2 syllables: cal, houn. Stress on houn.
kal-HOON
/kæˈlhun/
calhoun is pronounced kal-HOON (/kæˈlhun/). It has two syllables (cal-houn), with the stress on "houn". Calhoun is a proper noun most often referring to a surname or place name. It is pronounced as a two-syllable word with emphasis on the first syllable, and typically ends with a light “n” sound. The pronunciation distills US naming conventions and follows standard American English phonotactics for a name of Irish-American origin rather than a common noun.
Calhoun is a proper noun most often referring to a surname or place name. It is pronounced as a two-syllable word with emphasis on the first syllable, and typically ends with a light “n” sound. The pronunciation distills US naming conventions and follows standard American English phonotactics for a name of Irish-American origin rather than a common noun.
"The Calhoun family reunion drew relatives from across the country."
"Calhoun Street in the city center was renovated last year."
"She traced her lineage back to the Calhoun surname from Ireland."
Calhoun is pronounced KAL-hohn, with the first syllable stressed. IPA: US/UK/AU = ˈkæl.haʊn. In rapid speech you may hear a very light final n, almost nasalized, but the two-syllable structure remains clear.
Common errors include misplacing stress (e.g., CAL-HOUN vs cal-HOUN). Many non-native speakers flatten the diphthong in the second syllable, producing a flatter ‘ow’ rather than the proper /aʊ/ diphthong. Focus on the /æ/ in the first syllable and the /aʊ/ glide in the second syllable, ending softly with an alveolar nasal.
In US, UK, and AU, the initial vowel is the lax /æ/ as in cat, and the second syllable contains /aʊ/ as in how; rhoticity mostly doesn’t affect the name. The main differences are pacing and vowel coalescence in fast speech. Australians may have slightly more centralized vowels in rapid speech while keeping the /æ/ and /aʊ/ as distinct sequences.
The difficulty lies in maintaining the crisp two-syllable boundary with a clear /æ/ on the first syllable and a precise /aʊ/ on the second. Many learners slip into a single-syllable sound or blend /æ/ with /aɪ/. Keeping the separation and ending with a clear light /n/ helps avoid a misheard name.
Calhoun features a distinct early syllable with /æ/, then a rounded, high back-onset /aʊ/ glide; the second syllable is not /hoʊn/ as some might assume. The key unique feature is preserving the tight /æ/ followed by the /aʊ/ diphthong, ensuring the final nasal is soft and unobtrusive in connected speech.
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Calhoun originated as an Anglicized form of a Gaelic surname from Ireland, often associated with the clan-based naming traditions among Irish settlers and later adopted into American usage. The root likely derives from the Gaelic elements meaning “ceann” (head) or “caol” (slender/neck) combined with “án” or “án” suffixes that appear in many Irish surnames; over centuries, spelling variants emerged under English and Scots-Irish influence. As Scots-Irish immigration expanded in the 18th and 19th centuries, Calhoun became established in the United States as a family name, a place-name in several states, and subsequently a widely recognized surname with notable political figures (e.g., John C. Calhoun). The first known uses in American records appear in the 18th century as settlers carried Gaelic lineages into new communities, where spelling stabilized into the modern “Calhoun.” The name’s evolution reflects broader patterns of Anglicization of Gaelic names and the social importance of lineage in American frontier regions, producing a recognizable capitalized proper noun that carries both familial and geographic associations.
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Words that rhyme with "calhoun"
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