In a year chalk full of confusion, sometimes you come across a name that's a bit difficult to pronounce. Imagine being an anchor or broadcaster and having to deliver the proper pronunciation for some multi-syllable name where the rules of speech seem to go out the door. How about saying the name of professional basketball player Giannis Antetokounmpo?

One of the best bits of advice we ever received was actually from a fellow radio disc jockey, who said if we ever came to a word that was really long and hard to pronounce "just say it really, really fast!". If only it were that easy.

The U.S. Captioning Company, which captions and subtitles events on television and in courtrooms. came up with the most mispronounced names of 2020, and several are actually well known. Like, we hear these almost every night on the news. One is even our Vice President-elect. According to their list, the Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Anthony Fauci, and the nation's incoming vice president, Kamala Harris have very hard names for some to pronounce. Also on the list is one of the Renaissance's most famous artists and engineers, Leonardo da Vinci.

But then there was Hurricane Isias, which wreaked havoc here in the Hudson Valley, East Coast, and the Caribbean. Or how about Elon Musk's newborn son? What does that name even mean?

Then, of course, there are those who can't pronounce town names here in the Hudson Valley. Wawayanda? Wawarsing? Coxsackie? It can be a challenge sometimes.

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