Ensure that you pronounce names correctly

If you don’t have an English sounding name, the chances are that, in a Western country, it's almost always mispronounced.

- Birjees Hussain

Take my name, for instance. I think it’s easy enough but it has not only been mispronounced but misspelt too. It’s been spelt Birjis, brijesh, birgees and birgit. And some of the pronunciations have been just as bad. I've been called Birgeese (as in geese) and Beerjis (as in beer). Plus all the other pronunciations with the odd spellings I mentioned earlier. But according to the Iranians, the correct pronunciation of my name is Bur-jess.

But mine isn't the only foreign sounding name that can get messed up. Take Imran Khan, for example. Sports commentators in England in the 80s would call him Im-run Can. The name Khalid is often also pronounced Ka-leed or Khab-lid but from what I've just learnt, in Arabic the K is silent so the name is actually Hah-lid. The other name is Amir. It might be mispronounced Aymeer or Ameer or even Amer but these are all incorrect. The correct pronunciation is actually Ah-meer.