# Mangled pronunciation of cities and other things near you **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 3, 2002, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008 "2002-05-03T04:20:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Fern\_Forest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/71c47a/32.png) [@Fern\_Forest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fern_Forest)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2002, 10:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008/21 "2002-05-03T10:18:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by AudreyK \* > **Likelike Highway-- lee-kay-lee-kay** My grandfather came to Hawaii Dec 2, 1941 and never, ever, not once, pronounced it anything but Like-Like highway. But the worst is my grandmother. She’ll ask “Did you go on the Pali today?” Saying the a like the one in p **a** l. It’s like a file on my spine. _shudder_ ---
**Author:** ![LolaBaby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@LolaBaby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LolaBaby)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2002, 10:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008/22 "2002-05-03T10:36:42Z")
Palley? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![screech-owl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@screech-owl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/screech-owl)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2002, 10:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008/23 "2002-05-03T10:37:50Z")
My town - Kissimmee (down the street from MegaThemeparkWorld) Locals pronounce it Kuh-SIM-mee. Tourists (and dirty old men trying to be cutesy) pronounce it KISS-a-MEE, as in "Kuh-SIM-mee by day, but KISS-a-MEE by night (said with a leer, of course). [it’s cute the first hundred times, but it still grates on my tiny little nerves] Near Rochester (NY) are a couple of odd pronouciations: Charlotte - shar-LOTT Chili - TCHI-lye (hard ‘ch’ and a long ‘eye’ on both syllables, accented on the first) **AudreyK** - do any tourists get confused after awhile and pronounce the rental truck company OOH-ha-OOHL? ---
**Author:** ![BrattiAtti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c57346/32.png) [@BrattiAtti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrattiAtti)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2002, 11:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008/24 "2002-05-03T11:03:13Z")
I lived in SE Idaho from age 2 to 18, except for my 13th year. I have always pronounced Boise as “Boy-zee”. I moved to Aloha, Oregon, when I was 18. I called it “A-low-ha” for a few days. I didn’t learn that Tucson is pronounced “Too-sahn” until last year. Often, I hear people pronouncing Chicago “Tchi-caw-go” instead of “Shi-cah-go”. ---
**Author:** ![Scarlett67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scarlett67/32/7387_2.png) [@Scarlett67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarlett67)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2002, 11:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008/25 "2002-05-03T11:36:10Z")
Lots of names with Native American roots here in WI (various tribes): Omro (OMM-row, not OHM-row) Shawano (SHAW-no, not sha-WAH-no) and my personal favorite: Oconomowoc (oh-CON-oh-mo-walk) A friend of mine used to live in Kaukauna, WI (kaw-KAW-nah). She was once traveling either to or from Hawaii, and some airport worker asked for her ID for some reason. HE looked at it, smiled, and said, “Ah, Kah-ooh-kah-OOH-nah! What island is that on?” We also have Berlin (BER-lin) and Almond (“Al-” as in Weird \_\_ Yankovic), as well as various French names that people always slaughter (Butte des Morts is always good for a laugh from visitors). ---
**Author:** ![Quasimodem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Quasimodem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quasimodem)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2002, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008/26 "2002-05-03T12:08:23Z")
…is pronounced by the locals as **Pahntz duh Lee-ahn** , and it’s been pronounced that way for so long that it has become more or less accepted and even shortened, as in “take a left on Pahntz…” We also have a city called **Chamblee** with the accent on the 1st syllable, but some wag has decided it should be pronounced **Chamb-LEE** which makes it sound like a wine, IMHO. Then there’s the city of **Dacula** which is pronounced **Dah-KULA** ostensibly to distance it from the vampire of almost the same name. My hometown **Villa Rica** (well, the town where I grew up in the US) is pronounced the way it is written although it is Spanish for “City of Gold” and should be pronounced **Veeya Reeca**. Maybe some of our other Georgia “Crackers” can come up with a few more? 😉 Quasi ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2002, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008/27 "2002-05-03T12:47:08Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by racinchikki \* > \*\*Val-a-tie. (Valatie. It’s pronounced Valayshuh. It would be easier to pronounce if it were spelled Valatia, but it comes from the Dutch valletje or something like that, so that’s where the spelling and pronunciation came from, I suppose.) \*\* Gee, that’s the first thing that came to my mind. 🙂 Other local mispronuciations: Rennselaer. Should be Renns-lur, but is often pronounced Renns-LEER. Cohoes. Pronounced Cuh-HOSE, but some use CO-hose Worcester, Mass, is pronounced WUSS-ter ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2002, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008/28 "2002-05-03T12:50:43Z")
