I would appreciate anyone who could help me pronounce a name from the czech republic. The name has several nicknames - shorter versions. I don't know anything about the language - and want to make sure I pronounce it correctly and not mess it up. Jaroslava Juraska Jarka Jary It is my understanding that there is something odd with the r's. I have heard of the famous R's but still have no idea. I appreciate any help.
The "J" is pronounced as a consonant "y," the "a" as "ah." The "s" in the second variant (really should be "š") is pronounced as "sh." So ... Yah-row-slah-vah Yu-rah-shka Yahr-ka Yah-ree Note the only thing special about the "r" here is that they are rolled. Perhaps you are thinking of the letter "ř" which is a distinct letter and sound (see the thread The famous "R" consonant !!), somewhere between a "zh" sound and a rolled "r," but this letter does not appear in any of the names you list here.
BTW, this so called "rolled R" is the most frequent variant of R-realisation in all languages all over the world To help: perhaps you know how the Scottish R sounds - it should be something like that.
