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Pronunciation?

AidypieAidypie Member Posts: 15
in Community and Events
Forgive my ignorance, but I realized the other day that I don't actually know how to pronounce the initialism "AFOL". I don't believe that I've ever heard it pronounced in real life other than in Clutch Powers (:P) and I don't really know if I can trust that as a source.
So, my question is this:
Is it pronounced like A-fall, A-foal, or some other way?
Even if there isn't a real uniform way to say it, how do you say it?
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Comments

  • cheshirecatcheshirecat Member Posts: 5,332
    I say a-fol (like follow)
    Shib
  • BooTheMightyHamsterBooTheMightyHamster Northern edge of London, just before the dragons...Member Posts: 1,280
    edited December 2014
    I'm in the a (as in cat) fol (as in follow) camp, just like @cheshirecat‌ . You'll get people coming along saying 'No, the proper pronounciation is this, or that.'
    Fact is, it's an acronym, and you can pronounce it however you like. People will know what you mean.

    Edit - Re-reading cheshirecat's post, he may be in the 'Ay-fol' camp, in which case I disagree with him completely!
    ;oD
  • cheshirecatcheshirecat Member Posts: 5,332
    No no I'm the a as in cat camp too.
  • Robatron86Robatron86 Member Posts: 11
    A (cat) FOL (follow) for me
    Andor
  • CapnRex101CapnRex101 United KingdomAdministrator Posts: 2,261
    I am in the A (as in hay) FOL (as in follow) camp :o)
    Aidypieplasmodium
  • Pitfall69Pitfall69 0 miles to Legoboy's houseMember Posts: 11,305
    This conversation is "in tents".
    BumblepantsCapnRex101AidypiesnowhitieGalactus
  • msandersmsanders Member Posts: 887
    edited December 2014
    LOL. This is a funny thread. I'm in the a (cat) fol (follow) camp, but I still can't get a**e hole out of my head when I say it. I can't remember whether its what I thought my son said when he repeated back the acronym when he overheard it. He's only 2 yrs old and his spoken words are not always clear so they can sound hilarious....!
  • TheLoneTensorTheLoneTensor MericaMember Posts: 3,950
    edited December 2014
    I pronounce it A-F-O-L, which is probably weird.
    AndortedwardBJ21
  • cheshirecatcheshirecat Member Posts: 5,332
    As in Ay eF oh eL? Yep that is weird ;-)
  • ShibShib UKMember Posts: 5,050
    Pronouncing each individual letter almost defeats the point of the acronym
  • bendybadgerbendybadger 127.0.0.1 ::1Member Posts: 1,141
    My wife pronounces it AF (as if after) and OL (pronounced like oll in roll). Example "Are you still on that forum again with the rest of the Lego AFOL's?" At least I think that's what she says. :-)
    BooTheMightyHamstercheshirecatmargotsnowhitiethenos
  • iso3200iso3200 97 miles from Brickset TowersMember Posts: 2,031
    I'm with @CapnRex101 as A (as in hay) FOL (as in follow)

    I was surprised in a Brand Store when the manager said it as A (cat) FOL (follow) during a conversation. It just didn't sound right to me.
  • GallardoLUGallardoLU USAMember Posts: 644
    those in the AF OL camp need to be careful not to be miss heard, AF-OL could easily be misheard (I don't thin I need to tell you what it is similar to)

    also I watched a documentary on Netflix about LEGO (its probably still on there) in which the term AFOL was explained but said as AF OL (as above). struck me as wrong when I heard it but hey maybe LEGO has given us the official pronunciation :P

    P.S. I'm in the 'cat' group.
  • CapnRex101CapnRex101 United KingdomAdministrator Posts: 2,261
    @iso3200‌ - Yay! Welcome to the team :o)
  • AidypieAidypie Member Posts: 15
    I admit that I am also with @CapnRex101 and @iso3200‌--I've always said A (as in hay) FOL (as in follow).
    Sorry, Cat Followers. :)
  • aimlesspursuitsaimlesspursuits USMember Posts: 207
    I'm in the TheLoneTensor camp as I don't pronounce it but I spell it out letter by letter.
  • cheshirecatcheshirecat Member Posts: 5,332
    I would have thought Americans would say A as in hay and then everyone else would say it the right way. ;-)
  • TheLoneTensorTheLoneTensor MericaMember Posts: 3,950
    edited December 2014
    Shib said:

    Pronouncing each individual letter almost defeats the point of the acronym

    Perhaps, if indeed it were an acronym. Instead, I consider it as an initialism, like YMCA, FBI, DVD, and so on.

