What is the most beautiful or original street name in your city? - Page 4

niwell · #61 Posted **Jul 16, 2020, 3:04 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by kwoldtimer

Avenue Road and The Esplanade in Toronto.

The Queensway and The Kingsway would fit as well, I'm sure there's a few more I'm not thinking of.

I recently discovered L'estrange place in Baby Point (not pronounced as you'd think!), which also features brick paving.

kwoldtimer · #62 Posted **Jul 16, 2020, 3:20 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by niwell

The Queensway and The Kingsway would fit as well, I'm sure there's a few more I'm not thinking of.

I recently discovered L'estrange place in Baby Point (not pronounced as you'd think!), which also features brick paving.

Rhymes with "flabby".

Named to confound the uninitiated, like Strachan Ave.

Acajack · #63 Posted **Jul 16, 2020, 3:24 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by kwoldtimer

Rhymes with "flabby".

Named to confound the uninitiated, like Strachan Ave.

That depends on one's point of view. To me it's unwashed to not pronounce it "strawn".

MonkeyRonin · #64 Posted **Jul 16, 2020, 3:36 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by kwoldtimer

Rhymes with "flabby".

Even as a lifelong Torontonian you learn something new every day!

Some other street names I like:

Dovercourt
Ossington
Sherbourne
Davenport
Rathnelly
Coxwell

niwell · #65 Posted **Jul 16, 2020, 3:49 PM**

Despite being a major street I'm not sure how many different pronunciations of Roncesvalles I've heard, and apparently there isn't even a consensus. Best to stick to 'Roncey'.

Come to think of it there's a bunch of Toronto streets/areas that aren't pronounced the way one may initially assume. Some should be obvious but I've experienced friends badly mangling them too...

Yonge
Grosvenor
Dupont
Etobicoke
Spadina (the Avenue and Road parts are technically pronounced differently!)
Shuter
Bloor
Ranee
Queen's Quay

And of course Toronto itself - how to spot a tourist 101.

ScreamingViking · #66 Posted **Jul 16, 2020, 3:50 PM**

In Hamilton, the Jolley Cut is rather unique (originally built by James Jolley in the 1800s... the grade was cut through the edge of the escarpment).
https://goo.gl/maps/BwBR7usG2x1Yinrt6

There's also a Paradise Rd. (and an Upper Paradise above the escarpment... but whether it's a higher level of paradise is subjective

) Longwood Rd. is less than 200m west, but in this case Longwood does not lead to Paradise.

https://goo.gl/maps/4AcqEJar4j2zpvAT6

Acajack · #67 Posted **Jul 16, 2020, 3:51 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by niwell

Queen's Quay
.

In my book at least, there shouldn't be any doubt as to how this one is pronounced!

Acajack · #68 Posted **Jul 16, 2020, 3:53 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by niwell

Despite being a major street I'm not sure how many different pronunciations of Roncesvalles I've heard, and apparently there isn't even a consensus. Best to stick to 'Roncey'.

Come to think of it there's a bunch of Toronto streets/areas that aren't pronounced the way one may initially assume. Some should be obvious but I've experienced friends badly mangling them too...

Yonge
Grosvenor
Dupont
Etobicoke
Spadina (the Avenue and Road parts are technically pronounced differently!)
Shuter
Bloor
Ranee
Queen's Quay

And of course Toronto itself - how to spot a tourist 101.

To francophones, it's odd to pronounce "Pape" as "payp". I am sure many tourists from here say "papp" and get strange looks.

kwoldtimer · #69 Posted **Jul 16, 2020, 3:53 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by niwell

Despite being a major street I'm not sure how many different pronunciations of Roncesvalles I've heard, and apparently there isn't even a consensus. Best to stick to 'Roncey'.

Come to think of it there's a bunch of Toronto streets/areas that aren't pronounced the way one may initially assume. Some should be obvious but I've experienced friends badly mangling them too...

Yonge
Grosvenor
Dupont
Etobicoke
Spadina (the Avenue and Road parts are technically pronounced differently!)
Shuter
Bloor
Ranee
Queen's Quay

And of course Toronto itself - how to spot a tourist 101.

One of these is not quite like the others, istm. It is pronounced as you'd expect if you recognize the word "quay".

And what's the alternate pronunciation of "Bloor"?

Acajack · #70 Posted **Jul 16, 2020, 3:54 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by kwoldtimer

One of these is not quite like the others, istm. It is pronounced as you'd expect if you recognize the word "quay".

