You've Been Totally Screwing Up the Pronunciation of These Places

Travel
by Albie Hartshill Feb 12, 2015

I GREW UP IN CINCINNATI, and we had a way of telling if someone had been born and raised in the area or if they’d moved to the area from one of the coasts. It was in how they pronounced one of the nearest large cities: Louisville. It’s a tricky one, because it seems like an explicitly French name, so you would imagine that it’s pronounced — if not like the super-French “Loo-ee-veel” — like “Loo-ee-ville,” or possibly “Loo-iss-vill.”

Nope. Not how you say it. Fortunately for non-locals, though, the website Thrillophilia has gone through the world’s cities, found the ones that are commonly mispronounced, and has produced these graphics to help you with your pronunciation.

1. Louisville, Kentucky

Louisville

2. Bangkok, Thailand

Bangkok

3. Budapest, Hungary

Budapest

4. Colombia

Colombia

5. Dubai, UAE

Dubai

6. Iraq

Iraq

7. Melbourne, Australia

Melbourne

8. Pakistan

Pakistan

9. Phuket, Thailand

Phuket

10. Qatar

Qatar

11. River Thames, England

Thames-River

12. Versailles, France

Versailles

13. Worcester, England

Worcester

14. Yosemite, California

Yosemite
You can find more mispronounced place names at Thrillophilia’s website.

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