How is the syllable "ich" pronounced in German?

Question

I am self-studying German now and I have read in several books that in Germans "ich" is pronounced as something between "ikh" (as in Spanish) and "iyy" or even "ish", but in northern Germany it is pronounced "ikh". Right? Can any German visitors of Yahoo! explain to me how exactly to pronounce it properly? Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

dont touch your tongue to the back top of your mouth or forwards top . your tongue stays put.

do you realize how hard this is to explain? heheh!

how bout this.. make a hissing noise like a cat.. add an "ih" to the beginning.

Answer 2

Here's the correct answer. There are two basic pronunciations of "ich"...the first is "ish" or "eesh", and the second is more of an "ick" or "eeck", only with a softer edge on the "k". The pronunciation varies a bit regionally...there is high German (Hochdeutsch, which is generally what's taught in schools) and low German (Pladeutsch, a more colloquial form that's essentially the same, but with a few minor variations). I suggest some German tutorial software; there are several good ones out there, and they include audio where you can hear the appropriate pronunciations of basic words and phrases. Also, of course, the best way to learn the language as it is really spoken is to visit the country sometime. Viel Gluck, mein Freund!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Answer 3

1) Here's a description of how the sound is made:
"Stops" are consonant sounds in which the airflow is completely stopped (usually by the tongue). Here are three basic pairs of stops in English --p/b, t/d, k/g (the second one iin each pair the made by adding the voice).
Starting with one of these sounds, if you lower the tongue slightly to let some air through, you get a "fricative". Thus p > f, b > v, t > unvoiced-th (as in "myth"), d > voiced-th (as in "that").

The sound you want is the "fricative version of the stop /k/. So say "ick", but instead of pushing the tongue tight against the roof or your mouth and stopping the sound, let some air through.


2) Here's a trick that might help. Make the laughing sound "hee hee hee hee" very quickly, WITHOUT using your voice but with very strong/loud/harsh h's. If you force the air hard enough --like Ernie on Sesame Street -- you're making the right sound!


3) Of course, the best thing is to HEAR an native German. At some point it will help you with your German to listen to actual speakers --either "live" or through a recording, audio software, etc. (The same or related sounds can also be found in Scottish, Hebrew [first letter of "Channukah" and Greek [letter "chi"], so there may be others who can help.)

Answer 4

In my travels of Germany, I've heard it pronounced several different ways, including "ish", "eesh", "ikh" and "eekh". It depends on the region of Germany you're visiting, but Germans will be able to understand you either way. The 'kh' sound is formed by pronouncing a k, but stopping short and breathing as you would for an h.

Answer 5

First of all, it is *never* pronounced "ish". What sounds to English-speakers like an "sh" is pronounced in the *back* of the mouth. If you say it correctly, it will sound like an "sh" but feel more like a "kh" (as in Russian).

To make an "sh" sound, you bring the tip of your tongue up near the roof of your mouth right behind your teeth. To make the German sound, you leave the tip of your tongue down and bring the *back* of your tongue close to the back of your mouth.

That said, *standard* German uses the thing that sounds like an "sh". "Ch" after "e" or "i" is always pronounced that way; and it is pronounced like Russian "kh" (also sometimes called German "ch") everywhere else. I don't know about regional dialects.

Answer 6

It varies quite a bit. It really depends on the persons dialect. I personally pronounce it "ikh." Then again I did live in Northern Germany.

Answer 7

Pronounce it ish as in wish, fish dish and you'll be fine in most German towns. And Germans are very forgiving anyway. They will know what you are saying

Answer 8

Ihck. It's hard to write phonetically. Ask a German speaker to pronounce it for you.

Answer 9

There can be slight regional variations for the word' ich'.
the 'ch' sound (Sometimes written as [X] in linguists) is a voiceless fricative, the same as in the Greek word for no 'oci'. Or if you know how to correctly say the Scottish word 'loch' - lake, it is the virtually the same sound but devoiced.

Answer 10

It actually depends on your dialect. I dated someone who pronounced it "ish" and he admitted that it was a different dialect, because I was taught to pronounce it "iH" (with a throaty H).