OT: A Brief Break in the Action. Let's identify cities. . .

[SCGamecock]

Charleston, SC = Chaw-stun, easiest way we pick out transplants from the natives with roots here. The natives, influenced by the African American Gullah dialect, all say "Chaw-stun".. transplants and visitors pronounce it how it looks.. Charle-ston

Huger, SC = Hu-GEE, it's French but outsiders tend to pronounce it Hu-GER anyway.

Beaufort, SC = Byu-fort, another French name origin city but instead we decided to kick the pronunciation to the curb. Outsiders pronounce it as the French probably would, Bo-fort.

Edisto, SC = EDDIE-sto if you're from the lowcountry... e-DIS-tow to everyone else..

Long story short.. because it's South Carolina, we talk funny and summers are long and hot (further influencing our speech), there are more.. but I can't think of them at the moment..

 

[meyers7]

All this reminds me of an address in our state by a distinguished English gentleman who was appalled by the local pronunciation of the THAMES.

I still pronounce it correctly, "Timz".

 

[BroadwayVa]

Cincinnati and Cincinnatah, don't know why but most older residents use the second pronunciation.

I prefer the ---Cincy. Older residents use what they learned early--and a bit more southern. Before the War between the States -Cincy wasn't sure whether it was north or south--and probably didn't care.

 

[BroadwayVa]

I still pronounce it correctly, "Timz".

Locals call it Thames --very British or those that were taught the river in London spelled THAMES was called the Temz
More proof that we don't speak ENGLISH.

 

[ctfjr]

New HAY-ven by normal people, NEW Haven by others.

I don't know where you come from but as a local I pronounce it Na Haven - like all locals do

 

[Duncan Idaho]

Newark DE is New- Ark, not like in Jersey.

Worcester, MA was all one word to us; Wisstamass.

 

[BroadwayVa]

Des Moines is, I believe, pronounced as it would be in French. Additionally, regardless of how it is pronounced locally, I know a number of folk (of French decent) who prefer Baton Rouge to be pronounced in French.

Much of the upper Mississippi was explored and settled by French explorers. Fur trapping from 1600 through the mid to late 1800 by French Canadians accounted for some of the French sounding names. Baton Rouge --Louisana belonged to the French however some settlers there came from Nova Scotia and were Canadian French --interesting

Newark DE is New- Ark, not like in Jersey.

Worcester, MA was all one word to us; Wisstamass.

Mom and dozen Irish relatives were born in Wooos ter Mass . The un-initiated called it Wor Cess ter
We made trips for har ford , Ct.
Sometimes Bris til , Ct or Har in ton
or Pennsadelphia, Pa
How about Cour de aleen ???

 

[tomcat]

Actually, I think Rhode Island has its' own language all together, from West'lee to Wawwuck, Addleburra to Fauh Rivvuh

I worked in West-lee for a couple of years, and I think it's actualluy: WEST-a-lee

 

[VAMike23]

Nevada, Iowa -- a small town not far from Ames, home of the Iowa State Cyclones

Nevada is pronounced nuh-VAY-duh

 

[cockhrnleghrn]

Lancaster, Pa.

Laancaster, Pa. by outsiders
Langcaster, Pa. by Langcasterians

And in South Carolina, Lancaster is pronounced, "Lank-us-ter".

 

[cockhrnleghrn]

Greenwich, CT is definitely Gren-itch. But if you live there, you have enough money to pronounce it any way you want.

I grew up in the Devon (Dev-on) section of Milford. The Main Line town outside of Philly with the same spelling is Dev-in.

The home to UDel is New-ark (accent on the 2nd syllable), whereas the New Jersey city is New-erk (accent on the first).

The non-Spanish pronunciation of Paso Robles, CA is Passo Row-bulls.

Newark, NJ is most closely pronounced, "Nook". As far as Greenwich Street and Village in Manhattan, it is definitely, "Gren-itch" and not "Green-witch".

 

[MilfordHusky]

And in South Carolina, Lancaster is pronounced, "Lank-us-ter".

I that Lack-lus-ter?

 

[MilfordHusky]

Newark, NJ is most closely pronounced, "Nook". As far as Greenwich Street and Village in Manhattan, it is definitely, "Gren-itch" and not "Green-witch".

Nook? That's really shortening it. Would the diminutive form of that be used for the suburbs--Nookie?

