_Mispronounced Names of Places_ (Vol. v., p. 196.).--Allow me to add to
P. M. M.'s list:
Spelling. Pronunciation.
North-brook-end (Cambridgeshire) Nobacken.
Mountnessing (Essex) Moneyseen.
Brookhampton (Glostershire) Brockington.
Barnstaple Barum.
Crediton Kirton.
Penrith Perith.
Brougham Broome.
Birmingham Brummagem.
It is hardly worth while to mention the larger tribe of contractions,
such as Alsford for Alresford, Wilsden for Willesden, Harfordwest for
Haverfordwest; nor the class of derivations from the Roman Castrum, as
Uxeter for Uttoxeter, Toster for Towcester, and the like.
The railroads are correcting these grosser errors wherever they fall in
with them. I remember a few years ago, being at Gloster, and intending
to take the train to _Cisiter_, as I had always called it. "Oh!" said
the porter, with quite the air of a _Lingo_, "you mean _Ci-ren-cester_."
But I believe the good folks of the neighbourhood still stick to
_Aberga'ny_ and _Cisiter_.
P. M. M.'s appeal to your Scotch and Irish correspondents will I think
produce little. In Scotland, names are generally pronounced as written,
with a few exceptions, such as _Enbro'_ and _Lithgow_, and perhaps a few
others: but in Ireland I do not remember a single instance of the
corruption of a name; though certainly the Irish might be forgiven if
they had contracted or mollified such names as _Drumcullagher_,
_Ballaghaddireen_, _Moatagreenoque_, and _Tamnaughtfinlaggan_. The
English are, I believe, the only people who habitually _clip_ proper
names of persons or places, but I think it is also the only language in
which the spelling of words does not afford a general guide for their
pronunciation. No other language that I know anything of can afford such
anomalies as are to be found, for instance, in _rough_, _cough_,
_lough_, _plough_, _dough_, _through_, &c. &c.