As a Midwesterner turned southerner I have done my fair share of butchering pronunciation in English, let alone other languages. That said, if I have ever uttered the word forte, I am certain I did it wrong and would’ve said “for-tay”
As a matter of fact, I don’t ever recall hearing it pronounced “fort,” so either my associations share my ignorance on the matter, or perhaps your #1 peeve is evidence of your #2....
Yes. Most people said it wrong for years. I grew up in a family that said it correctly and what we said matched the dictionary pronunciation.
But, as the decades have rolled on, it would not surprise me in the least if the “incorrect” pronunciation has become standard.
Something similar happened with foyer, which “should” be pronounced foyay but the American pronunciation now prevails as foy-yer.
Of course growing up in Georgia I learned that we have “Americanized” lots of names from Buena Vista, to Monticello, to Ponce deLeon, to Lafayette, to Cairo, to Vienna, etc, so it’s easy to see how this happens.
I wish rules remained fixed. It would fit my tendency to seek perfection. But they don’t.
I remember when The NY Times did an article years ago that according to grammarians the indefinite article “a” should now be used exclusively even if preceding a vowel sound. But that hurts my ears. And I just can’t.
So, yes, rules are always in flux. Most changes happen over centuries but a few happen right in front of our eyes.
I hate that.
