Nein, das ist nicht korrekt - dann hieße es nämlich "apee" ...

Woody, wie dumm von mir. Habe einen Buchstaben vergessen unterzubringen.

Ich würde es auch so aussprechen, wie du es im OP vorgeschlagen hast (mit s), bin aber kein native speaker.

http://www.dict.cc/?s=aspie

dict.cc gibt entsprechende Aussprachebeispiele.

I would say aspee, i.e. aspi. But thankfully I have never heard of this word - maybe it's American?

It's used in Britain too -- I've seen it (with a capital A) in articles written by people with the syndrome. Personally, I think it's quite a pleasant and useful short form for 'a person who has Asperger's syndrome'.

I'm surprised that the Leo dictionary translates this as 'der Asperger-Syndrom-Erkrankte'. These people aren't ill, it's not a disease.

I've never heard it either, but it would clearly be pronounced with a short A, as in asp, hasp, raspy. The full name Asperger's has the same short English vowel (gasper, Casper) but usually a hard G as in German (burger, not purger).

'Pleasant and useful' makes it sound a little too innocuous for my taste; I certainly wouldn't urge non-native speakers to try it. Like many terms for people in minority groups or with disabilities (queer, crip, etc.), it could be okay when used by someone who is in the group of people affected, but easily sound pejorative when used by anyone else.

if you refer to aspie... some might think you talk about your pet asp... scnr

#6

Of course when you talk about the short a in hasp, raspy or gasper you're referring to the American, not the (southern) British pronunciation of these words.

As to whether the term 'Aspie' is innocuous or could sound pejorative, you'd have to ask someone who has the syndrome: as I said, I've only come across it in articles written by such people, referring to themselves and others. I would guess -- though I don't know -- that this is a term that originated with this group of people, not an insult from outside that they have ironically or defiantly adopted. (In Britain, at least, it may be that the condition has not been recognised for long enough, and is not known widely enough, for such an insult to have developed and passed into common use. But some other users of this thread may be better informed on this than I am.)

I agree that learners of English, and native speakers too for that matter, should, if in doubt, err on the side of caution.

Sorry, didn't stop to think that some of those were different in BE, but thank you for pointing out which ones they are.

But anyway, I trust that BE speakers don't also say Ahsperger's?

Dankeschön an alle!

Was die Verwendung der Kurzform Aspie im Deutschen angeht, so weiß ich zuverlässig, dass viele Betroffene und deren Eltern sie als unproblematisch empfinden und sich bzw. ihre Kinder auch selbst so bezeichnen.
Was aber natürlich keinen sicheren Rückschluss auf die Verwendung im englischen Sprachraum zulässt.

Interesting; it may well be known here among parents and children in the community, then.

Is it used perhaps more for children than adults? I guess what I was trying to get at is that the -ie ending makes it sound like a diminutive, like sweetie, cutie, doggie, kitty ... So it might be affectionate and unproblematic for a child, or from a close relative, but patronizing for an adult or from a stranger.

agree makes it sound like a fad...

@ 9:

No, you'll be relieved to hear that we don't say Ahsperger! On the other hand, quite a lot of people pronounce the g as /ʤ/, and I see that my OED of 1999 actually gives that as the only pronunciation.

With regard to the other words you cited, I have always said 'asp' with an 'ah' (not that I've often had occasion to say it!); of the two Oxford dictionaries I have, the 1973 one has the 'ah' sound, the 1999 one a short a.

@ 11: it's never struck me that 'Aspie' sounds like a diminutive. Surely there must be quite a number of words in -ie -- like goalie for goalkeeper, Brummie for a native of Birmingham, or leftie/lefty for a left-handed or leftwing person, that aren't diminutives or pet names.

Also, ich kenne auch (junge) erwachsene Aspies, die sich so bezeichnen. Ist ja auch viel kürzer als "Mensch mit Asperger-Syndrom", "Patient" oder "Betroffener" will man ja auch nicht unbedingt sagen.