Guide to pronouncing Emre Can [divider]
Liverpool midfielder-come-defender Emre Can has been making quite a name for himself since joining from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer.
But how exactly do you pronounce his name? is it Emray Kan or is it Mr Chan?
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Emre is a popular Turkish name which means close friend or older brother. Being an Emre myself, I have heard everything from Emray to Henry – even Xray – but the name is actually pronounced, Eh-m-r-eh.
Emre is pretty straight forward but the name Can is a little more problematic as C in Turkish has a completely different sound to the same letter in English.
The latest trend seems to be pronouncing the name as Chan. Now Can maybe have had to become more combative in his new defensive role but he is not a cousin of Jackie.
The Turkish C is pronounced sort of like the Je sound in Jelly. When is comes to Can however, think of the Jun sound in Junk (obviously without the k) and there you have it, Eh-m-r-eh Jun.
As for Can it means spirit, heart and life. There are also several other letters that do not feature in the English alphabet at all, Ç, Ğ, I, Ü, İ, Samet Yeşil’s Ş – pronounced Sh- and Mesut Özil’s Ö which has a sound similar to the i in bird.
Turkish names often have literal meanings. The Reds other player of Turkish origin, Samed Yeşil means The Eternal (Samed) Green (Yeşil) and former Reds loanee Nuri Şahin has a name that translates to Luminous Buzzard.
