The best examples that come to mind are when ordering food. As examples:

• You speak English and Spanish and are ordering a burrito
• You speak Thai and English and are ordering Tom Yum

I imagine it could depend on numerous things:
• You primary language or ethnicity
• What sort of restaurant
• Who you’re dining with
• Who you’re ordering from
• and probably a lot more…

  • Rentlar@lemmy.ca
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    22 hours ago

    Generally, if I know there is a common loan word, then I say it in the language I am speaking (burrito is close enough for example), otherwise I try to say it in the native language and native intonation (quesadilla = kesadi-ya). I generally try to see what will be the most understanding.

    With people’s names I will try to default to their native version, but once I know them for a while I’ll get if they seem to prefer the English or imported version. I’ll start with O-ka-mu-ra for example with proper Japanese intonation and cadence, but if they like the bouncy American style of pronunciation Oke-a-moo-rah better then I’ll use that. A 2nd generation Japanese-American for instance might be more familiar with the latter. Conversely, a name like George/Jorge, I’ll say George in other languages but if they like Joーji (Japanese) or Hor-hey (Spanish) better I’ll move to that regardless of what language I’m speaking.