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I've been Chopin wood all afternoon, and boy are my arms tired.

If it were a Polish name it would be pronounced KHO-peen (KH being the gutteral fricative like at the end of Bach).

The strange diphthongs in Polish (and Serbo-Croatian, etc.) are a result of trying to use Roman letters to write a Slavic language.

ellaella,

In a somewhat more serious vein than my previous post here, the way I pronounce it is the way Badger suggested. However there was the follow-up post by Matt G. that properly noted that many people don't know how to pronounce the French word for bread: "pain."

This probably doesn't help, but I would say the pronunciation of pain is the first syllable of "panic," That is "pa" but with just a hint of the "n" sound that follows.

I'm sure you meant digraphs, not diphthongs.

All the above notwithstanding, Chopin is not a Polish name, it is a French name, as Frédéric (Fryderyk, if you prefer) was born to a French father and a Polish mother. If the name Chopin were transliterated into Polish, it might come out Szopę or something similar. I am, however, acquainted with a Polish family named Szopinski, for whatever that's worth....

Oof. I was asleep at the switch. I deserve to have my red pencil taken away.

A diphthong is a vowel movement.

I humbly and sincerely apologize to my fellow linguists.

Although in my defense, the 'ja' at the beginning of 'Janusz' is a diphthong.

(Slinks away in humiliation)

I believe the first syllable would be pronounced somewhere between "show" and "shaw". For the second syllable say the word "and" then drop the "nd"

"This probably doesn't help, but I would say the pronunciation of pain is the first syllable of "panic," That is "pa" but with just a hint of the "n" sound that follows. "

It helps.It's the closest english example to the french pronunciation.In "Chopin",that is.

"....who cares, go PLAY some polonaises!"

I care.For me it's somehow a matter of respect trying to be as close as You can to the proper pronunciation

I've always been taught to say show-pan. However, I once heard someone pronounce it that way, and someone else criticized them for it. Maybe it's supposed to be show-pawn, but that sounds too British for me.

I think B flat minor or whoever the h*** thinks he is has a bit of an attitude problem

His mom took away his Doctor Dreadful play set and he's been bitter ever since.

No more bumpie..

Chopin's original surname was Szopen, a Polish name. It was Frankified when he went to Paris so the conventions of French pronunciation apply to "Chopin".

Pronounce it like it sounds. "CHOP - INN" like Holiday Inn, except with Chop like how you would pronounce Chopsticks. Or if you're a lumberjack, when people ask you what you are doing, you might say "Chopin' wood", that's how you say it.

(Just teasin'!)

G'luck!