Official Ramen pronunciation thread

[benito]

AAAAHHHHHHH!

I thought it was yah-men

How do you say it?

[gollygee]

1. I've always said "rah-men"

have I been in error?

[Liberal Veteran]

4. As a gay man, I've always prefered "raw-men"

:)

[gollygee]

8. ROFL

[eleonora]

12. lol!

[sniffa]

2. everybody Loves ramen

[kick-ass-bob]

3. sodium loaded crap.

that's how I pronounce it!

:P

[Fridays Child]

10. And yummy excitotoxins, too.

[Beware the Beast Man]

5. Everybody Loves Ramen!

[Champ]

6. I only known 1 person(this was yesturday in fact)

that pronounced them "Ray-men". Before that it was "ra-men"

[Endangered Specie]

7. Ramm'n

[KurtNYC]

9. Ramen Mania!

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/10/dining/10RAMEN.html

"Ramen?" you ask. "That plastic-wrapped block of dry noodles and powdered soup?" But freshly made ramen is another thing altogether. In Japanese ramenyas (ramen shops) a bowl of ramen holds a house-made soup, springy noodles, the chef's own tare (a mix of soy sauce, sugar and rice wine to flavor the soup) and exactly six traditional toppings. The wait at top Tokyo ramenyas can be up to three hours.

Remember the 1985 movie "Tampopo," in which a ramen chef undergoes training as rigorous as a boxer's to create the perfect bowl of noodle soup? That's ramen mania.

Their pronounciation explained here: Ramen belongs to the family of Chinese mein, meaning noodles. (The word "ramen" is a Japanese pronunciation of the Cantonese term "la mein.")

So I'm thinking they pronounce it like we would pronounce "main" -- as in 'Rah - Mayhn' There is a first name in Persian which is also spelled (anglicized) Ramen. Farsi speakers say this name like 'Rah - Meen'.

[chenGOD]

13. No that's wrong, sorry...

In Japan, you say "men" almost exactrly the plural of man, but with a bit softer "e".

[chenGOD]

11. Depends where you are...

In Japan: Ramen
In Korea: Ramyun

[democracyindanger]

15. and in Kansas

it's RAY-men. Seriously. A friend of mine from there and I had this conversation:

ME: ...you know, ramen.

HIM: Huh?

ME: Ramen. Top Ramen. Buy it at the grocery, 5 for a dollar...

HIM: Wha?

ME: Noodles...you dump it in a pot...little packet of seasoning...ramen.

HIM: Ohhhh. You mean RAY-men. It's RAY-men.

ME: Dude. Look at color of my skin. Who do you think knows how to pronounce it?

[chenGOD]

16. I was gonna make a joke about the "heartland"...

but felt I should I leave it to someone who actually lives there...
lol

[TheDonkey]

14. "Top" Rah-men

I guess that's oddles of noodles brand name? I always put a "top" in front of it.

[TXStacy]

17. I'm in Texas

and I pronounce it ray-men

[yellowdogintexas]

18. rah men

Like rah rah, I have a package in my desk drawer so I don't have to go out for lunch in the rain.

BTW, mix up some of those frozen oriental veggies in your rahmen soup; turns it into a real meal. And don't forget the hot chili sauce.

[scarlet_owl]

19. I've always said "Ray-men". My husband says "Rah-men"

I know "rah-men" is correct but I still say it my way.