pourquoi il n'est pas: Je viens d'Hong Kong?

Atul K.A2Kwiziq community member

pourquoi il n'est pas: Je viens d'Hong Kong?

Je viens d'Omaha.

mais

Je viens de Hong Kong.

pourquoi il n'est pas

Je viens d'Hong Kong?

Asked 5 years ago
CécileKwiziq team memberCorrect answer

Hi Atul,

  • You do not say,

d’Hong Kong 

because it has what is called in French a H aspirate which means you indicate its presence by not doing what you have been taught to do when there’s a clash of vowel and consonant, called an elision...

You have to say 

de Hong Kong, de Hollande ....

Hope this helps!

 

 

 

Atul K.A2Kwiziq community member

Oui, merci beaucoup Cécile!

M. l.A0Kwiziq community member

"l'hotel" mais "de Hong Kong".... 

but when pronounced it sounds like - "d'Hong Kong".... 

I've been confused too...

CécileKwiziq team member

Hi Murad, 

I have changed the audio, so hope you can hear 

de Hong Kong

better.

In the case of the word hôtel -

it has a different sort of -h , an -h mute, which acts as if it wasn't there at all and you would say 

Je viens de l'hôtel I come from the hotel 

Hope this helps!

Susan T.B1Kwiziq community member

Is there a method to know when a "h' is aspirate?

CécileKwiziq team member

Hi Susan, 

Please take a look at my answer to another student -

https://french.kwiziq.com/questions/view/aspirated-h-what-does-this-mean

 

Hope it helps!

pourquoi il n'est pas: Je viens d'Hong Kong?

Je viens d'Omaha.

mais

Je viens de Hong Kong.

pourquoi il n'est pas

Je viens d'Hong Kong?

Sign in to submit your answer

Don't have an account yet? Join today

Ask a question

Find your French level for FREE

Test your French to the CEFR standard

Find your French level
Let me take a look at that...