How to pronounce Recep Tayyip Erdoğan

Hear pronounciation of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Turkish

There are some common mistakes English speakers make in trying to pronounce the name of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

First, they tend to pronounce the c in Recep as an s. If you think of the first part of the name Reggie, you'll have a good idea of the correct way to pronounce it. Some people suggest Rejep, but the j can end up kinda weird, so I find it safer to recommend thinking of how the gs sound in Reggie.

Except, you must avoid putting too much emphasis on the middle sound.

Say it flat, almost as if you meant to say Reggie, but made a quick turn to the ep sound at the end, and you'll be fine.

I rarely hear any real problematic pronunciations of Tayyip. Keep in mind, the Tay is almost identical to tie, and the rest comes easily.

Erdoğan should also be relatively straightforward, except that the Turkish soft-G seems to trip people up needlessly. Basically, there is no g sound there at all. The o in doğan is extended, and blended into the a.

Hear pronounciation of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Turkish