Regional pronunciation of “calliope”?

I would have said (cal-ee-ope) was the correct pronunciation in English. The Greek goddess would be (call-I-oh-pee) but the pronunciation of the original root isn't a good guide to how to pronounce it in English.

According to Steam Boats, this rhyme is supposed to help, but I don't see how - since you can rhyme it with either me or hope!

Proud folk stare after me,
Call me Calliope;
Tooting joy, tooting hope,
I am the calliope.

I invite your attention to the two pronunciations listed at Merriam-Webster. Unfortunately, I cannot clarify the usual pronunciation of this word in the southeastern U.S., as I did not hear it spoken in 11 years in that region (TN, SC and NC), to my recollection. Nor do I recall having heard this word spoken on the west coast (20 years) or the midwest (10 years) of the United States. I do not think this is a "usual word" in the southestern U.S.! I suspect among music scholars/enthusiasts it is not rare. Is it common in your corner of the english speaking world or do you have more knowledge of musical instruments than others in your region?
I'm sure I've seen the word before, and mentally I pronounce it like the people on your program, but I have never spoken nor heard this word. In looking up the word, I am surprised to learn it is of Greek origin, it looks Italian or Spanish to me. Perhaps it is lack of familiarity with the word that results in the pronunciation listed second in the reference I included...it is also quite possible that I misinterpreted the second phonetic transliteration to be what you describe. We are all the product of our experience, or lack thereof. I see nothing correct or incorrect about that.

This is not a regional pronunciation issue, rather it is a professional one. Those who played the steam whistle organ patented by Joshua Stoddard in 1855 - and those who worked in proximity to it, generally referred/refer to it as cal-ee-op (long o). Whether this originated in a mispronunciation of the Greek muse's name or not, it has become the standard pronunciation among circus, carnival and steamboat workers/enthusiasts.

If you look up the pronunciation as is listed in the Webster AND Oxford dictionaries, which are the standards for the English language, they are pronounced --kəˈlaɪ.əpiː/ (call-I-oh-pee)--

I agree with the original posting. The woman from the museum mispronounced it and then the host of the show repeated it, either to be polite or because he didn't know either. It's not a word that you would use very often, it's easy to make the mistake if you guess simply by looking at the world as written. The professional calliope repair man, surprisingly, didn't say a word--- (at least on camera!).....

Also I live in Atlanta and coincidentally in the music business, and I never heard any alternate pronunciation, so I very much doubt it is a local pronunciation.

The story I once heard (from an authority on the devices): "Cal-ee-ope" is used for the instruments on boats (the devices were once quite popular on steamboats in the US), while "call-I-oh-pee" is used for instruments in circuses. This is a long-standing tradition.

I'm sorry, I do not have a link for this distinction, but, as I recall, the topic was raised when the calliope was restored on the old Belle of Louisville steamboat. This would have been back ca 1965. (And reading that article reminds me that a distinction of sorts exists between air calliopes and steam ones. Virtually all circus calliopes run on air, but the traditional steamboat ones run on steam. I don't know if this detail figures into the pronunciation difference.)

I have to interject here, this is what makes Calliope a Calliope Word, in the sense that it is more commonly read than heard, and reading it leaves you uncertain how to pronounce it.

The pronunciation in New Orleans is Cal ee ope....I was schooled when I moved there that Calliope Street was not Ca li o pee...of course they pronounce Burgundy Street as Bur gund e with emphasis on the gund....so I guess we cant use this city as a good example for any correct pronunciations! LOL

Hi this is a really old thread but I was looking up the name and this popped up. English anglicizes names and words all the time, without any regard to the actual pronunciation. My Godmothers name is Calliope and it's pronounced : Cahl ee o pee

That's the original ethnic pronunciation and apparently the way the folks in the show were pronouncing it, which is correct.

The OED (updated 2016) has

Pronunciation:

Brit. /kəˈlʌɪəpi/, or /kaˈlʌɪəpi/

U.S. /kəˈlaɪəpi/, or /ˈkæliˌoʊp/

There was an American tank used during WWII called the T34 Calliope, which was named after the musical instrument and is correctly pronounced "cal-ee-ope" as that's a common pronunciation for the instrument in America.

Outside of those usages, it should be pronounced "cal-i-oh-pee".