How to pronounce the 'll' in ella
I've heard 'ella' pronounced a-yah and also a-jah. What is the proper pronunciation? And are there regional differences in how the word is pronounced in Spain vs. Mexico?
Thanks
7 Answers
You are right in saying that 'ella' is sometimes pronounced a-yah and sometimes pronounced a-jah.
As far as I know, this is primarily a regional or a country difference.
For example, in Mexico, I've only, so far, heard it pronounced as "a-yah".
But, my Spanish instructor this past year was from Agentina and he always pronounced it "a-jah". Also, I've heard it pronounced "a-jah" in Cuba.
By the way, you can type any Spanish word into the Dictionary link at the top of any Spanish Dict page and you will get a translation as well as a megaphone which you can click on to hear the pronunciation of the word!
And are there regional differences in how the word is pronounced in Spain vs. Mexico?
That's your answer. In Spain they tend to pronounce ll like our y. IN Latin America the tendency is to pronounce it more like an English J.
And there is some overlap between regions. So both pronunciations are correct.
Both are correct. Here in Mexico I hear both pronunciations. 
My Spanish wife says that "ll" is always pronouced as an English "y" and that is also how I learned it in college.
Differences in pronouncing the "ll" are quite various and sometimes strikingly different. At a guess there's a thread on this about every three weeks.
What I don't get is where the substitution of "a" for "e" comes from. I never heard anyone say "a-yah" nor "a-jah" for "e-yah, e-jah or e-lyah". (Choose any of these according to where you're reading this.)
In the classroom in college we learned "ya" but if I listen to the radio I often hear it pronounced with a "ja" sound. There are a lot of double L words pronounced this way including llamar. The flashcard site I use has this "j" pronunciation for a lot of words.
