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Geographical annoyances in pop and rock

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    #76
    Beauchamp is frequently pronounced Beecham over here.

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      #77
      The chemist in our village was called Beecham. When I found out it was spelt Beauchamp I thought he was a Norman invader.

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        #78
        In the 60s, the New York Jets and the then-Boston Patriots of the then-American Football League featured this guy as a quarterback



        He pronounced his last name "Tolliver", and his real first name was Myron.

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          #79
          Originally posted by Stumpy Pepys View Post
          Well, he's claiming Sweet Marie and Amarillo are pretty. My Texan acquaintance claimed otherwise.

          Neil Sedaka happily admitted he'd never been to Amarillo; he just went through the road atlas until he found a town that rhymed with 'pillow'.
          I don't agree, at least based on the version of the lyrics set out below which I found online - apologies if they're an inaccurate record. The implications that Amarillo is an appealing place (e.g. "ain't half as pretty as where my baby's at") are pretty clearly a case of reflected appeal: the city is "pretty" only because it's where Marie is at.

          Sha la la la la la
          Sha la la la la la
          Sha la la la la la

          When the day is dawning
          On a Texas Sunday morning
          How I long to be there
          With Marie who's waiting for me there
          Every lonely city where I hang my hat
          Ain't as half as pretty as where my baby's at

          Is this the way to Amarillo?
          Every night I've been hugging my pillow
          Dreaming dreams of Amarillo
          And sweet Marie who waits for me
          Show me the way to Amarillo
          Ive been weeping like a willow
          Crying over Amarillo
          And sweet Marie who waits for me

          Sha la la la la la la
          Sha la la la la la
          Sha la la la la la
          And Marie who waits for me

          There's a church bell ringing
          Hear the song of joy that it's singing
          For the sweet Maria
          And the guy who's coming to see her
          Just beyond the highway
          There's an open plane and it keeps me going
          Through the wind and rain

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            #80
            Joey Beauchamp, Oxford United legend and bloke who was a bit of an arse in maths lessons when he sat next to me, also pronounced his name Beecham.

            And I've come unstuck many, many times on US pronunciation of French names - for some reason Spanish names are rendered closer to reasonable. Des Moines, Boise, Coeur D'Alenes, New Orleans even. And I'm still not sure about how Americans pronounce Terre Haute.

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              #81
              Terra Haute, with the H being voiced.

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                #82
                What is the generally agreed pronunciation - I believe there is some disagreement here - of Pinochet?

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                  #83
                  In American, it is generally Pino Che, but I have heard other versions. The Chileans I know tend not to want to talk about him.

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                    #84
                    Over here even English names get mucked up. Lorn-sess-ton for Tasmania’s version of the Cornish county town.

                    As for French words, while it’s not a place name the various pronunciations of the word “lingerie” grate on me so much. Not that it’s a word at the forefront of my mind, clearly. I’m assuming the correct pronunciation is lan-jhur-ee with a lovely rolled “r”? Francophones please correct me, as I’ve never heard it spoken by one. But even if I’m wrong I must be closer to the most common Aussie attempt lon-jhur-ay? I’m using “jh” but maybe “zh” is closer, as in courgette.

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                      #85
                      Oh, and are people correct when they pronounce São Paulo “San Paulo”? Surely not.

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                        #86
                        Originally posted by ursus arctos View Post
                        In the 60s, the New York Jets and the then-Boston Patriots of the then-American Football League featured this guy as a quarterback



                        He pronounced his last name "Tolliver", and his real first name was Myron.
                        W&M has a dorm named Talliferro pronounces Tolliver. I don’t get that.

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                          #87
                          Originally posted by Sits View Post
                          Oh, and are people correct when they pronounce São Paulo “San Paulo”? Surely not.
                          This could - I may very well be wrong - have something to do with the particular Brazilian Portuguese pronunciation of ão, or even the standard Portuguese way of saying it (nasality suggesting an n sound).
                          Last edited by Sporting; 13-07-2019, 05:22.

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                            #88
                            Originally posted by Sporting View Post
                            What is the generally agreed pronunciation - I believe there is some disagreement here - of Pinochet?
                            Long article here (ultimately inconclusive)
                            http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/langu...es/003900.html

                            It's a Breton name apparently.

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                              #89
                              Spanish? French? Portuguese? Pah... a mere trifle.

                              If you really want to hear an American mangle a place name, pick Welsh.

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                                #90
                                They seem to do alright with Bangor, Maine

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                                  #91
                                  And Bryn Mawr

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                                    #92
                                    Try Llanelli (and that's on the easier side).

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                                      #93
                                      But we don't have a Llannelli over here.

                                      The Welsh Quaker emigrants who created what would come to be called the Main Line on the edge of Philadelphia seemed to take difficulty of pronunciation into account when choosing place names, My brother and his wife are both graduates of Haverford College, while my sister in law went to Bryn Mawr.

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                                        #94
                                        How do USians say Bryn Mawr then?

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                                          #95
                                          The best I can do:

                                          I hear a bird, Londonderry bird,
                                          It well may be he's bringing me a cheering word.
                                          I hear a breeze, a River Shanon breeze,
                                          It well may be it's followed me across the seas.
                                          Then tell me please
                                          How are things in Glocca Morra?
                                          Is that little brook still leaping there?
                                          Does it still run down to Donny cove?
                                          Through Killybegs, Kilkerry and Kildare?
                                          How are things in Glocca Mora?
                                          Is that willow tree still weeping there?
                                          Does that lassie with the twinklin' eye
                                          Come smilin' by and does she walk away,
                                          Sad and dreamy there not to see me there?
                                          So I ask each weepin' willow and each brook along the way,
                                          And each lass that comes a-sighin' too ra lay
                                          How are things in Glocca Morra this fine day?

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                                            #96
                                            Originally posted by Sporting View Post
                                            Try Llanelli (and that's on the easier side).
                                            What about Rhosllanerchrugog? Froncysyllte? And the deceptive Hawarden?

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                                              #97
                                              Originally posted by Sits View Post
                                              Oh, and are people correct when they pronounce São Paulo “San Paulo”? Surely not.
                                              I thought it was more like 'Son' Paulo, but others will know better. (1982 World Cup 'legend' Falcao pronounced his name 'Falcon', if memory serves...)

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                                                #98
                                                "And the deceptive Hawarden"

                                                Ha, that one was news to me. Glad to learn that before I get stuck into the biography of Gladstone that I have on my reading list

                                                [Edit: For some reason I suddenly got a thing about biographies of British PMs. But I'm not reading them in chronological order, more in order of how interesting or appealing the subjects are. So I'm kicking off with Macmillan (a hugely engaging character with a fascinating life story), second pick will probably be Wilson, and I'll probably read a biog of the witty and charismatic (albeit rather unprincipled) Disraeli before I get on to the pompous and pious WEG. ]
                                                Last edited by Evariste Euler Gauss; 13-07-2019, 21:19.

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                                                  #99
                                                  Originally posted by TonTon View Post
                                                  How do USians say Bryn Mawr then?
                                                  Brinn Marr

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                                                    Very broadly speaking, Mawr should rhyme with "sour" but with a slight trill on the "r" - not entirely accurate but close enough.

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