Well, this got quite a response! Those with better Uyghur language tend to like "an": amazon.com/Uyghur-English…
I used "a" in the first edition of EC. So did Jay Dautcher: he spoke great Uyghur, and used "a Uighur" in his Down a Narrow Road. @RianThum uses "a Uyghur" in his Sacred Routes (except once on p. 207 where "an Uyghur" slips in!)
RFA uses "a Uyghur," interestingly. But PBS goes with "an." The Independent writes "an Uighur," yes, with the "i," as does NYT. Clearly, this is not something to make too big a thing about, but it's so easy for me to change in my book at this point!
The "Uighur" spelling is a bit more problematic, because it seems like a mis-transcription of ئۇيغۇر . It's AP style, though, which is why a lot of media insist on it. I recently pushed back at one publication, though, and conivinced them to change house style to "Uyghur."
A case could be made that if one is insisting on "Uyghur" because of the spelling in Uyghur's modified Arabic script, then one should strive to pronounce more closely to how the name is pronounced in that language, and thus use "an."
What version of the indefinite article will Jim choose? I'm sure you're on the edge of your seats--but you'll have to wait until the 2nd edition of Eurasian Crossroads comes out in November to find out!
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