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The Italian pronunciation of Gilda is given with a J initial sound. That surprised me, because I've only heard it with a hard G.
In the 1946 Rita Hayworth movie "Gilda," the title character's name is pronounced with a hard G like in gain. Actress Gilda Radner's name is, also (she was named after the character). So I guess that's probably how most American Gildas born after the movie was made, pronounce it.
Can anyone tell me whether Gilda also has usage in another language, where it would have been pronounced with a hard G like in the movie?
In the 1946 Rita Hayworth movie "Gilda," the title character's name is pronounced with a hard G like in gain. Actress Gilda Radner's name is, also (she was named after the character). So I guess that's probably how most American Gildas born after the movie was made, pronounce it.
Can anyone tell me whether Gilda also has usage in another language, where it would have been pronounced with a hard G like in the movie?
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Replies
Ermenegilda (the original complete form of Gilda) is a Germanic name, and the majority of languages (besides Romance languages like Italian and Portuguese) would pronounce it with a hard G sound. The J sound is just how 'G' is pronounced in Italian before 'I' and 'E' (Italian, unlike English, has a consistent orthography).
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I have met Hispanic and Filippino women with this name and they all used the hard g. It may just be an American influence.
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I've only ever heard the J pronunciation, and only very seldom.
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