# I like the sound of that. Places/Peoples/whatevers **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 19, 2010, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998 "2010-05-19T14:02:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998/1 "2010-05-19T14:02:48Z")
I just remembered that Forrest Gump lived in Greenbow, Alabama. Greenbow, Alabama. It sounds so nice. Don’t know exactly why. Just seems to roll of the tongue just right. Then there is Antonio Banderas (sp?). When spoken in a slightly exaggerated accent, that name also has a certain something something to it. So, what names of people, places, things, whatevers (real or imaginary) just sound “right” to you (and why perhaps?) or exotic or kickass or whatever? ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998/2 "2010-05-19T14:07:11Z")
I like to say “Shawshank Redemption” w/ a slight Sean Connery feel to it. Just love the way it rolls off the tongue…try it. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998/3 "2010-05-19T14:15:30Z")
Somewhere along the way I read/heard that some foreigner was asked to select the most mellifluous English language word and he picked “cellar door.” Go figure. As a child I saw a movie title (not the actual movie itself) “Blood on the Moon” and for many years thought that was the coolest thing of all. I had a little thing I would say when stuff was way more than a little spooky: “Blood and greed and doom.” There was a history professor at the school I attended name Constantine Bellissari whose name I liked a lot. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998/4 "2010-05-19T15:16:37Z")
I liked “Republica Dominicana” and “puertoricense” from Spanish class. I also love the SDMB username **Rowrbazzle**. I don’t know anything about the poster **Rowrbazzle** , but I love his/her name. I think of it all the time. I get all excited when I see the name in a thread…I should start paying more attention to the content of the posts underneath 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![cjepson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@cjepson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cjepson)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998/5 "2010-05-19T15:32:48Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > I also love the SDMB username **Rowrbazzle**. I don’t know anything about the poster **Rowrbazzle** , but I love his/her name. In case you didn’t know, “rowrbazzle” is what the characters in Pogo would say when they got really irritated. (Mostly Albert, I think, but others as well.) I always thought Burma seemed to have a lot of cool names, like Rangoon and Irrawaddy. (Of course, Burma is now called Myanmar, which I consider one of the most ungainly place names around.) There are a whole lot of fun-to-say place names, most of which I can’t think of right now… let’s see: Popocatepetl Vientiane Quintana Roo Novosibirsk Sulawesi Kalimantan Eleuthera ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998/6 "2010-05-19T15:40:37Z")
> [@HelloNinja](#): > > I like to say “Shawshank Redemption” w/ a slight Sean Connery feel to it. Just love the way it rolls off the tongue…try it. Can anyone say “Shawshank Redemption” _without_ a Sean Connery feel to it?😉 ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998/7 "2010-05-19T15:47:52Z")
Medical terms sometimes sound so pretty…until you learn what they mean. One of my favorites is **atelectasis** , (“at-uh-LEK-ta-sis”), which sounds like a lovely girl’s name, but means the collapse of alveoli in the lungs that leads to pneumonia. **Cachexia** (“kuh-KEX-ee-a”), which I think would make another great girl’s name, means the wasting and loss of muscle mass that often accompanies cancer treatment. ---
**Author:** ![descamisado](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@descamisado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/descamisado)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998/8 "2010-05-19T15:51:44Z")
You haven’t lived until you’ve heard Ricardo Montalban say his name and extol the virtues of rich Corinthian leather. ---
**Author:** ![FloatyGimpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/floatygimpy/32/7750_2.png) [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998/9 "2010-05-19T15:55:23Z")
> [@descamisado](#): > > You haven’t lived until you’ve heard Ricardo Montalban say his name and extol the virtues of rich Corinthian leather. D’oh! That’s just what I came in to say. ---
**Author:** ![BetsQ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/fbc32d/32.png) [@BetsQ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BetsQ)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998/10 "2010-05-19T16:10:52Z")
I used to drive between Chicago and St. Louis regularly. I always got a kick out of the sign for Towanda, IL. I always had to yell “TOWANDA!” at the top of my lungs as I drove by. Another favorite sign, somewhere in Missouri, is a highway exit sign that points to the towns of Imperial and Kimmswick. I love that combination of place names. “Imperial Kimmswick” sounds like a charming elf city in a fantasy novel. For reasons that aren’t really clear to me, Mr.Q. loves the name of the former Cardinals’ outfielder, So Taguchi. His very casual interest in baseball was greatly lessened when Mr. Taguchi was released several years ago. ---
**Author:** ![statsman1982](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e79b87/32.png) [@statsman1982](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/statsman1982)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998/11 "2010-05-19T16:18:56Z")
I like the chemical name for aspirin (you did know that aspirin is still technically a trade name in some countries, right ;)) \*\*acetylsalicylic acid. \*\* Makes me feel so smart when I say it! ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998/12 "2010-05-19T16:20:52Z")
