Afghanistan is the new Nicaragua

I'm not talking about politics -- I'm talking pronunciation.

If you remember when the Sandinistas were the cause du jour, then you'll remember how it was de rigueur to pronounce Latin American names as though you were a native Spanish speaker. It started with activists, but quickly spread to the media. So it wasn't the imperialist pronunciation Nicaragua anymore, it was Nee-ka-ra-hua.

Have you noticed the same thing happening with Afghanistan? The vowel sounds have been getting longer, and the gh sound softer.

You could say it's better to pronounce place names the way the locals pronounce them. OK then. I'm hoping to get off to Ellatha next year, and if we fly to London, maybe we'll visit Tywysogaeth Cymru first. It would also be fun to go over land, maybe stopping off in Deutschland and Italia on the way.

Yeah, that'll make the language a lot more comprehensible.