[Avodah] Changing Havarah

[D&E-H Bannett]

Re: RD"C's << whom I hear lain frequently according to his 
Yemenite tradition, and he pronounces the cholam in a way 
that strongly resembles the Polish "oy."  Could there be 
anything to this?>>

As has been mentioned before, and even more well publicized 
in the Mesorah sub-list, there are two Yemenite 
pronunciations of the cholam. One is like a tzeire and the 
other is like oy, but more like the Turkish oy with the 
mouth scrunched up.  The ei is more in the south and the oy 
is strong in San'a.

R' Yosef Kafach in his book on minhagei Teiman states that 
the men in San'a said oy and the women ei. (ei = eh-ee, not 
ah-ee).  I don't know if he was referring to all Sana'ites 
or to Darda'im only.

k"t,

David