Here in Massachusetts there are a few. Out-of-staters prounce “Peabody” the way it looks as if it should be pronounced – “Pea + Body”, as in “Sherman and Mr. …”, but the locals say it as if it contained no vowels: “P’B’Dee” “Worcester” separates the locals from others. It’s “Wooster”, or, if you’re _really_ local, it’s “Woostah”. When I lived in upstate New York the spelling orthography used by the early missionaries was followed by later settlers who didn’t know the non-standard pronunciations that went with them. So you have “Chili” (“Chy-Lie”) and “Nunda” (“Nun -Day”). I’ve often wondered if there’s a Nunda Hyundai dealer now. ---
**Author:** ![widdershins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f0a364/32.png) [@widdershins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/widdershins)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2002, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008/29 "2002-05-03T12:52:59Z")
There is a small community nearby named St. Florian (flor-E-an),after the saint obviously. People who live there pronounce it (flor-REEN) like the element from the periodic chart. ---
**Author:** ![Jman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jman/32/4416_2.png) [@Jman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jman)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2002, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008/30 "2002-05-03T13:30:16Z")
Near where I grew up, Massillon, OH, people not familiar with it call it “Mass-ih-lahn.” It’s really just “Mass-lin” I’ve been corrected many times while visiting Topsail Island, NC, that you should call it “Topsil,” not Top Sail. I currently live in Ithaca, NY, and most people are smart enough to get it right (ITH-uh-cuh) But I’ve heard both “It -Hock- uh” and “Ith-ACK-uh” ---
**Author:** ![gallows\_fodder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8c91f0/32.png) [@gallows\_fodder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gallows_fodder)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2002, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008/31 "2002-05-03T13:33:19Z")
Lancaster, Pennsylvania is not pronounced LAN-CAS-ter. It’s LANK-us-ter. Thank you. That said, how do you pronounce Wilkes-Barre, PA? Anyone? I say Wilks-Bear. Is that…wrong? ---
**Author:** ![Magickly\_Delicious](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magickly\_Delicious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magickly_Delicious)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2002, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008/32 "2002-05-03T14:01:48Z")
It’s not Juanita, it’s _Juniata_. Once heard a guy refer to Portage as “Port-aaaage” (he made the short ‘a’ into a long ‘a’). There’s also a city named Dubois here, but pronouncing it correctly, as in French, is wrong. Here we pronounce it ‘Dew-boys’ ---
**Author:** ![Rodd\_Hill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/3ab097/32.png) [@Rodd\_Hill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rodd_Hill)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2002, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008/33 "2002-05-03T14:06:44Z")
Ucluelet: “You-clue-let” (real locals just say “Ukee.” Definitely not “you clit”) Sooke: “Sook,” not “Sookie” Nanaimo: “Nan-EYE-mo” Saanich: “SAH-nitch” Gwaii Haanas: “Guh-WHY HAH-nass” Esquimalt: “Esk-WHY-malt,” not “Eskimo” Kyuquot: “K-EYE-kwat” (I think) Hlk’yaah GaawGa: you’re on your own, chum. ---
**Author:** ![TheLoadedDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2002, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008/34 "2002-05-03T14:23:08Z")
Melbourne is not pronounced _Mel-BORRRRRRRN_, it’s MEL-bn (see **Crusoe** ’s note on Tottenham). Similarly, Brisbane isn’t _Bris-BANE_ (that pronuciation is the BANE of the locals). It’s Bris-bn. And Surfers Paradise is simply called SIR-fuzz. The Tasmanian city of Launceston is not pronounced _LAWNceston_, but LON-ceston. Some snooty types even go as far as saying Lonston (like the British place). Wollongong is pronouced WOOL-n-gong. You can tell a person’s home state by the way they pronounce “castle”. Newcastle is NEW-cahhs’l, but Castlemaine is CASS’L-main ( American-style). And dear backpackers - Coogee’s oo is short like in “book”. The g is soft, and the ee is a short i. It’s Kooji. Thank you. If in doubt for any Aussie placename, replace all vowels with a schwa - and speak with your mouth shut. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2002, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008/35 "2002-05-03T14:25:09Z")
