry french who likes Croissants.. and fortune cookies..

he might be... we'll never know...

someday, someone will find that all those cookies he demolishes are made with splenda! sacroligious! :o

[skoal]

Whoa! I just realized that "Ubuntu" is one them palindrone doohickeys. sweet...

\\//_

[TeeJay]

I call it u-bun-2 or just linux or is that lyn-nucks

[carlc]

How bout some southern twang..... yaw-ban-toooo

[carlc]

If the "n" is silient, it would be pronounced, "You - butt - you"

[bored2k]

If the "n" is silient, it would be pronounced, "You - butt - you"
It's not an american word so its not You :-P. Ooboontoo

[carlc]

that was just a cheap and apparent failing attempt at humor

[jeff]

u as in uber sounds like foobar or new

bunt as in bunt sounds like blunt

u as in uber sounds like foobar or new

[a-nubi-s]

Originally Posted by jeff
bunt as in bunt sounds like blunt
Incorrect, the middle u is also like "foo" "too" "new" or "BOO!"

Listen http://northwich-scene.co.uk/ubuntu/drinkit.ogg :)

[manicka]

Think of an African accent and oo-BOON-too rolls off the tongue.

love the sound :D

Another reason it's the funkiest distro around

[NeoSNightmarE]

I just call it oo-bun-two or the similar. And since the last LAN party that I went to and there was someone there who I didn't know and I called lynix lienix and he was like...its lynix n00b because i was tired at that point, i've been watching how i pronounce this kind of stuff. It's the kind of thing that shouldn't matter but some ppl are morons and I hate to give them material.

However I did call it "the OS that refuses to let me get permission to deltree a folder that's unlocked" yesterday because it made me go into the root terminal and do the whole rmdir thing. It was more like I didn't want to do it than the fact that I had to. ](*,)

[tommy04]

I say oo-bun-too.

[umfana]

I have always pronounced it You-Bun-Too
I could be wrong, though
Hi

it is pronounced as you read it Ubuntu whereas the "u's" are pronounced as oo (so to say ooboontoo)
I know it, because I can speak isiZulu, where this word derrives from.

umfana


PS
If I was not such a newbie ro Linux and Ubuntu and the like, I wouldn't mind sitting with some people developping a distri in Zulu. Linux is ideal for a country such as South Africa, where PC hardware is already expensive enough, never mind the fully licenced OS (such as M$) and I am sure a Zulu version would get nearly ALL the Zulu-hackers on board.

[SKLP]

oo-boon-too

[Freeanator]

Hi

it is pronounced as you read it Ubuntu whereas the "u's" are pronounced as oo (so to say ooboontoo)
.

Yes, I know because I am from South Africa too! ;-)

[drizek]

is it GNOME or NOME?

[cowlip]

u as in uber sounds like foobar or new

bunt as in bunt sounds like blunt

u as in uber sounds like foobar or new


Yepp I like it this way too :) Ubooontoo just sounds sily to my english ears.

[jfdill_2]

he might be... we'll never know...

someday, someone will find that all those cookies he demolishes are made with splenda! sacroligious! :o
They're fat free raisin oatmeal so as not to mess up the fur. I heard that sometime on PBS, wouldn't be surprized if it's on their website somewhere.

[jfdill_2]

Off topic: I can't get out of my head the idea of Cookie monster being nothing more that an angry french who likes Croissants.. and fortune cookies..
You know, that does explain his use of English grammar, although he doesn't say things like, "I am liking the cookie."

[jfdill_2]

u as in uber sounds like foobar or new

bunt as in bunt sounds like blunt

u as in uber sounds like foobar or new

We need an acrostic poem, which could then be sung by babershop quartet, you know...

"U" is for the uber cool linux distro
"B" is for the box I installed it on
"U" is for the...etc etc (followed by sound of retching loudly...)

[student]

echo "ubuntu" | festival --tts

says it : you b'on'two :smile: :smile:

[a-nubi-s]

Originally Posted by drizek
is it GNOME or NOME?
First one, guh-nome.

[KingBahamut]

Well if we follow the RMS thoery its -- Gah - No - me
following this theory with ubuntu - oo boon too.

[a-nubi-s]

Here's an answer from Miguel de Icaza, far more an authority on Gnome than RMS.

Pronunciation of Gnome (http://mail.gnome.org/archives/gnome-list/1998-December/msg01123.html)

[Nimefurahi]

For your consideration...

4131

[crazedgremlin]

Whoa! I just realized that "Ubuntu" is one them palindrone doohickeys. sweet...

\\//_

No, it's not. lol
ubuntu backwards is "utnubu" _NOT_ the same thing.

btw I say oo-bun-too

[PrinceArithon]

I'm sorry this is what angers me about 99% of ALL english speaking people.

First let me explain something before someone tries to flame me. I was born and raised in the US. I speak English fluently. Yet I have a problem with so many people when it comes to a word in another language, such as Ubuntu.

A lot of people think it's fine and dandy to just be ignorant and say the word in any English pronunciation that they want. This goes for both American and UK English speakers. If you ask me it's ridiculous. I don't care if it sounds stupid to you or not. I feel you should try your best to say it as proper as you possibly can.

I know many people from other countries who learned English as a second, third, fourth, or whatever language. They strive to speak it as perfect as possible. Sure they have their own accents, but it's not because they want to. They really try not to say the words improper. Yet when it comes to English speaking people they say the words like garbage. I hate listening to people speak Spanish half the time in this country. Spanish is my second language, and I speak it with no English accent. So when I hear others speaking it like garbage I want to shoot them for it, because it is embarrassing.

