2012/2/20 imnotpc <[email protected]> > > I never thought of that pronunciation. So I'm trying to think of how you > would naturally say it in French. Would it be something like 'ma-zsh-ah'? (I > obviously don't know proper phonetics)
Well, as a French speaking, I pronunce it the French way. In French, when it's followed by a "e" or "i", the "g" is a soft "g" as in "magic" (though we have no "d" sound before the g in French). It also the kind of sound you have in "Asia" for the "s" (though it might depend on the kind of English you speak I think). So, you would pronunce /ma.ʒe.ja/ (remember that /j/ is not the sound you have in "jelly" but the sound you have in "youth", just like the German "j"). To compare, I think in English you would pronunce /ˈmædʒɛjæ/ That's not written the same way in phonetics, but it's actually quite similar except for the /d/ sound in English.
