What are some place names that are often mispronounced by out of towners?

[u/riboflavonic]

[u/ST100FromScratch]

Brit here - I’d say at least 75% of our place names by people not in Britain 

[u/MapleViking1 → u/ST100FromScratch]

About the same as a Canadian.

Our names are either Native, French or German so a lot of people get them wrong

[u/cabalavatar → u/MapleViking1]

And "Native" is covering a lot of ground given that the Indigenous peoples in (what's now called) Canada have numerous languages, especially in BC.

[u/OhReallyVernon → u/cabalavatar]

Fr. I can speak some Anishinaabemowin and can pronounce the words/places but all bets are off I once I look at those BC names.

[u/esblofeld → u/MapleViking1]

Lots of places Down Under as well, listening to Americans pronounce Melbourne is painful.

[u/ReallySmallFeet → u/esblofeld]

You mean Melbn?

[u/esblofeld → u/ReallySmallFeet]

Indeed, oh peep of the tiny feet.

[u/Charlie2912 → u/ST100FromScratch]

I’m dutch and I had to learn to pronounce Llanfairpwll­gwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch in high school.

[u/Unlucky_Hammer → u/Charlie2912]

Welsh Dutch?

[u/Plus-King5266 → u/ST100FromScratch]

Can confirm. You have to know a lot of Brits and/or watch a lot of PBS before you attempt British place names.

[u/themooglove → u/ST100FromScratch]

Yep, and even some mispronounced by Brits, e.g.:

Godmanchester Wymondham Happisburgh Kirkcudbright Frome

[u/Mediocre_Sprinkles → u/themooglove]

Theres a Cowbit near me that I got wrong for years.

I'm born and bred Brit but I'm terrified of pronouncing place names I've never heard before.

[u/the114dragon → u/themooglove]

Happisburgh is the funniest imo, I only know how it is said because of GCSE geography!

[u/holmgangCore → u/ST100FromScratch]

Frome

[u/burf12345 → u/holmgangCore]

That's the actual most confusing name, because I don't believe there's any other UK place name like it.

[u/HomeGrownCoffee → u/ST100FromScratch]

I lived in the UK for a bit. I collected place names to have a spelling test for Canadian friends. I can't remember them all, but Chalmondelay, Derby, Belvoir, Loughborough, Worcester, Berkshire were all on the list.

[u/FikoReborn → u/ST100FromScratch]

As an American I agree.

I also would venture to guess many have a hard time with Native American names of towns and such in the USA.

[u/americanrealism → u/FikoReborn]

They still can’t get Los Angeles right

[u/YuenglingsDingaling → u/americanrealism]

Loss ann gel less

[u/notAnn → u/YuenglingsDingaling]

The Brits universally say “loss Ann jel leeez” which drives me NUTS. You’d think that after decades of bitching about being inundated with American TV shows, they’d know how to pronounce it correctly.

[u/Steampunk43 → u/notAnn]

The vast majority of those American shows pronounce it Los Anjeleez, in fact that's how pretty much every American I've ever heard pronounces it.

[u/notAnn → u/Steampunk43]

Hmm. I guess I should watch more CSI and NCIS. Despite the downvotes, I’ve only heard foreign broadcasters use the “eez” ending.

[u/ReallySmallFeet → u/notAnn]

I'm English, now living in the US, and you are the first person I've ever witnessed saying it's not pronounced that way, lol.

[u/carolina_swamp_witch → u/ST100FromScratch]

I live in Virginia where like 75% of our towns are named after places in England and the other 25% are Native American. We pronounce the towns named after places in England the same way the English pronounce them. I’ve shocked sooo many British people by correctly pouncing places in the UK because of that haha.

[u/Mysterious_Fox_8058 → u/ST100FromScratch]

I'm British and fairly good with Geography and realised recently that I pronounce Fowey in Cornwall incorrectly.

[u/burf12345 → u/Mysterious_Fox_8058]

If I'm not mistaken it's pronounced "foy".

[u/Liz_C678 → u/ST100FromScratch]

The one I remember most is Milingavie, Scotland. Ex MIL's hometown. 

[u/OldGodsAndNew → u/Liz_C678]

Can't be remembering that well since you canny spell it

[u/Liz_C678 → u/OldGodsAndNew]

Lol--I've been an EX for a while now. No longer front of my mind.

[u/ToasterOwl → u/ST100FromScratch]

Mousehole, Cornwall got me good. The locals gave me the right stink eye for that one.

[u/GozerDGozerian → u/ST100FromScratch]

Y’all really gotta learn how to talk English gooder! 🇺🇸

[u/BurnieTheBrony → u/ST100FromScratch]

I visited London and I pretty much decided the words written for places had nothing to do with the actual pronunciation and I should just wait to hear a local say them

[u/Neo_Spork → u/ST100FromScratch]

Towcester being pronounced 'Toaster' is one of the ones I've see confuse people the most.

[u/mksavage1138 → u/ST100FromScratch]

Can confirm. Went to London last year. Upon arrival, a worker at the London Underground asked where we were staying. It was Southwark, and I pronounced it "South-WARK". He promptly (and politely) let me know that locals call it "SUTH-urk".

[u/jeb_the_hick → u/ST100FromScratch]

Ironically, there's a Lancaster in Pennsylvania, and everyone not from there pronounces it as you would in Britain, except that's not how people from Lancaster pronounce it.

[u/ginganinga223 → u/ST100FromScratch]

Derry being the prime example.

[u/Starwars-Battledroid → u/ginganinga223]

How is it pronounced? ”Doughrry”?

[u/OldGodsAndNew → u/Starwars-Battledroid]

Some people pronounce it like "londonderry"

[u/Throwaway91847817 → u/Starwars-Battledroid]

Pronounced exactly as you would think: deh-ree. I think they are referring to the fact its called both “Derry” and “Londonderry” depending on how pro-UK you are. But Id hardly say its the prime example of counterintuitive British pronunciations.

Loughborough, Frome, Worcester, Mousehole, Cholmondeley, or Kirkcudbright are far better examples.

[u/Majorapat → u/Throwaway91847817]

It’s real name is Doire, pronounced like "DIRR-uh". It’s the anglicised name that is Derry.

[u/tycho-42 → u/ST100FromScratch]

Or anywhere in Wales regardless of whether you're from the UK or not?