Exactement.

niwell · #71 Posted **Jul 16, 2020, 3:54 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Acajack

In my book at least, there shouldn't be any doubt as to how this one is pronounced!

That one is the source of my "some should be obvious" proviso

I still remember correcting a friend from the Ottawa Valley on this over some drinks and was proceeded to be made fun of as a "big city elite" the rest of the night.

Acajack · #72 Posted **Jul 16, 2020, 3:55 PM**

And how do they say Grosvenor in Toronto? To me, if you're in the know, there is only one way to say it.

kwoldtimer · #73 Posted **Jul 16, 2020, 4:00 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Acajack

And how do they say Grosvenor in Toronto? To me, if you're in the know, there is only one way to say it.

As long as the "s" remains silent, I think you can get away with making it three syllables rather than two, but I've only heard the shorter version.

Acajack · #74 Posted **Jul 16, 2020, 4:04 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by niwell

That one is the source of my "some should be obvious" proviso

I still remember correcting a friend from the Ottawa Valley on this over some drinks and was proceeded to be made fun of as a "big city elite" the rest of the night.

I am with you.

And I can't think of any circumstance in a person's life where they would have been exposed to or had use for the word "quay" and that it would have been pronounced "kway" and not "key".

Denscity · #75 Posted **Jul 16, 2020, 4:07 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Acajack

In my book at least, there shouldn't be any doubt as to how this one is pronounced!

That reminded me of the nicely named Lonsdale Quay in North Vancouver.

Acajack · #76 Posted **Jul 16, 2020, 4:13 PM**

Though it's not impossible that over time, the dominant local Toronto way of saying "quay" in Queen's Quay could become "kway".

We've seen that happen before.

In Ottawa Gladstone Ave. is named for the British PM from the late 1800s who pronounced his name "glad-stuhn". If 18th century Ottawans took the trouble of naming a street for him I am sure they knew how to say his name right.

But today everyone says it like it refers to a happy rock.

Andy6 · #77 Posted **Jul 16, 2020, 4:25 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Acajack

Though it's not impossible that over time, the dominant local Toronto way of saying "quay" in Queen's Quay could become "kway".

We've seen that happen before.

In Ottawa Gladstone Ave. is named for the British PM from the late 1800s who pronounced his name "glad-stuhn". If 18th century Ottawans took the trouble of naming a street for him I am sure they knew how to say his name right.

But today everyone says it like it refers to a happy rock.

It wasn’t really how “he pronounced his name”, as though it was an individual option. It is how the name was, and is, pronounced. It’s usually the Americans who are behind these abominations, like “hewstin” for “Houston” or the execrable TV-induced supplanting of “Fraser” with “Fraz-yer”.

niwell · #78 Posted **Jul 16, 2020, 4:30 PM**

Spadina Ave in Toronto was originally pronounced "Spa-dee-na" from an Ojibwa word, and is now acceptably pronounced "Spa-dI-na". Interestingly, Spadina House is still pronounced in the previous manner, and Spadina Road north of Bloor goes back and forth. Toronto historians will tell you that each section has a distinct pronunciation, and this apparently was a class distinction for some time (the north section was more upmarket than the working class Avenue section) .

Acajack · #79 Posted **Jul 16, 2020, 4:35 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andy6

It wasn’t really how “he pronounced his name”, as though it was an individual option. It is how the name was, and is, pronounced. It’s usually the Americans who are behind these abominations, like “hewstin” for “Houston” or the execrable TV-induced supplanting of “Fraser” with “Fraz-yer”.

I am actually mostly on board with you, with the caveat that people do have the right to pronounce their own names as they wish. Even if it's wrong!

People who know me would instantly recognize one of my favourite phrases: "he's pronouncing his own name wrong!".

In a previous life when I worked with the public and had to say people's names, I'd default to Italian Cs and CHs, Spanish Js and Germanic Js intuitively, and often people would be surprised.

Some actually didn't like it, and would correct me with the (North) Americanized phonetic way of saying their name.

Others were pleasantly surprised, roughly evenly divided between those who appreciated it but generally didn't bother insisting on correct pronunciation anymore (like trying to stop the ocean tide from coming in), and the others who in their lives insisted and probably corrected people all the time, and often came off as fussy as a result.

MonkeyRonin · #80 Posted **Jul 16, 2020, 4:49 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by kwoldtimer

And what's the alternate pronunciation of "Bloor"?

I pronounce it as "Blue-er", as does basically my entire family who've lived a good chunk of their lives along the street. But I've also been teased for that pronunciation by other locals who pronounce it more like "Blor".

So which is the right one?