This is a list of personal and place names that are pronounced in a way not easily deducible from the spelling or in a way at variance with a better known name of the same spelling.

See International Phonetic Alphabet for English and IPA chart for English for guides to the IPA symbols used.

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A

• Abiquiu, New Mexico —
• Aille, County Mayo — ,
• Alcester — ,
• Aldeburgh —
• Alnwick —
• Altrincham — ,
• Arkansas — . Compare Kansas. However, the Arkansas River is pronounced differently in the two states.
• Assman (as in Dick Assman) —
• Athens, Kentucky, Athens, Illinois and New Athens, Illinois —
• Au Sable River in New York's Adirondacks —

B

• Barugh Barnsley, UK —
• Belen, New Mexico -
• Bellefontaine, Ohio —
• Belvoir — or
• Bergen, New York —
• Berkeley (bishop, philosopher) -- "barklee"
• Berkeley, California -- "birklee"
• Berlin, Connecticut, New Berlin, Illinois, Berlin, New Hampshire, and Berlin, Ohio — (stress on first syllable)
• Bicester —
• Billerica, Massachusetts —
• Blackley, Manchester —
• Boise, Idaho — (this is the standard local pronunciation, but most Americans, especially those far removed from Idaho, pronounce it )
• Boise City, Oklahoma — The "Boise" in this place name is locally pronounced ^*, which is different from either pronunciation of the name of the Idaho city. The "s" sound generally merges with the same sound in "City."
• Boyounagh, County Galway —
• Bozeat, Northamptonshire —
• Breaghwy (County Mayo and County Sligo) —
• Brisbane, Australia —
• Buccleuch —

C

• Cahir, South Tipperary, Republic of Ireland —
• Cairo, Illinois and Cairo, Ohio —
• Caius (as in Caius College, Cambridge) —
• Calais, Maine (The town of Calais in France was formerly also pronounced in English; today , with initial stress in British English and final stress in American English, is the normal pronunciation.)
• Canyon de Chelly, Arizona — Chelly pronounced
• Chicago — or
• Chili, New York —
• Chiswick —
• Cholmondeley —
• Cirencester, now usually spelling pronunciation , but formerly and occasionally still pronounced *
• Cloghore, County Donegal —
• Clones, County Monaghan —
• Cockburn —
• Cogenhoe, Northamptonshire —
• Conneaut, Ohio (also Conneautville, Pennsylvania) —
• Connecticut —
• Corfu, New York —
• Cosham, Hampshire —
• Costessey, Norfolk —
• Crichton (as in Michael Crichton) —

D

• Dalyell and Dalziel (as in the UK television series Dalziel and Pascoe) —
• Davies - like "Davis"
• Delhi, New York —
• Des Moines, Iowa —

E

• Edinburgh, Scotland —
• El Dorado, Arkansas, El Dorado, Kansas and Eldorado, Illinois —
• Elsecar, South Yorkshire —
• Etobicoke, Ontario —

F

• Faneuil Hall, Boston, Massachusetts —
• Featherstonehaugh — , , , , or intuitively as *
• Frome, Somerset —

G

• Geoffrey —
• Geogehan (Irish surname) —
• Gloucester (English city and Massachusetts city), both , .
• Greenwich, Connecticut and Greenwich Village in New York City —
• Greenwich, Greater London — or
• Greig (Scottish/English surname or forename) —
• Guildford, Surrey —
• Guisborough —

H

• Happisburgh, Norfolk —
• Hawarden, Flintshire —
• Holborn, Greater London —
• Hurricane, Utah and Hurricane, West Virginia — (The ending is standard in the British pronunciation of hurricane, but not in American English)
• Hockessin, Delaware — HOE-kess-in

I

• Illinois —
• Inistioge, County Kilkenny —
• Ironton, Ohio (ARN-tn)
• Islay (island of the Inner Hebrides, Scotland) —
• Israel

J

• John — (RP) (GAm)

K

• Kalaloch, Washington —
• Keighley, West Yorkshire) —
• Keswick, Cumbria —
• Keynsham, near Bristol —
• Kingussie, Scotland —
• Kiltimagh, County Mayo, Republic of Ireland —
• Kiribati (island nation in Pacific Ocean) — (spelling is regular in Gilbertese)
• Kiritimati (island in Pacific Ocean) — (spelling is regular in Gilbertese)
• Kirkby, Merseyside —
• Kirkcudbright, Scotland —

