To pronounce this street correctly

[wherethestreetshaveasillyname]

I just moved into small business premises locally and people have been asking for the address.

Now the street shares the name with a North American location that’s semi well-known in the UK - to avoid outing myself, let’s call it Illinois Street (it’s similar).

But every time I pronounce it (ill-ih-NOY street), I get blank looks. Then, when I describe the location, I get “ah you mean ill-ih-nwahh street!” and a raised ‘are you a bit stupid’ eyebrow.

What should I do?

A)keep saying it correctly

B) say it like everyone else seems to- but then look weird when I encounter someone who says it correctly

C) do as I am currently and long-windedly doing and say “oh it’s on Illinois Street, or, ill-i-nwa street as people seem to pronounce it round here.

(this is life-and-death and not at all lighthearted btw)

There is also a castle! 👑

It really does depend on what it is. If it is something with an Indigenous name then I would absolutely go with the correct pronunciation and handle it with option C.

I used to live between Bosham and Cosham, pronounced Bozzum and Cosh-am respectively. That weeded out the tourists easily enough.

I'd say you're the one pronouncing it wrong @wherethestreetshaveasillyname . You're pronouncing the name of the state in the US correctly, but the name of the street incorrectly.

If the locals pronounce it a particular way, then thats the way its pronounced.

There's a Magdalen (Mag-da-len) road in Norwich too.

Same problem

There was a judge at a local court who insisted on pronouncing the place Blackley as it is spelled rather than as Blakeley which is how it was known. Everyone from the defendants, witnesses, solicitors, barristers etc said Blakeley but on every case he would insist on saying Blackley and would often 'correct' people.

Witnesses and defendants were often confused what he was on about as despite its spelling it was ALWAYS said Blakeley.

If you don't want to look like a fool like this judge did then pronounce it how the locals do.

Seconding to research the origins of the street name. Unless it was named specifically for its American counterpart you can’t presume the American pronunciation is correct.

My money's on Arkansas! If so it was a bit of a silly idea to call it that in the UK.

But the point about incorrect pronunciations being right in some contexts is interesting. The historical womaniser, Don Juan, has his name pronounced in a very un-Spanish way when he's the subject of Byron's poem - he's Don Jooan there, and the Spanish pronunciation would be wrong.

Similarly, Mallory's Victorian poem, Morte d'Arthur isn't pronounced as French but 'Mort Darther'. All illogical, but hey!

I’m in Colchester where we have a Magdalen Street pronounced Mag-da-len, not Maudlin. Not sure where the second pronunciation comes from if I’m honest. It was Mary Mag-da-len not Mary Maudlin surely. Unless I’ve just shown my complete ignorance and it comes from something else entirely.

One of the best known for that is Cairo, Illinois
The merkins pronounce it Kay-roo

That a bit different I think because it is also usually written as Woolsery too.

Like others, I tend to agree that names should be pronounced as the locals do. In Hastings, there is a Beaconsfield Road, the first syllable of which is pronounced “beak” rather than “beck”.

However I think there is an exception when pronouncing it like the locals involves assuming a different accent. When my father (who was from Lancashire) moved to Somerset, he pronounced Bath differently from the locals. Similarly, I (born in Somerset) don’t attempt to pronounce Newcastle in the way that locals do.

😂

Thank you! I just sang it out loud as I thought I was going mad!

(Which brought back memories of being pushed on a swing by my mum as we used to sing it - so double thank you)

Why do you think you are correct? Just say it like the locals say it - easy!

I'm guessing Belvoir

On the Pepys issue, I gather that some family family members pronounced it Peeps and some Peppis, so both are right, depending on song on context.

Brothers Charles Powell and Jonathan Powell also pronounce their surnames differently. Charles preferred “Pole”.

But the same spelling has different pronunciation in different circumstances. There's Houston, Texas, which is pronounced "Hyou-ston," but Houston Street in Manhattan is "How-ston." They are probably both named after a place in the UK that's pronounced yet a different way.

I think if tourists turned up.in cosham they had come on holiday by mistake!

That's a real shame that Bosham isn't pronounced as you'd expect - the two places when put together look like a local gangster's to-do list

They may be fans of classic Limericks!!

There’s a similar thing in my town except it’s the whole name rather than the pronunciation. For example it’s a hill called ‘Smith Hill’ but absolutely nobody calls it that, it’s ‘Jones Hill’ because it has ‘Jones Hotel’ on it. If you mention Smith Hill to anyone you just get a blank look until you clarify you mean Jones Hill 🤣

I grew up knowing how to pronounce Waltham properly because an uncle lived there.
Caused me quite a few problems getting cabs from the airport to the company office in Waltham, MA. I had to put on quite an exaggerated accent to be comprehensible.

Some local street planners are just idiotic, when they give/allow a UK road a name that is clearly going to confuse people in perpetuity.

It's stupid enough when they give multiple roads in the neighbourhood the same root name - Sycamore Road, Sycamore Street, Sycamore Drive etc. - a surefire recipe for everybody getting the wrong post and deliveries.

I think if it's a one-off thing associated with one thing, it should be pronounced like the thing. So Illinois and Arkansas, I'd go with state names.
Similarly, something like Potomac road, I'd keep the stress where it is in the river.
It's an interesting idea though. And in reality, I'd just use the same pronunciation as everyone else for ease and convenience even if it was killing me inside.
Anyone want a pair of Nike trainers?

I’d go with local popular pronunciation.
We have as village nearby that is pronounced differently to spelling everyone uses the local way.