Hirohito

In English usage, say hi-RO-hi-to with primary stress on the second syllable: /ˌhɪroʊˈhitoʊ/ (US) or /ˌhaɪroʊˈhɪtəʊ/ (UK). For a closer Japanese pronunciation, each mora is evenly timed: hi-ro-hi-to, with short, crisp vowels and no stressed beat. The first syllable uses /hi/ as in he, second mora /ro/ as 'ro' in 'role', third /hi/ as in the 'hee' in 'he', and final /to/ as in 'towel' without a strong ending consonant. When practicing, keep the four morae distinct and avoid running them together.

Common errors include: 1) placing undue stress on the first syllable hi-; correct it to stress the second mora: hi-RO-hi-to. 2) Running syllables together into a single beat; keep hi, ro, hi, to as four even segments. 3) Mispronouncing /ro/ as /roʊ/ with a long vowel in American accents; use a clipped /ro/ as in 'role' but shorter. 4) Ending with a hard English /toʊ/ rather than a clean /to/; avoid trailing extra vowel. Practice with slow, four-mora enunciation and then speed up.

In US English, primary stress on the second syllable with a rhotic /r/ after the initial /h/ onset; vowels tend toward /ɪ/ or /ɪoʊ/ depending on speaker. UK speakers often reduce the second vowel slightly and may have a shorter final /to/ with less dipping. Australian pronounces similar to UK/US but with more centralized vowels; you may hear a slightly flatter intonation and less pronounced rhotics. In all variants, the four-mora structure remains, but vowel qualities shift subtly by accent.

The difficulty comes from four-mora segmentation in a non-English name and the potential for vowel length variation. Non-native phoneme inventory challenges include producing crisp /ro/ without a long vowel, and maintaining even timing across hi-ro-hi-to. English speakers may insert extra vowels or stress the wrong syllable. Japanese mora-timed rhythm means each syllable is similarly weighted; keep this even pacing and avoid conflating hi with he, or to with too.

A unique feature is preserving the four distinct morae hi-ro-hi-to rather than compressing into fewer syllables. You should practice the middle mora /ro/ with a short, clipped vowel; avoid turning it into an extended /roʊ/. Also maintain even timbre across all four segments, which helps reflect the Japanese origin even when spoken in English contexts.