L

• Lancaster, Ohio (LANK-uh-ster) vs. Lancaster, Pennsylvania (LAN-cas-ter)
• La Plata, Maryland —
• Laugharne, Carmarthenshire,
• Launceston, Cornwall — or (but Launceston, Tasmania is )
• Lewes, Delaware
• Leap, County Cork, Republic of Ireland —
• Leicester, England and Leicester, Massachusetts —
• Leintwardine, Shropshire — , , or *
• Leominster, Herefordshire — . Compare Leominster, Massachusetts which is more intuitively pronounced
• Loughborough, Leicestershire —
• Lympne, Kent —

M

• Mackinac Island, Michigan —
• Madrid, New Mexico —
• Magdalen(e) (as in Magdalen College, Oxford and Magdalene College, Cambridge) —
• Manchaca, Texas —
• Mantua, Utah —
• Marjoribanks —
• McCaughey (as in the McCaughey septuplets) — ("McCoy")
• Medina in several American states —
• Melbourne, Australia — or
• Menzies (as in Menzies Campbell) —
• Meopham, Kent —
• Mexia, Texas —
• Miami, Oklahoma —
• Michael —
• Milan, Illinois, Milan, Indiana, Milan, Michigan, Milan, New Hampshire, and Milan, Tennessee —
• Minot, North Dakota —
• Moog —
• Mousehole, Cornwall —
• Mweelrea, County Mayo —
• Mytholmroyd, West Yorkshire —

N

• Naas, County Kildare, Ireland —
• Natchitoches, Louisiana —
• Neagh, Lough in Northern Ireland —
• Newark, Ohio (NURK) vs. Newark, Delaware (NEW-ark)
• Newfoundland —
• Nevada County, Arkansas and Nevada, Iowa —

O

• Olney, Milton Keynes — (local), (otherwise)
• Owenabue (river in County Cork) —

P

• Pedernales River, Texas —
• Pierre, South Dakota —
• Pflugerville, Texas —
• Plaistow, Greater London —
• Plymouth —
• Pojoaque Pueblo, New Mexico —
• Proulx (as in Marcel Proulx and E. Annie Proulx) —
• Puyallup, Washington —

R

• Ralph — usually , though some (e.g., Ralph Fiennes) prefer
• Refugio, Texas —
• Regina — the female name is , but in British and Canadian place names it is
• Rievaulx Abbey, North Yorkshire, UK —
• Riga, New York —
• Rio Grande, Ohio (RYE-oh grand)

S

• St. John (surname) — (as in Oliver St. John Gogarty); or intuitively or (as in Ian St. John).
• Salisbury, Wiltshire — ,
• San Jose, Illinois —
• Sault Ste. Marie — first word pronounced
• Sean (first name) — (spelling Seán is regular in Irish)
• Sequim, Washington —
• Shawangunk (Mountains, town and prison in Hudson Valley region of New York) — is preferred by residents of the area, although original pronunciation still used by visitors is more intuitive
• Siobhan (first name) — or (spelling Siobhán is regular in Irish)
• Sioux (e.g. Sioux Falls, South Dakota) —
• Skagit (name of a Native American tribe and various locales in Washington) —
• Skidegate, British Columbia —
• Slaithwaite, West Yorkshire —
• Slough, Berkshire —
• Smethwick —
• Southwark, Greater London —
• Southwell, Nottinghamshire — (the more intuitive is also used locally)
• Spokane, Washington —
• Strachan — , (although English TV presenters pronounce the name of Celtic F.C. manager Gordon Strachan as )
• Suir, River in Leinster, Ireland —

T

• Tal(l)iaferro (American place & family names) —
• Tallaght, County Dublin —
• Teignmouth, Devon —
• Thames (river in England), Thames River in Ontario, and Thames River and eponymous town and firth in New Zealand — (the Thames River in Connecticut is pronounced )
• Thibodaux, Louisiana —
• Tooele, Utah —
• Torpenhow, Cumbria — (locally) or (non-locally)*
• Towcester, Northamptonshire —
• Tucson, Arizona —

U

• Unadilla —

V

• Verdi, Nevada —
• Versailles, Illinois and Versailles, Kentucky —
• Vienna, Illinois —

W

• Wahkiakum County, Washington —
• Warwick, UK —
• Willamette River, Oregon — (wil-AM-it) or
• Wisbech, Cambridgeshire —
• Woolfardisworthy — or
• Worcester, England and Worcester, Massachusetts, both pronounced . Compare Wooster, Ohio
• Wymondham, Norfolk — (locally) or (non-locally) *

Y

• Yachats, Oregon —
• Youghal, County Cork, Ireland —
• Youghiogheny, Pennsylvania (YOCK-uh-gainey)

References

Pronunciations marked with * are from:

See also

• English spelling
• List of words of disputed pronunciation (includes names like Melbourne that are pronounced differently in different locations)

English phonology | Lists of place names | Lists of names