How Do you Pronounce The Word Kamado?


Ok. We have been doing this kamado-style cooker thing for 13+ years now and we think it is time that we finally sat down and had a little talk about something very important. We have already debunked the silly claims of a certain manufacturer that they invented the word "kamado". (See The Word "Kamado") Now it's time we talked about the correct way to pronounce it. Granted, you can pronounce it any way you wish because this is America (well, it is for those of you who live in America), but "kamado" is a Japanese word and maybe you want to think about pronouncing it the way the Japanese pronounce the word.

Most people pronounce it ka-MAH-do. Admit it, you do. Well, in Japanese pronunciation, each syllable (called a "mora") gets equal stress in terms of loudness and duration. The correct Japanese pronunciation is ka-ma-do. 3 equal syllables. You will find an explanation at the Japanese Professor web site in their Guide To Japanese Pronunciation. Basically:

"Don't place English-style stress on Japanese words – keep the length of each mora even...."
So that's why if you ever meet us, that's how we pronounce the word.

(For reference, if you remember when they announced the winter Olympics were going to be held in Nagano, Japan, at first all the television networks were pronouncing it na-GAH-no. Within a day or so, they were all teaching us that there is no emphasis in individual syllables in Japanese, apologized to the Japanese and started pronouncing it na-ga-no.)

So we hope you have enjoyed our little lesson in Japanese pronunciation, and... now you know.


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