I'm right now learning Chinese. This language is hard...harder than any other language I have ever came across. Just the slightest sound difference in a word can make it mean something totally different. Yet I do all I can to be as perfect as possible. This is why it angers me that the majority of us can't even get one simple little word right like Ubuntu.

First: the first "U" in Ubuntu is not pronounced as "you", for phonetics it is prounced as "oo" as in the "oo" in roof.

Second: "bun" is not prounced like in bunt or bun. It's prounced like boon.

Third: the last "u" is prounounced as "oo" just like all the other times.

I'm sorry, I hate to be so soap boxish and anal about this. The problem is, I think if you are going to be using something you should be saying it's name right. If your name is Rich I don't think you want the majority of the world to be calling you Rech. If your name is Tom I don't think you want the world to be calling you Tam. It's just respect out of someone else's language, because language is culture, and culture is very important.

So it really does matter I think. After all I have seen plenty of Americans get pissed because they didn't understand some foreigner when they were trying to speak English and it was coming out bad.

Sorry, this is just something that kinda gets me annoyed at a lot of people.

[Intell]

Though I try to pronounce it correctly, "uh-bun-too" rolls naturally off of my Midwestern tongue. :(

[FuturePilot]

I've gotten used to saying like oo-boon-too

[7echno7im]

The faq is closed with the pronunciation, I am assuming it is "ooo" "boon" "too", since the english language is one of the few languages that pronouces "U" like "uh". Most other languages (like Japanese) pronouce U's (that aren't clustered with another vowel or consonat) like "ooo". So is it safe to say that is how it is pronouced? The guys at work say "ooo" "bun" "too" and it drives me crazy. i guess after studying 2 non native languages for 9 years you cringe when somethign doesn't sound right. Thanks all.

PS, I am from the Midwest too :)

[dbbolton]

uːˈbuːntuː

[RKCole]

If I remember right...

There used to be a video in /home/<username>/Examples where an elder was speaking about Ubuntu, and I think he actually said the word in the native tongue.

I've always called it You-Bun-Too

[crazedgremlin]

If I remember right...

There used to be a video in /home/<username>/Examples where an elder was speaking about Ubuntu, and I think he actually said the word in the native tongue.

I've always called it You-Bun-Too

You mean Nelson Mandela??

[RKCole]

I believe so. My apologies on that one. I only saw a small clip of the video, but I cannot tell people by their appearances, so I was unsure of who was speaking.

[Stealth]

I think officially it's suppose to be oo-boon-too.

I try to use the official pronunciation as much as possible, but normally it'll come out as you-bun-too. :P

[emrextreme]

oo-boon-too in Turkey,too.

[ubuntu27]

Hello, my name is ****. And I pronounce Ubuntu as ####: Video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZzDN3YPucpU


Official Ubuntu Pronunciation:

http://www.ubuntu.com/aboutus/faq

[old_geekster]

Oo boon tu for me.

[ArtificialSynapse]

"oo-BOON-too" according to http://www.ubuntulinux.org/support/documentation/faq/pronunciation

Oh well, I kinda liked "you-bahn-too", but that sounds more african.

Apparently I've been prononcing it right! Yes!

[Blondie]

ooo (as in the noise a monkey might make)
boon (as in the English word)
too (as in the English word)

[crazedgremlin]

I believe so. My apologies on that one. I only saw a small clip of the video, but I cannot tell people by their appearances, so I was unsure of who was speaking.

lol. no problems. I'm horrible at recognizing people's faces myself.

[Happy_Man]

Ooh-bun-too

[jiminycricket]

It sems like a lot of people in videos I've seen (including SABDFL) refer to it as "Uh-bun-too".

[omns]

Most Americans will pronounce ubuntu with each "u" resembling the vowel sound in the words "who" or "boo." The accent is on the second syllable, oo-boon-too. If you lived in sub-Saharan Africa you would add a humming sound after the first "u": oom-boon-too.

[fuscia]

you-BYOUN-tuh

[Nonno Bassotto]

The correct pronunciation has the same sound for all the three u's. This sound is 'oo' like in cool, fool, mood...

[mikerduffy]

The pronunciation is the same as if it were a romanization of Japanese.

(Hey, that might have helped someone.)

[forrestcupp]

I pronounce it:

Obee - wan - kennObee

[sebbouckaert]

I was just wondering how they would pronounce it in France, where they have a significant different sound for the "u" (as in the French words "tu" "salut" or "cru")

[sebbouckaert]

oe-bun-toe (for the dutch people)

wouldn't that rather be 'oe-boen-toe' then?

[fuscia]

'bunt'. the outer 'u's are silent.

[BOBSONATOR]

i pronounce it

OO-bOOn-tOO

my canadian cousin says "BUJUBONTON?"

[alexmeole]

I see that this topic hasn't been touched in a while but I figured I would go ahead and help. I'm pretty interested in linguistics so I actually found this by accident. On the ubuntu website it says that the word is of African origin so it is pronounced oo-BOONE-too; all three u's are pronounced like the double o in the word boo... like what ghosts say. Anyhoo that's how Nelson Mandela said it in an interview...

[kellemes]

I never actually said it.. but i guess it would be something like oo-boon-too!

[Frak]

Ya-boon-tu.