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A similar question reminds me: When giving talks, I often want to refer to the work of Henry Crapo. I have asked several mathematicians, and none of them were sure how to pronounce his last name. Any help?

edited Nov 6 2009 at 17:43

Qiaochu Yuan
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asked Nov 6 2009 at 16:05

David Speyer
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Ironic fact: "Pronunciation" is one of the most commonly mispronounced words, since it is often misspelled "Pronounciation" :) – Andrew Critch Nov 6 2009 at 16:51

Jason Dyer · Accepted Answer · 2009-11-06 16:12:20Z UTC

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KRAY-poe. The name is of French origin.

answered Nov 6 2009 at 16:12

Jason Dyer
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French origin seems to indicate a different vowel in the first syllable. – Michael Lugo Nov 6 2009 at 16:25

The original French word, crapaud, sounds like "cap-oo", but in the strange way etymology works, the pronunciation for the surname is indeed correct. (Fun side trivia: for a while the Italian and French words for "colonel" were in use, until at some point by impeccable logic English speakers decided to take the Italian spelling and the French pronunciation.) – Jason Dyer Nov 6 2009 at 16:48

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It is definitely KRAY-poe. Richard Stanley told me this when I was a grad student. Also, I've heard Crapo give a talk and that is how he was introduced. – Timothy Chow Jun 5 2010 at 0:37

Ben Webster · Answer 2 · 2009-11-06 16:10:49Z UTC

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Wikipedia says it's like "halo."

answered Nov 6 2009 at 16:10

Ben Webster♦
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Hmm, none of the wikipedia examples are the person I want. Still, that's helpful. – David Speyer Nov 6 2009 at 16:12

Greg Kuperberg · Answer 3 · 2009-11-06 19:25:26Z UTC

It seems that the one of the people in Wikipedia, Governor Henry Howland Crapo of Michigan, has exactly the same name as the mathematician Henry Howland Crapo who got a PhD from Rota and eventually moved to France. I conjecture that it is not a coincidence. The latter Crapo is still alive, I think, because he submitted a paper to the arXiv himself in April of this year. So you could ask him how to pronounce his name, and about his genealogy.

The answer to the first will presumably be what Jason Dyer said, Cray'-Poe (as in Seymour Cray and Edgar Allan Poe). It is true that the name is originally a French word, but it is an entirely American name. According to the reference, the first Crapo was a French castaway who was found on Cape Cod in the 17th century. He was nicknamed crapaud (toad) just because he was French.

Pronunciation: Crapo

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