according to my Encarta dictionary
http://encarta.msn.com/dictionary_/crappie.html
The pronunciation is KROP E (sounds like - crop ee ) Click on the speaker bar for a vocalization of the word. The way it's spelled isn't an indication of the way its spoken :D -- otherwise we'd be calling them Crap Pies :eek:
Regional dialects change the way the word is pronounced ... I use both.
And, I don't know about the "croppie" pronunciation being a "northern thing", either ....... In-Fisherman angler Al Lindner, & also Babe Winkleman (both obvious "northerners"), call them Crappie (not croppie).
It's the old "you say tow may toe - I say tow mot toe" deal.
The "etymology" (history) of the word "Crappie" ...... Canadian French "crapet" (pronounced Krah pay) - which we have "Americanized" into "crop A" & "crap E". Ain't the "English" language fun :D ....cp :cool: