A Conversation for Talking Point: One Minute Rants
Spelling of English Placenames
Scumbag Started conversation Jul 19, 2003
Gloucester? Leicester? Worcester? Reading? Southwark?
And the all-time worst ... Loughborough!
How can it have the same letters being pronounced two different ways in THE SAME NAME? 
Spelling of English Placenames
Mojo's big stick Posted Jul 19, 2003
Well that's not just English place names, that's the whole English language! Keeps Johnny Foreigner on his toes, what?
Seriously, as someone living in Reading I sort of agree. It's a right pain trying to find local information on the internet. Try typing "Reading" int a search engine. I think Loughborough has it easy.
By the way I personaly heard an American student ask about "Loogerberoooger"; sadly it's not an urban myth.
Spelling of English Placenames
Rains - Wondering where time's going and why it's in so much of a hurry! Posted Jul 21, 2003
And of course there's the old classic "Featherstonehaugh", which is pronounced "Fanshaw". Some place in North Yorkshire, apparently.....
Besides, annoying tourists is fun ;o)
Spelling of English Placenames
Kerr_Avon - hunting stray apostrophes and gutting poorly parsed sentences Posted Jul 21, 2003
Featherstonehaugh is also a surname.
Most of our place names are weird in some way- even a simple looking one like 'Derby' isn't pronounced the way it's spelt, if you think about it.
Spelling of English Placenames
DMK Posted Jul 21, 2003
slough means 'dirty patch of water in the corner of a field'
sums the place up really
Spelling of English Placenames
Rains - Wondering where time's going and why it's in so much of a hurry! Posted Jul 21, 2003
Yes...
One of my colleagues, an American, asked if I knew the way to "war-wick?" (with the 'r' pronounced quite heavily). I had to explain we pronounce it "warrick".
English is one of the most difficult languages to master; up there with Finnish, apparently.
Spelling of English Placenames
DMK Posted Jul 21, 2003
...and Czech which has sounds that no other language comes close to, but are really easy to say after spending a night in a Prague bar supping the local firewater.
Spelling of English Placenames
Cam Posted Jul 21, 2003
I'm an Englishman in Canada and have been here since highschool.
I took Shakespear in Uni with students, teaching assistants and a prof who had no idea how to pronouce English placenames.
I gave up correcting people when it becase obvious they were happy in thier ways.
Spelling of English Placenames
roparom Posted Jul 21, 2003
do you remeber that classic character in "Harry Enfield and Chums"?the classic english gentleman Cholmondley-Warner - pronounced chumly-warner...thats one of the more simple ones. names are no way as bad as place names though. i have friends in america and i live in the UK (scotland). have you got any idea how hard it is to convince americans that the pronounciation of burgh in scotland is different to borough (which is also a totally stupid spelling anyway!)
i tell you, the madness of people these days
Spelling of English Placenames
Maz Posted Jul 21, 2003
Near Melbourne we have two towns - Ballan and Wallan. Ballan is pronounced with emphasis on both A's. Wallan is pronounced 'Wollen'!!
Spelling of English Placenames
Al Johnston Posted Jul 22, 2003
In Northumberland there's a village called Ulgham: "uffam" for no adequately explained reason.
Spelling of English Placenames
Mojo's big stick Posted Jul 22, 2003
A quick question?
Given there are many American towns and cities that carry English names (Boston, Washington, Birmingham etc), do Americans pronounce them the same as we do? Or has the pronunciation changed over time?
Mojo (delighting in Kirkcudbright - Kir-coo-bree!)
Spelling of English Placenames
Joe Otten Posted Jul 22, 2003
Guesses please for the pronunciations of the following Sheffield-area place names:
Beaucheif
Owlerton
Penistone
Spelling of English Placenames
Rains - Wondering where time's going and why it's in so much of a hurry! Posted Jul 22, 2003
As a native of that area I'm not going to help with the guesses (tee hee), but I know Elsecar tends to confuse people! (ell-si-ker for those who don't know!)
Spelling of English Placenames
Skankycode [bound for bed without dessert] Posted Jul 22, 2003
One of my favourites is Trottiscliffe in Kent. This is pronounced "Trosley". "Milngavie" also confuses the uninitiated, it should be said "Mull-guy" with the emphases on the last syllable.
In the United States there's a town called Cairo but they pronounce it "Kay-ro". And also an Athens pronounced "Ay-thens".
Spelling of English Placenames
Kerr_Avon - hunting stray apostrophes and gutting poorly parsed sentences Posted Jul 22, 2003
Bow-lee?
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Spelling of English Placenames
- 1: Scumbag (Jul 19, 2003)
- 2: 2 of 3 (Jul 19, 2003)
- 3: Mojo's big stick (Jul 19, 2003)
- 4: Rains - Wondering where time's going and why it's in so much of a hurry! (Jul 21, 2003)
- 5: Kerr_Avon - hunting stray apostrophes and gutting poorly parsed sentences (Jul 21, 2003)
- 6: DMK (Jul 21, 2003)
- 7: Rains - Wondering where time's going and why it's in so much of a hurry! (Jul 21, 2003)
- 8: DMK (Jul 21, 2003)
- 9: Cam (Jul 21, 2003)
- 10: roparom (Jul 21, 2003)
- 11: Maz (Jul 21, 2003)
- 12: Al Johnston (Jul 22, 2003)
- 13: Mojo's big stick (Jul 22, 2003)
- 14: Joe Otten (Jul 22, 2003)
- 15: Rains - Wondering where time's going and why it's in so much of a hurry! (Jul 22, 2003)
- 16: Al Johnston (Jul 22, 2003)
- 17: Maz (Jul 22, 2003)
- 18: Skankycode [bound for bed without dessert] (Jul 22, 2003)
- 19: PQ (Jul 22, 2003)
- 20: Kerr_Avon - hunting stray apostrophes and gutting poorly parsed sentences (Jul 22, 2003)
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