A Socialista's Dictionary

Let's get straight to the point. A true socialista knows brands like the back of their hands. For most of us (especially the uninformed), a socialista is someone who shops at Rustans and hangs out at Starbucks.

Spotting a true socialista takes more than catching them on their weekend shopping spree or partying on a Saturday night. The clothes they wear, the way they walk and the names that roll off their mouths are an indication that they are true blooded socialistas right from the start.

I was in Greenbelt 5 the other day looking at sexy underwear at Calvin Klein when these two ladies behind me started talking about a recent perfume they just bought.

Girl 1: "Oh I just love this new perfume I saw at Rustans the other day- smells so nice!"
Girl 2: "Really? What's the name of the perfume?"
Girl 1: "Jee-voooon-che! (Givenchy)"

I had to restrain myself from laughing at her statement. The ever so proud pasosyal girl has just mispronounced the name of a well known perfume brand! Can I call her a socialista? Of course not! She may know the brand but she sure doesn't know hoe to pronounce the name. In my book, knowing is so different from pronouncing. It's like English- learning the language is different from actually speaking it!

The brand names in the fashion world is a whole new different language. Lest you know how to spell it and pronounce it correctly, you can never really call yourself a socialista.

Here are just some of the most commonly mispronounced words and how their correct pronunciation. I spelled the syllables as easy as I could for better comprehension (in case some of you may still not get it)

• Givenchy – Jee-Vahn-Shee not Gee-Ven-Chee or Jee-voooon-che 
• Hermes – Er-Mes and not Her-Mey or Her-Mes
• Christian Louboutin – that’s Christian Loo-Vhoo-Tan not Loo-Boo-Teen,
• Shu Eumura – Shoo Ooy-Moo-Ra
• Yves Saint Laurent –  Eev-Sahnt-Lo-Ran or if you still can't pronounce it correctly just say YSL! 
• Christian Lacroix – pronounced as Christian Lak-Wa.
• Margiela – Mar-Zhey-La
• Emilio Pucci – it should be Poo-Chee not Poo-ki or Poo-see. 
• Moschino - Mos-Kee-No and not Mo-Shee-No
• Herve Leger - Er-Veh Ley-Jehr with a soft “R” on Leger.
• Balmain – Bahl-Mahn with a soft “N”.
• Lanvin - Lon-Vahn with soft “N” some actually pronounce it as Lan-Veen because people might not get what they're talking about. Both are equally acceptable.
• Guerlain - Ger-Lahn

There should be more on this list but these are basically the ones that are on top of my head and the most commonly mispronounced brand names- especially those that are in french. Like I mentioned before, even though you read them right, you can still make a mistake with the accent.