# Pronunciation Question????



## Pamelabous (Jan 19, 2010)

How do YOU say it?
HAVE-A-KNEES....or.....HAA-VAA-KNEES???

I have BOTH from "Experts"...what is the consensus here? ~Pamela


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## CapotesMom (Apr 3, 2007)

Havana is pronounced Huh-va-nuh....so I pronounce them Haa-vaa-nees


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## MopTop Havanese (Sep 25, 2006)

I prefer Have-a-knees.
I hate the Huuuvaaknees, eww!


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## Pamelabous (Jan 19, 2010)

Katie, 
You live not far from me...good to know what the "locals" are saying. ~Pamela


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## galaxie (Dec 1, 2009)

Have-anese. Like, Have-ana, Cuba!


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

:laugh: It looks like it depends on how you pronounce Havana!

Is it "toe may toe" or "toe mah toe"? :laugh:


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## galaxie (Dec 1, 2009)

Well, the Cubans say Havana, Have-Ana, sooo I'm gonna go with they're right. LOL!


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## Leslie (Feb 28, 2007)

galaxie said:


> Well, the Cubans say Havana, Have-Ana, sooo I'm gonna go with they're right. LOL!


Actually, my Cuban neighbors call it "'Abana" silent "h" and /b/ instead of /v/ 

I say Have-uh-knees


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## pjewel (Apr 11, 2007)

I'm with the Have a knees group. Then it's easier to say Have-a-what?


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## good buddy (Feb 20, 2007)

Leslie said:


> Actually, my Cuban neighbors call it "'Abana" silent "h" and /b/ instead of /v/


So then it would be Aban-ease op2:


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## Leslie (Feb 28, 2007)

Christy~ That's exactly how the grandmother says it!


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## good buddy (Feb 20, 2007)

Leslie said:


> Christy~ That's exactly how the grandmother says it!


lol! Then it seems to depend on how you pronounce Havana! I'm all in with the Ha-va-knees group. I tried to say Have-a-knees for awhile, because I thought that was the proper way, but I forget and say it Ha-va-knees every time.


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## Havtahava (Aug 20, 2006)

Have-a-neez ("have" as in "I _*have*_ a dog", who are named after Huh-vanna

I can't do the "HAHV-ah-neez" even if I wanted to... and I don't.


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## pjewel (Apr 11, 2007)

Don't they say Have-a-knees at Westminster? I thought I remembered that but then again, maybe it depends upon who's announcing.


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## kudo2u (Mar 7, 2009)

At my house, it's pronounced hav-uh-sneeze

When Tango first met DH, he had just come in from a bike ride and, um, needed a shower....

So she ran up to greet him, he picked her up, she got a nice good whiff and sneezed for about 3 minutes! ound:

She has been known since as hav-uh-sneeze.


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## Leslie (Feb 28, 2007)

After meeting and falling in love w/Tori, a friend of my DH calls them "Have-one-of-these", as in "gotta have one of these" ound:


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## Havtahava (Aug 20, 2006)

Leslie, there is a goofy ring steward who always calls them "Have A Pair of Knees." A couple of us have tried to break him of it, but to no avail. Your husband's friend's version is cuter.


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## Julie (Feb 8, 2007)

I guess I say it "have a knees"....I did hear others say it "haav a knees" in Chicago. To me it sounded wierd,but then here we pronounce things maybe odd to other parts of the country. We say "po-tate-o" and "warsh-ing machine"...as opposed to waashing machine.


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## LuvCicero (Mar 31, 2008)

When a friend from Germany came to visit she said they are called Hav-uh-nee-zer in her city. Cicero is a have-a-knees


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## Luciledodd (Sep 5, 2009)

I am listening to a new Jeffery Deaver audio tape--a thriller. One of the charactors has a Have-a-nese. That's how the reader pronounced it and on another subject, shows the popularity of the breed now. The book is "Broken Window" a Lincoln Ryhme novel.


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## TheVintageVamp (Oct 14, 2009)

ooo, Lucille! I love the Lincoln Ryhme series by Jeffery Deaver. I haven't read that one yet. Must go place a hold for it at the library!


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## Luciledodd (Sep 5, 2009)

Well, I will mail you the book tape if you like. I have a lot of Deaver books and keep them in the guest house for the children to take. The book tapes are my husbands because he travels so much; but this one I listened to because of all the snow this past weekend. I still have a one cd to listen to.


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## TheVintageVamp (Oct 14, 2009)

How very sweet of you. I'd love that. I'll pm you.


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## CarolZ (Aug 12, 2010)

Today I took Julie to the beach and when people remarked what I happy dog and asked what she was. I said Havanese as Haa vaa nees 
and they generally responded oh a Have a knees

So I began wondering what is the right pronunciation -found this old thread--
and thought would ask how other new puppy owners are saying Havanese.


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## gelbergirl (Jun 9, 2007)

HAA-VAA-KNEES


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## graciesmum (Feb 5, 2010)

In our house, Ellie is a have-a-brat


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## Kathie (Jul 31, 2008)

The Animal Planet had a series a few months ago called Dogs 101 and each week told a little about three or four breeds. One of the people talking about the Havanese pronounced it Haa - vaa - nese but everyone else said Have- a- nese. I've always said Hav-a-nese because that's the way it is spelled and makes more sense - at least to me!


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## SOPHIES-MOM (Oct 4, 2010)

Barbara Walters has a have-a- knees, so that's good enough for me.


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## Luciledodd (Sep 5, 2009)

I hate to be one that agrees with Barbara Walters. I have been saving Ha-va-nese as in Ha-va-na. Now I guess I will try for the Have a nese.


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## Suzi (Oct 27, 2010)

Leslie said:


> Actually, my Cuban neighbors call it "'Abana" silent "h" and /b/ instead of /v/
> 
> I say Have-uh-knees


My next Have-uh-knees's name is going to be Abana:


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