With their mix of Spanish and Native origins, figuring out the proper pronunciation of California place names can be a bit challenging.
Fox 40 recently asked viewers which cities and counties get mangled most frequently. Here’s the list of the most mispronounced place names cited by Fox 40 viewers:
Tuolumne
There is no N sound in Tuolumne. And it’s pronounced “too-aw-luh-mee,” not “too-aw-loom!” The county’s historical society says the name comes from the Me-Wuk word “Talmalamne,” which means a cluster of stone dwellings.
Camarillo
Camarillo is a Spanish name. It’s pronounced “kah-ma-ree-yo.”
Lompoc
Most non-locals refer to Lompoc as “lom-pock.” But the end sound is actually “poke.”
La Jolla
Again, this is a Spanish name. The J is pronounced like “h” in English and the double L forms a “y” sound as in “La-hoy-a.”
Vallejo
Many people pronounce it “va-le-jo,” even though the Spanish spelling would create the sound “va-yeh-ho.”
Suisun City
It’s not “Susan” like the name and it’s not “swee-sun.” It’s “suh-soon.”
Yosemite
This does not rhyme with vegemite, people. It’s pronouned “yo-she-mih-tee.”
San Luis Obispo
The name translates to “St. Louis the bishop.” That middle word, “Luis” is pronounced “Loo-is,” not “Lou-ee.”
Paso Robles
This one can go either way. “The Spanish pronunciation would have you say pa-sow row-bless, but locals tend to pronounce the last bit more like ‘row bowls.’ Either way is fine, though,” according to Fox 40.
Ojai
This is not “OJ” like the juice. It’s “oh-hi” as in “oh hi, how are you?”
Lodi
That’s “low-dye” to you!
Tulare
The correct version here is “too-lair-ee.”
It’s a great list, but we thought we’d add a couple more:
Butte – “byoot”
Cudahy – “cuh-duh-hey”
Del Norte – the locals say “del-nort”
Jurupa Valley – “Huh-roo-pah” Valley
San Pedro – the locals say “san-pee-droh”
What are some mispronunciations you often hear?