• Troy@lemmy.caOP
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      1 year ago

      Toews is a Mennonite last name. In the German dialect that the Mennonites speak, the oe vowel combo is very common and makes a long a sound. Another typical Mennonite last name with the same combo and sound is Froese (pronounced like fraze).

      The w->v thing is common to pretty much all Germanic languages.

      Put the two together and you get “Taves”. Tada.

  • Bo7a@lemmy.ca
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    1 year ago

    I’m married to a Toews and I can confirm that most of the country just sees ‘toes’. Except Quebec where she is a ‘taos’, which is pronounced like cows.