 

[cockhrnleghrn]

Nook? That's really shortening it. Would the diminutive form of that be used for the suburbs--Nookie?

Only down the shore as in, "Me and Nookie are going down to Seaside Heights for the day".

 

[alexrgct]

WUH-Sta for Worcester.

PEA-buddy for Peabody, MA

SUTH-ington for Southington, CT.

Maryland is definitely Merlin, the wizard. As in BALL-more, Merlin we was the setting for the great TV series The Wire.

 

[Gus Mahler]

Illinois has several good ones. There is also Berlin and New Berlin, rhyming with Merlin.
There is a Delhi and New Delhi, pronounced DEL-high.
My all-time favorite from Illinois: San Jose pronounced San Joze.
Arkansas has a Hayti, pronounced HAY-TIGH
Tennessee is often heard as TINN-see
Mississippi is something like Mih-sippi, where mih is sort of a hiss.
Boliver, TN is BALLiver.
TN has a county written as Lafayette, pro-nounced La-FAY-et.
Missouri has a New Madrid pronounced MAA-drid. (short "a").

 

[HuskerDo]

Closely related: I was walking in New Haven a few years ago and a driver pulled over and asked me if I knew where Lewis's was. Nope, didn't. "It's supposed to be well known." Nope. "They created the hamburger." "Oh, you mean LOUIS.'" And gave him easy directions.

And if luncheonette's are too far afield: Boerne, TX, pronounced Bernie.

 

[Huskies Rule]

Re: Houston Street NYC vs. Houston, Texas...

I've finally learned that one, but I still think it's odd.

Houston St. in lower Manhattan is named after the Georgian delegate (William) to the Continental Congress whose pronunciation was How-stin, while Houston the city is named after Sam Houston who was ill-informed as to the proper pronunciation because William died in 1813, long before Sam made his long and disastrous trip via horse carriage to Georgia to inquire as to the correct elocution from his 4th cousin on his wife's side. His demise at the hands of a murderous highwayman was tragic and directly resulted in the horrible pronunciation confusion.

 

[DogWarden]

Much of the upper Mississippi was explored and settled by French explorers. Fur trapping from 1600 through the mid to late 1800 by French Canadians accounted for some of the French sounding names. Baton Rouge --Louisana belonged to the French however some settlers there came from Nova Scotia and were Canadian French --interesting


Mom and dozen Irish relatives were born in Wooos ter Mass . The un-initiated called it Wor Cess ter
We made trips for har ford , Ct.
Sometimes Bris til , Ct or Har in ton
or Pennsadelphia, Pa
How about Cour de aleen ???

Its Wooosta. Folks in Wooosta drop their Rs, (ah) more than the folks in Bastn

 

[BroadwayVa]

Its Wooosta. Folks in Wooosta drop their Rs, (ah) more than the folks in Bastn

Pronounce it any way you want---it will always be Woos Ter ---only those close to Boston use the sta.
Yankee's from Southern N.E. didn't sound much like BAAAS Tn. Celtic (KEL TIC) survivors of Boston pronounced it for me in Hav erd Sq. Then too they spent too much time in Cuber

 

[DobbsRover2]

For a CT person, the main question is how to pronounce the name of that interesting place in SW CT called Mianus, and everyone from outside the area chooses the more humorous version, while residents supposedly use the more proper My-ann-es.

I grew up in a town that everyone I knew called WALL-ing-furd, though I see some proper pronounciation guides saying it should be Wall-ing-FORD, and when I was in the UK it sounded like WALL-ing-fid.

In NY besides the delightful CHY-ly for Chili mentioned by Orang there is also Honeoye (HUN-nee-i, Honey Eye), Carmel is CAR-mul, Schenectady is Skih-NEK-tuh-dee, Lima is LY-muh, Somers is SOE-murz, and Sewanahaka is SWAHN-ih-kuh. And yes, in my sports commentating, I am constantly being tripped up by Greenwich NY and Greenwich CT, especially when the two towns have teams in the same event. And after living in New York for 35 years it's still hard to give a definitive pronunciation on it, especially if you tack a City on to it.

Two guys I run with from Louisville smirk when asked about the true pronunciation of their city, which they say that the s0-called experts get wrong, and that the real residents where they lived called it LOWE-vil.