    Tomato, tomato. Nobody's really wrong here.
    messyBrickDancerLegoKipMorkMan
  • BrickDancerBrickDancer Dunes of TatooineMember Posts: 3,639
    ^Same here, I'm spelling it out like FBI or CIA.
  • ShibShib UKMember Posts: 5,050
    edited December 2014
    TheLoneTensor said:

    Shib said:

    Pronouncing each individual letter almost defeats the point of the acronym

    Perhaps, if indeed it were an acronym. Instead, I consider it as an initialism, like YMCA, FBI, DVD, and so on.

    Tomato, tomato. Nobody's really wrong here.
    Fair point, but those examples can't really be pronounced as one word* and have far longer syllabled words than AFOL.
    It's true that no ones wrong but for me the point of shortening a word in anyway is to save time.

    Also I like the use of tomato, tomato...because I read them both the same way :-)

    *I suppose technically they can but the pronunciations sound weird.
    Andor
  • cheshirecatcheshirecat Member Posts: 5,332
    ^It is a good point, I've never once heard YMCA pronounced yumca but equally have never heard NATO anything over than neigh-toe.
    Andor
  • SuperTrampSuperTramp City 17Member Posts: 1,021
    image
    paul_merton
  • SuperTrampSuperTramp City 17Member Posts: 1,021
    edited December 2014
    I don't know about AFOL But for some reason everytime i see TFOL i think of this.

    image
    LostInTranslation
  • dejavudejavu USAMember Posts: 235
    I always thought of it as pronounced AWFUL. made me feel like a bad girl.
    MorkMan
  • plasmodiumplasmodium UKMember Posts: 1,936
    I'm in the @CapnRex101‌ school of Ay-Foll. :-)
    And I'm English, so I certainly explode @cheshirecat‌'s theory.
    Andorthenos
  • cheshirecatcheshirecat Member Posts: 5,332
    As is capnrex
  • plasmodiumplasmodium UKMember Posts: 1,936
    cheshirecat said:

    As is capnrex

    So is @iso3200‌. Back to the drawing board, huh? :-P
  • AndorAndor United StatesMember Posts: 252
    plasmodium said:

    I'm in the @CapnRex101‌ school of Ay-Foll. :-)
    And I'm English, so I certainly explode @cheshirecat‌'s theory.

    Your English?
  • TheLoneTensorTheLoneTensor MericaMember Posts: 3,950
    His English?
    plasmodiumBJ21
  • AidypieAidypie Member Posts: 15
    @TheLoneTensor‌ Beat me to it ;)
  • tedwardtedward CanadaMember Posts: 163
    I am also in the A-F-O-L camp mostly because when I hear Ay-fall (the only pronunciation I have ever heard on the Pacific Coast of North America) I hear my friend's variant that stands for Adult Hobbyist Of LEGO or A-Hole. ;)
  • iso3200iso3200 97 miles from Brickset TowersMember Posts: 2,031
    I guess AHOL will always be the butt of the joke won't it :-p
  • plasmodiumplasmodium UKMember Posts: 1,936
    Andor said:

    plasmodium said:

    I'm in the @CapnRex101‌ school of Ay-Foll. :-)
    And I'm English, so I certainly explode @cheshirecat‌'s theory.

    Your English?
    Well, 'British' would be more accurate, but I'm not going to open that can of worms...
    flowerpotgirlAndorsnowhitie
  • nexandernexander Glasgow Member Posts: 865
    My 2 year old says it perfectly. He is trying to say 'apple' though!
    TheLoneTensorAidypie
  • AidypieAidypie Member Posts: 15
    @nexander‌ Sounds pretty adorable. ^^
  • PaperballparkPaperballpark UKMember Posts: 3,379
    Seems like the main difference is how the A is pronounced. Whether it's A (ay) or a. I'm in the latter camp, and I suspect most UK peeps are too. the former seems to be a mostly American pronunciation.
    Andor
  • plasmodiumplasmodium UKMember Posts: 1,936
    Paperballpark said:

    Seems like the main difference is how the A is pronounced. Whether it's A (ay) or a. I'm in the latter camp, and I suspect most UK peeps are too. the former seems to be a mostly American pronunciation.

