It’s pronounced with a hard J because a soft GIF is just the post deed version of GILF…
Somehow, I can tolerate “jpheg” much easier than the forsaken “jif.”
“Jif” is the original pronunciation. It is a pun, a play on the word “jif” short for “jiffy” meaning a short amount of time, as in “I’ll send it to you in a gif”. The newer pronunciation has become popular based on the fallacious reasoning that an acronym should be pronounced the same as its constituent words, which isn’t a thing at all.
Language evolves, and both pronunciations are common enough to be considered acceptable. The only way to be wrong about how to pronounce the word is to claim one of the pronunciations is wrong.
Become popular? It’s been popular roughly for the lifespan of the format. It’s hardly language’s fault the developer wanted to make an unfunny reference to a since forgotten peanut butter slogan.
On the other hand linguistics indicate a hard g sound with the construction of the word, constituent words aside. Plenty of four letter words starting with the gi combo have a hard g, including but not limited to gift which you may notice is very similarly constructed.
Whatever else the English language may throw at us, people appreciate consistency because we can make some sense of the world. A hard g is the consistent, predictable, sensible choice for the limited availability of those virtues English offers.
Jif is where it’s at. Peanut butter and image format? Yes please
But Jif in Australia is a cleaning solution - can we have different pronunciations based on country?
Y’all love diminutives, call them jiffies?
Jiffy is already an abstract measurement of time though
No need, it’s Gif. Heathens be damned.
