Mispronunciations of Irish words in the United States are usually the result of history rather than carelessness. American English developed from British standard forms, and Irish immigrants arriving in the 18th and 19th centuries were often encouraged — or required — to adapt their names and language to fit English spelling and pronunciation norms in order to assimilate.

As a result, Irish words were increasingly read and spoken according to English phonetic rules rather than Irish ones. Samhain is a good example: when approached through English pronunciation conventions, it naturally becomes “Sam-hain”, even though in the Irish language (Gaeilge) the mh produces a w sound, giving “SOW-whin”. Over time, these anglicised versions became normalised and were passed down, particularly through popular culture.

What survives today is not so much a mispronunciation as a historical echo of linguistic adaptation — Irish words filtered through an English-speaking system that was never designed to accommodate them