Thames = Th like thing, ames like James. Thames. :rolleyes: I don’t know why the English don’t know how to pronounce their own language. You should see what they do with Worcestershire, when it’s clearly supposed to be wor like worn, cester rhymes with Hester, shire rhymes with fire!
eta: Sorry, hijack.
Sounds like American propaganda of the “we speak English the way it used to sound, it’s the English that have changed and therefore American English is more “right”” variety. I can’t find a source I’m happy to cite, but I can find many references to “Tamese” being an early reference to the river. There seems to be a suggestion that the “th” was added around the time scholars were altering spellings to reflect Greek roots they didn’t always have.
So you’ve never heard of Western Australia or the Northern Territory? How about Burkino Faso?
I wondered this, too, then thought, “Britain.” “England and Wales” is clearer.
Worce-ster-shire. Short vowels. Seems reasonable to me, as I am from a US state where it is acceptable to make any or all of the vowels in the name schwas.
Oops…
Nope, that one IS Northern Marianas.
Fine, we’ll leave the hijack there. Just to say finally that I’ve worked a lot in Groton/New London and in London itself and know very well the difference in pronunciation of “Thames” but, as has been said elsewhere, it seems clear that the modern UK pronunciation “tems”, or something very similar has been around for a long time, certainly pre-dating the founding of the USA.
Which one has the leprechauns?
Boston. US. Not Lincolnshire.
Boston, Ireland. (I once bicycled right past this little hamlet.)
Pasadena, Newfoundland
Personally, I’m a big fan of Muff in Ireland (got a keyring).
You can visit the Muff Diving Club there.
Nope. Feeling too lazy to search, but we’ve had threads on that subject before: the pledge of allegiance is very much a US-only thing. In other countries, similar pledges are undertaken only by people taking office, or not even. Spain would require me to swear fealty to it if I joined the Guardia Civil, to the flag if I joined the Armed Forces, and to swear or promise to uphold our laws if I was taking a government job (elected or civil servant); otherwise, not required.
Not sure but apparently he wanted NI to be all nine counties of Ulster such that it would soon have a Catholic majority.
This is basically correct. Thames is an etymologically incorrect spelling, and the th- pronunciation is originally a spelling pronuciation. The -a- is historically an ah sound, but that has changed organically.
Incidentally, the boundaries of “Ulster” have shifted over time, and I don’t see why a change as dramatic as the partition shouldn’t have an effect as well, but if Donegal wants to remain in Ulster, who am I to argue?
Raises hand. I thought United Kingdom was England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland.
It was (sort of: Wales fell under England, so "England and Wales, Scotland, and Ireland). Then partition happened, and they had to adjust the name.
Plenty of people, even in England, think this.
Nobody I know does.
You could tell her that if she takes the P.I.S.S. its faster…
If she gets stopped and asked, should could always say that she was “just out for a quart of milk and minding her own business”. I hear it works well… 
And there are always restaurant recommendations, like “The Wee Slabber”. She can ask anyone & they’ll tell her just where to go…