> [@cjepson](#): > > In case you didn’t know, “rowrbazzle” is what the characters in Pogo would say when they got really irritated. (Mostly Albert, I think, but others as well.) I did not know that! Oddly enough, I “hear” it as the sound my dog makes when she’s really frustrated. ---
**Author:** ![Balance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ccd318/32.png) [@Balance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balance)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998/13 "2010-05-19T16:24:45Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Medical terms sometimes sound so pretty…until you learn what they mean. One of my favorites is **atelectasis** , (“at-uh-LEK-ta-sis”), which sounds like a lovely girl’s name, but means the collapse of alveoli in the lungs that leads to pneumonia. **Cachexia** (“kuh-KEX-ee-a”), which I think would make another great girl’s name, means the wasting and loss of muscle mass that often accompanies cancer treatment. “[singing] Gon-o-rrhea [/singing] . It’s such a romantic-sounding word for such a painful malady, isn’t it?” (John Glover as the Devil in _Brimstone_) 😃 I’m partial to the word “billabong”, for no reason I can articulate. As for place names, I find Point Blank, TX amusing. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998/14 "2010-05-19T16:34:21Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Medical terms sometimes sound so pretty…until you learn what they mean. One of my favorites is **atelectasis** , (“at-uh-LEK-ta-sis”), which sounds like a lovely girl’s name,… I always thought **ambergris** sounded like a girl’s name, ‘Amber’ for short. > [@BetsQ](#): > > I used to drive between Chicago and St. Louis regularly. I always got a kick out of the sign for Towanda, IL. In the town where I went to college, there’s a freeway exit for **Sleater-Kinney Rd.** , the band took their name from the street. Within the space of a year, or so, I knew a **Robin Boccabella** and a **Heather dellaMare** , both great names. I was perusing a baseball box score a few years ago, and one of the umpires was named **Fieldin Culbreth**. Now, isn’t that an absolutely perfect name for an umpire? ---
**Author:** ![Any\_Other\_Name](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f17d59/32.png) [@Any\_Other\_Name](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Any_Other_Name)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998/15 "2010-05-19T16:37:11Z")
Mahwah (New Jersey). I love the sound of the word. I love the way it rolls around in my mouth when I say it. When I drive through it or past it I can’t help saying “Mahwah”. My kids think I’m crazy. ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998/16 "2010-05-19T16:44:34Z")
> [@Zeldar](#): > > Somewhere along the way I read/heard that some foreigner was asked to select the most mellifluous English language word and he picked “cellar door.” Go figure. There’s a whole [wiki article](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cellar_door) about people liking the sound of “cellar door”. (!) I like the way Italians say their place names: Venezia Firenze ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998/17 "2010-05-19T17:01:15Z")
Years ago I worked with a guy named Mike Ice. I win the thread. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998/18 "2010-05-19T17:05:17Z")
> [@BetsQ](#): > > I used to drive between Chicago and St. Louis regularly. I always got a kick out of the sign for Towanda, IL. I always had to yell “TOWANDA!” at the top of my lungs as I drove by. It’s been awhile since I saw the movie, but wasn’t this Kathy Bates’ war cry in _Fried Green Tomatoes_? 🙂 When we moved back to Iowa, we considered whether or not to live in Belmond (hubby’s home town), Clarion (my home town), Webster City (where the jobs were), or Eagle Grove. We ended up in Eagle Grove, and the bucolic flavor of the name had a lot to do with it. If I ever make it back to Washington, I want to live in Puyallup. Pew-AL-up, not pooey-loop. ---
**Author:** ![Olentzero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90ced4/32.png) [@Olentzero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Olentzero)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998/19 "2010-05-19T17:14:51Z")
Back at Georgetown I knew of two people with the surnames Bevilacqua and Acquafredda. Always liked the sound of them, and often thought they should have gotten married and changed their name to Bevilacquafredda so they could have a full sentence in Italian. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998/20 "2010-05-19T17:36:10Z")
Off Former Highway 620 in Ontario there’s a road named Trotter-Oitment Road. Yes, that’s “Oitment” without an N. It sounds like a cream you would out on pigs’ feet, as spoken by someone with a cold. I’m not sure how it got the name; was there a typo in the past that perpetuated itself? Just to the west, there’s a Vic Tanney Road, which soulds like the kind of formerly-buff man who’d by this point be running a chain of gyms rather than exercising in them. > [@WhyNot](#): > > Medical terms sometimes sound so pretty…until you learn what they mean. One of my favorites is **atelectasis** , (“at-uh-LEK-ta-sis”), which sounds like a lovely girl’s name, but means the collapse of alveoli in the lungs that leads to pneumonia. **Cachexia** (“kuh-KEX-ee-a”), which I think would make another great girl’s name, means the wasting and loss of muscle mass that often accompanies cancer treatment. “And this is my daughter, Cachexia Atelectasis.” She’d be a pretty Mediterranean girl of mixed Roman and Greek ancestry, with that tight curly hair. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-the-sound-of-that-places-peoples-whatevers/539998.md?page=2)