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If one does not pronounce the Shema correctly, one has not fulfilled their obligation (שולחן ערוך או"ח סימן סב). If so, then how could different pronunciations of the Hebrew words arise? Shouldn't at least the majority have heard it from their father, and on back, with exactly precision? Even if you would say that casual speech is affected by local languages, liturgical Hebrew is not casual speech.

Given this obligation to precision in pronunciation, how could variants in pronunciation have arisen, at least for fulfilling this mitzvah?

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Related – yoel Feb 27 at 23:28
judaism.stackexchange.com/a/14086/759 I think you just aren't appreciating the power of subtle change over time. – Double AA♦ Feb 28 at 0:09
@DoubleAA it seems to me that even a subtle change would evoke a chorus of "no, no, it's Shemaaaaaannnnng". – yoel Feb 28 at 0:16
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It's an old tradition to have more different pronunciations based on region/ethnicity. See shibboleth. :) – Charles Koppelman Feb 28 at 5:45
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