Here are 11 Maryland town names that can make your GPS have an existential crisis due to their tricky or surprising pronunciations:
- Glenelg — pronounced “GLEN-el” (the final “g” is silent).
- Worcester — pronounced “Woo-ster,” similar to the Massachusetts place.
- Annapolis — pronounced “AN-uh-puh-lis,” with a quick second syllable.
- Bel Air — pronounced “Blair,” not like it looks.
- Towson — often mispronounced but said “TOW-sin.”
- Havre de Grace — pronounced “HAV-er de GRASE,” using a soft French style.
- Odenton — pronounced “OH-den-tin” or locally sometimes “OH-ding-tin.”
- Salisbury — pronounced “SAWL-zib-ree.”
- Taneytown — pronounced “TAW-nee-town.”
- Ijamsville — pronounced “EYE-ams-ville” (the “j” is silent).
- Anne Arundel — pronounced “Ann-ROON-del” or “An-ruh-nel,” which trips up many outsiders.
These place names illustrate Maryland’s mixture of English, French, and local influences that create unique pronunciations challenging for non-locals and sometimes even for GPS systems.
SOURCES
(http://cohp.org/md/notes/placenames_pronunciation.html)
(https://www.rd.com/list/difficult-to-pronounce-towns/)
(https://www.usatoday.com/picture-gallery/travel/experience/america/2019/09/09/50-u-s-towns-that-are-hard-to-pronounce-fontainebleau-to-sevierville/39994103/)(https://www.reddit.com/r/maryland/comments/16u0wwu/which_md_citytown_names_have_a_unique/)(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vYsmewlqU_k)
