Ronald Chmara wrote:
In a related note, many western speakers can't seem to pronounce Iraq properly, coming up with something that sounds like 'Aye-rack' rather than 'Uir-uk'.
Interesting.
I have only heard it as /I'ra:k/ from Anglophone people (and here I don't know what kind of r to be put there in SAMPA, so forgive me that). Hungarians write the country name as "Irak" and pronounce it /'irAk/.
I have never heard it as /ai'rak/, /ai'r{k/ or anything similar.