    Well, that's what @cheshirecat‌ said, and turns out three of the four "ay-"ers (so far) were all English...
  • matticus_bricksmatticus_bricks Member Posts: 648
    TheLoneTensor said:

    I pronounce it A-F-O-L, which is probably weird.

    I too pronounce each individual letter. I use the same principle as acronyms like IT or IBM or FBI or CIA.
  • CapnRex101CapnRex101 United KingdomAdministrator Posts: 2,261
    Interestingly a few people have suggested that the pronunciation with the long A (ay) is more common in the US than the UK. This could well be accurate as the first time I heard the term spoken would probably have been on a YouTube video, where the majority of contributors are American rather than British, and I have therefore been influenced by that.
  • plasmodiumplasmodium UKMember Posts: 1,936
    For me, it's because it's an acronym, so I sort of see it in chunks, kind of like "A-Fol".
    Andor
  • TheLoneTensorTheLoneTensor MericaMember Posts: 3,950
    edited December 2014
    plasmodium said:

    For me, it's because it's an acronym, so I sort of see it in chunks, kind of like "A-Fol".

    That's part of the discussion though right? It's an acronym to you because you choose to treat it like an acronym. Some others don't, and as such, it's not an acronym to them.
    plasmodium
  • BrickDancerBrickDancer Dunes of TatooineMember Posts: 3,639
    And a tidbit about the origin of "AFOL", it was coined in June 1995 in a USENET discussion group at rec.lego.toys by a Jeff Thompson. But no hint at how it was intended to be pronounced.

    Lego tried to coin their own similar term for the kids segment "Kids with A Bunch Of Bricks" (KABOB), but that didn't seem to catch on much.
    plasmodium
  • CupIsHalfEmptyCupIsHalfEmpty CanadaMember Posts: 547
    dejavu said:

    I always thought of it as pronounced AWFUL. made me feel like a bad girl.

    I also pronounced it that way and didn't really like the way it rolled off the tongue, so I would just spell it out. I guess I never thought to pronounce it differently.

    But taking a step back, I don't really like how "Adult Fan Of Lego" sounds as a title. I'm hosting a LUG meeting this weekend. When I try to explain to non Lego friends and family who's coming over, I say "a bunch of Adult Fans Of Lego" it just sounds odd. I think it's the use of the word "Fan" how about "Enthusiast" or "Aficionado". Maybe we can coin a more sophisticated title, like "2nd Generation Lego Aficionado" to refer to builder/collectors who are no longer "kids" (AKA first Gener's) and are now, well, 2nd Generation Lego Aficionados. We can be the "2nd geners"

    or maybe not... this was an afol idea.

    Andor
  • AndorAndor United StatesMember Posts: 252
    Great Idea! And i see what you did there. :P
  • TheLoneTensorTheLoneTensor MericaMember Posts: 3,950
    edited December 2014
    As an observation, I've never referred to myself as an AFOL, nor do I think I would ever feel comfortable saying it aloud to another person (in any form or pronounciation), but that's just me. I just like Lego, and I happen to be an adult. If someone else wants to put a label on me as a result, that's up to them.
    SuperTrampAndorT_Lars
  • ShibShib UKMember Posts: 5,050
    ^Funnily enough I have a similar view, I only use the term in appropriate setting, e.g online forums or at Lego events. If I'm talking to anyone in the real world I generally use the term collector, just because it's far easier than explaining what an AFOL is, even if my collection is for building with rather than just for owning.
    Andor
  • MorkManMorkMan Phoenix, Arizona, USAMember Posts: 853
    Can we change it to just FOL (as in foal)?
    Why bother mentioning that we are/you are/they are an Adult? Or Teen? Or Kid?
    Isn't that understood from context?
    Those kids over there are FOL's. I wonder if their parents are FOL's?
    The leading A, T, or K are extraneous.
    margotAndor
  • klatu003klatu003 Hobbiton, Shire, Middle EarthMember Posts: 718
    A.F.O.L. sounds ok.

    A(cat) plus FOL sounds like awful.

    A(hay) plus FOL sounds like this:

  • cheshirecatcheshirecat Member Posts: 5,332

    A(cat) plus FOL sounds like awful.
    No, that would be A(saw) plus FOL. Pronounced properly A(cat) plus FOL sounds nothing like awful.
    margot
  • klatu003klatu003 Hobbiton, Shire, Middle EarthMember Posts: 718
    ^pronounced properly... LOL.
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