How do you pronounce "Heisig?"

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Reply #1 - 2008 April 04, 9:20 pm
blackstockc Member
From: Hokkaido, Japan Registered: 2007-08-29 Posts: 59 Website

A friend and I say it differently.  I pronounce the 'ei' like 'eye' and she says it like "hay."

Reply #2 - 2008 April 04, 9:57 pm
Zarxrax Member
From: North Carolina Registered: 2008-03-24 Posts: 949

Wow, I was just wondering this same thing today :p
I've been pronouncing it as if it were romanized japanese... but I'm sure that can't be right :p

Reply #3 - 2008 April 04, 10:17 pm
JimmySeal Member
From: Kyoto Registered: 2006-03-28 Posts: 2279

I think you're right, blackstock.  I have the 振込み card here from when I ordered RTK3, and the katakana for his name (on his bank account) it ジェームズ　ハイジック.

The name is most likely German, and in German, "Heisig" would probably be pronounced something like "Haitzik."

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Reply #4 - 2008 April 04, 10:29 pm
paddy71 Member
From: Canada Registered: 2007-07-08 Posts: 25

I would pronounce it
"Hey, what the hell was I thinking, spending all my free time trying to learn all this wacky Kanji... like gallbladder??... When I'm I ever going to need to write gallbladder to my japanese friends... Hey, Yuki... How's your sisters gallbladder?"

Just kidding, I love this book.

and... No, I don't know how to pronounce our fearless leaders name.

Reply #5 - 2008 April 04, 11:06 pm
rich_f Member
From: north carolina Registered: 2007-07-12 Posts: 1708

Oh sure, you say you don't need gallbladder now, but there you'll be, on a cold metal table in an emergency room in rural japan, and you won't know the word for your gallbladder, which hurts like a hot rusty knife was stuck in your guts, but you'll know how to write that your flesh of nightbreak is killing you. big_smile

Reply #6 - 2008 April 05, 2:37 am
dukelexon Member
From: Utah Registered: 2007-12-02 Posts: 44

I recognized it immediately for a German name, and thought of it as "High-sig."  I wasn't in a Japanese-enough mindset to get it wrong, I guess. hmm

Reply #7 - 2008 April 05, 6:03 am
HerrPetersen Member
From: Germany Registered: 2007-01-02 Posts: 238

I am German and the German pronounciation is indeed like "high - sig"... But if he is not German I guess it could be pronounced differently.

Reply #8 - 2008 April 05, 6:19 am
roderik Member
From: The Netherlands Registered: 2008-04-04 Posts: 98

First of all: let's just presume the Heisig family crossed over to America from Germany or Switzerland at some point. Now that this is out of the way, we can indeed safely assume that it is pronounced like High-sig (Or as JimmySeal already pointed out: Haitzik, which comes close as well!). I don't think there are a lot of other options as far as pronuncation goes?

Last edited by roderik (2008 April 05, 6:31 am)

Reply #9 - 2008 April 05, 3:58 pm
mikedough2 Member
From: 山形県 Registered: 2005-12-14 Posts: 20

I have been and am going to continue to pronounce it "high-sig".

Reply #10 - 2008 April 05, 4:38 pm
Ryuujin27 Member
Registered: 2006-12-14 Posts: 824

It's High-sig. I don't think I can answer your questions about him being German or not, but I can tell you it's most definitely "high-sig".

My professor at my college (He teaches Buddhism and some high level Japanese self-study classes) knows Heisig personally. In fact, he's currently working on a project with him. And when I talked to him about RtK, he was saying "Jim Heisig (High-sig)".

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