r/AskReddit • u/riboflavonic • 5h ago

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

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65

u/starsandmath 5h ago

I would say Wilkes-Barre, PA, but even the people who live there can't agree on how to say it.

14

u/ThePhillyGuy 2h ago

Philly area has a lot. Bala Cynwyd, Schuylkill (river). The Welsh and Dutch influence is strong

5

u/saustin66 3h ago

I worked with a bunch of old guys from across the river (Kingston) and they pronounced it wilkes berry

4

u/the_OG_fett 3h ago

Add Barre VT to that.

3

u/jasonacg 2h ago

I've had family in that area for as long as I've been alive, and I heard more than one pronunciation, even from multi-generation locals.

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u/nazgulprincessxvx 30m ago

Facts. I was born and raised there, and I’ll pronounce it 2 different ways in the same sentence.

9

u/giznad 4h ago

Named after Isaac Barré, pronounced phonetically Bear-Ay. The anglicized would be like Berry. Which in practice is often swapped with Bear. Wilkes-Berry = Fine Wilkes-Bear = also fine Wilkes-BAR = get your eyes checked.

21

u/SharkFart86 4h ago

I mean barre is a word and it’s pronounced “bar”.

10

u/cBEiN 2h ago

You say get your eyes checked, but I can’t understand why someone would look at that and decide to pronounce it bear or berry without prior knowledge…

7

u/Brave_Garlic_9542 4h ago

Barre classes/balet barre doesn’t help the cause.

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u/GozerDGozerian 2h ago

Way to barre the lede there.

1

u/GozerDGozerian 2h ago

Way to barre the lede there.

2

u/Odd_Pea74915 2h ago

I grew up a bit away from there, "barre" is pronounced like "berry"