Then how do you really pronounce it? I once asked a friend how "pho" was pronounced, since I pronounced it as <fo'> She pronounced it like <fa> from the word far, except with a different tone.
Maybe they should use English letters that make words that sound like the Vietnamese words. "Nyguen", really?
The origins of current written Vietnamese and English letters are both from the Roman alphabet right? And it's pronounced Ph-uh-ah, but really fast and fluid.
LOLWUT? First of, its Nguyen. the most commonly used Vietnamese last name. I don't get your logic bro. If Joe Smith travel to Vietnam for a business trip he would have to change his name to match the Vietnamese's pronunciation? xo xi mit?
Well, unlike Chinese/Korean/Japanese, Vietnam and most other SE Asian countries use Roman letters like Westerners, so it would make equally little sense to completely change the spelling of their names/foods just so English speaking people can pronounce them phonetically. That was a pretty long sentence.
One of the girls M'm clipping now has the last name Nguyen. I ask her if I'm Nguyening when we hang out ... aka beat guts.
To try to phonetically explain it... it's kinda like fuh... with the vowel drawn out... and then at the end you lilt it up like you were asking a question. fuuuh?