# Town/City names butchered by Americanization **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 9, 2010, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042 "2010-11-09T15:26:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![steronz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steronz/32/11765_2.png) [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042/1 "2010-11-09T15:26:31Z")
Prompted by this post by _Si Amigo_: > [@Pronunciation of the surname "Boehner"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-of-the-surname-boehner/559442/13): > > [In] that area of Ohio, they pretty much bastardize all foreign names. For example, people look at you strange if you don’t pronounce the Ohio town of Versailles as Ver-Sales.:smack: And they will correct you until you pronounce the correct way.:smack::smack: Likewise Lima is pronuced Lie-Ma and Russia is pronounced Roo-sha. :eek: So it’s no wonder the guy just gave up and let the hicks call him Boner; I’ve known other Boehner’s in Ohio that gave up as well. I don’t care for SOB, but I have other bones to pick with him and don’t don’t need to resort to name calling. I smiled because a few weeks ago I went with my family to the Bob Evans farm in Rio Grande (Rye-O Grand), OH. Also, I used to leave pretty close to Papillion (pap-ill-yon) in Nebraska. What are some others? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042/2 "2010-11-09T15:31:22Z")
Calais, ME (pronounced Callous) ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042/3 "2010-11-09T15:31:44Z")
Well, they didn’t add that Bellfontaine, Ohio, is pronounced Bell-Fountain. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042/4 "2010-11-09T15:44:57Z")
Cairo (Kay-roe), Illinois. Arab (Ay-rab), Alabama (actually butchered from “Arad”, the town founder’s name). ---
**Author:** ![drastic\_quench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e36b37/32.png) [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042/5 "2010-11-09T15:49:41Z")
There’s a San Jose in Illinois, and it’s a very small town. I was made fun of when I saw the sign and pronounced it correctly. “You idiot, it’s San Joe’s!” ---
**Author:** ![brianjedi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@brianjedi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brianjedi)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042/6 "2010-11-09T15:56:07Z")
Central Kentucky has a few of these. There’s Versailles (ver-sales) and Athens (ay-thens) in the Lexington area. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042/7 "2010-11-09T16:14:41Z")
We’ve got a Beaufort (Bewe-furt) here in South Carolina. ---
**Author:** ![Trom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@Trom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trom)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042/8 "2010-11-09T16:22:35Z")
> [@drastic\_quench](#): > > There’s a San Jose in Illinois, and it’s a very small town. > > I was made fun of when I saw the sign and pronounced it correctly. > > “You idiot, it’s San Joe’s!” There’s also Des Plaines, IL… “Dez Planes” ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042/9 "2010-11-09T16:23:44Z")
Also in SC, there’s also a community “Monticello” pronounced “mon-ti-SEL-lo,” and Lancaster pronounced “LANK-uh-ster” instead of “LAN-CAS-ter.” ---
**Author:** ![Caricci](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/85f322/32.png) [@Caricci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caricci)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042/10 "2010-11-09T16:23:57Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > Calais, ME (pronounced Callous) I was going to say that! My mom, when she and my dad were young preachers in the area, took it upon herself to try to correct the locals. They didn’t care for it. ---
**Author:** ![Drain\_Bead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e47774/32.png) [@Drain\_Bead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drain_Bead)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042/11 "2010-11-09T16:25:10Z")
Ohio is full of them. Lima, Toledo, the aforementioned Rio Grande and Bellfontaine, and I’m sure tons I’m forgetting. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042/12 "2010-11-09T16:32:18Z")
Versailles/North Versailles PA – pronounced by locals “ver - sails” DuBois PA - pronounced by locals as “Do boys” ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042/13 "2010-11-09T16:32:21Z")
> [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](#): > > [snip]…and Lancaster pronounced “LANK-uh-ster” instead of “LAN-CAS-ter.” I’m definitely not a prescriptivist about local names. I firmly believe there is no “wrong” local name. If the town is spelled “New York”, and the locals want to pronounce it “Atlantic City”, then that’s the proper pronunciation. That said, isn’t “LANK-uh-ster” the “proper British” pronunciation? ---
**Author:** ![Knorf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/58956e/32.png) [@Knorf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knorf)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042/14 "2010-11-09T16:33:11Z")
Milan, PA (pronounced MYE-lun.) Verdi, NV (pronounced VUR-dye.) Los Angeles is of course classic. So is Detroit. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042/15 "2010-11-09T16:43:15Z")
We have the Thames river, here in CT. Pronounced “Thaims”. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042/16 "2010-11-09T16:44:01Z")
El Dorado, Arkansas, pronounced El Doh-ray-doh. They have a Monticello pronounced Monti-Sello. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042/17 "2010-11-09T16:47:10Z")
> [@Ogre](#): > > That said, isn’t “LANK-uh-ster” the “proper British” pronunciation? Maybe so. If that’s the case, it’s the PA town that’s pronounced “differently.” I just didn’t see how SC would be more likely to get it “right.” ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042/18 "2010-11-09T16:51:18Z")
Belle Fourche, South Dakota, pronounced Bell Foosh. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042/19 "2010-11-09T16:52:00Z")
Of course both the Pennsylvania and South Carolina towns pronounce _their own names_ correctly. ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2010, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042/20 "2010-11-09T16:52:48Z")
In places where more than half the people actually speak the lanugage of the name, sometimes it’s useful to “butcher.” We do that here with the neighborhood of [Los Feliz](http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&q=los+feliz+los+angeles&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Los+Feliz,+Los+Angeles,+California&gl=us&ei=xXrZTKLgNYa8sAOahsyYCA&sqi=2&ved=0CBcQ8gEwAA&ll=34.112373,-118.285074&spn=0.019969,0.038581&z=15), because if someone says, “Vete a los feliz” [los fei 'lis], one may not know if they’re talking about some people or the place. So even Spanish speakers will often corrupt the pronunciation to make themselves clear, and say “vete a [los 'fi lis].” [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/town-city-names-butchered-by-americanization/560042.md?page=2)