Those silly Connecticuters pronounce the Thames River just the way it’s spelled. I’ve never heard anything so silly in my life. Here in nothrern New England, all our pronunciations make sense. It’s them durn people from Yoorp that get everything wrong. Madrid, Maine, is MAD-rid Berlin, New Hamsphire, is BER-lin Milan, New Hampshire, is MY-lin Calais, Maine, is CAL-iss ---
**Author:** ![Yossarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/9de0a6/32.png) [@Yossarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yossarian)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2002, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008/36 "2002-05-03T14:32:49Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by CalMeacham \* > \*\* > “Worcester” separates the locals from others. It’s “Wooster”, or, if you’re _really_ local, it’s “Woostah”. > \*\* When I was in Boston last November, this one confused me. I asked an Area Man where to find such-and-such a restaurant. His instructions were to go back to “Wooster”. Sez I: “Ah didn’t see no dol-dang ‘Wooster’!” (Exaggerated as he probably heard my alleged accent.) Visitors to the central Texas “Hill Country” screw these up: Burnet is Burn-it. Llano may be “Yawn-o” in Spanish, but it’s LAN-o in central TX. Blanco may be “Blahn-co” in Spanish, but BLANK-o in central TX. And further back on the Edwards Plateau, we’ve got: Iraan, which is Ira-Ann, not “Iran”, and Eldorado, which is not “El Dorado”, but something else that I suddenly can’t remember… ---
**Author:** ![Futile\_Gesture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f05b48/32.png) [@Futile\_Gesture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Futile_Gesture)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2002, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008/37 "2002-05-03T14:57:46Z")
Bill Bryson’s “Made in America” is chock full of stuff like this. Origins of place names in the US and how they’ve changed pronunciation. Fasinating if you like that kind of thing, like all his books. **Crusoe** clarifies how Edinburgh should be pronounced. It’s reckoned that Pittsburgh was meant to be pronounced similarly. It was named by a Scot who almost certainly used the Scots pronunciation of ‘burgh’. Some other Scottish places frequently pronounced incorrectly: Glasgow = **Glas** -go Milngavie = **Mul** -Guy Kirkcudbright = Kir- **coo** -bri Kirkcaldy = Kir- **caw** -di Cowcaddens = Cue- **cadd** -ens Auchenshuggle = Ochen- **shoo** -gil Wemyss = Weems Carnoustie = Car- **noos** -ty Drymen = Drri-min Lesmahagow = Lez-ma- **hey** -go Unfortunately the thing most visitors get wrong is their pronunciation of the ‘ch’ in ‘Loch’ and other words (like Auchenshuggle above). Many just can’t manage it as it simply isn’t in their phonetics. ---
**Author:** ![nineiron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e56c9b/32.png) [@nineiron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nineiron)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2002, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008/38 "2002-05-03T14:58:05Z")
Around here in Western Massachusetts, you can tell which people aren’t locals since they always ask about the University of Massachusetts at “Am-herst” rather than the locally-preferred “Am-erst.” ---
**Author:** ![Fern\_Forest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/71c47a/32.png) [@Fern\_Forest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fern_Forest)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2002, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008/39 "2002-05-03T14:58:30Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by TheLoadedDog \* > **Similarly, Brisbane isn’t _Bris-BANE_ (that pronuciation is the BANE of the locals). It’s Bris-bn.** I don’t know. I said Bris-BANE in my American accent and the Australian girls just swooned and cooed “I love how you say it.” ---
**Author:** ![Arken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dfb087/32.png) [@Arken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arken)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2002, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008/40 "2002-05-03T15:09:13Z")
Here in Indiana we have a tradition of naming towns after foreign places and then mispronouncing them. Drives me nuts. Here’s a list, pronounciation first, actual spelling in parentheses.: Pee-ru (Peru) Leb-annen (Lebanon) Brazzle (Brazil) Rooshaville (Russiaville) Ver-sayles (Versailles) Or-leens (Orleans) Edin-berg (Edinburgh) Noter Day’m (Notre Dame) Zines-ville (Zionsville) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mangled-pronunciation-of-cities-and-other-things-near-you/107008.md?page=3)