What's In A Name?

[R. Richard]

As writer you may be interested in the major league baseball team currently located in Anaheim. The name of the team has just been cxhanged to "The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim." If you are not interested in baseball, you might say, "So what?"

However, as writers you should be aware of the following:

The (English) = The
Los (Spanish) = The
Angeles (Spanish) = Angels
Angels (English) = Angels

Thus the new name of the baseball team is:
"The The Angels Angels of Anaheim."

Now, that is not a name, that is a NAME!

Incidently, "los" is pronounced with an "o" sound, not with an "a" sound.
Angeles is pronounced with the "g" as an "h" sound and both "e"s pronounced
If ss is the "s" sound, the corect pronounciation is something like Loh-ss An-hel-ess, not Lah-ss An-gel-ess and most cetainly not Lah-ss Ang-el-eze.

 

[Guest]

So that means the spanish translation of "Fuck me running with a gravy ladle" would be: "Cójame que funciona con una cucharón de la salsa."

But how would you say it?

 

[dr_mabeuse]

When I was in Spain years ago, we ran into some guys who had a band. The name of the band was "Los The".

---dr.M.

 

[cantdog]

A diner I ate at offered on its menu Pie a la mode with ice cream.

 

[Guest]

A diner I ate at offered on its menu Pie a la mode with ice cream.

Two scoops?

 

[minsue]

A diner I ate at offered on its menu Pie a la mode with ice cream.

Were you able to restrain yourself from pointing out the inanity of it to the waitstaff?

Table Mesa Road here never ceases to irritate me.

 

[cantdog]

I let it go. They had something au gratin with cheese, too. I thought it might have been done on purpose.

There's a place in the British Isles called Torpenhow Hill. "Tor" and "pen" and "howe" all mean hill, each in a successive language once native to the place.

One assumes the invader asked the name of that, and was told "tor." So it was "Tor Pen." The next invader, Anglo-Saxons, were told that and it went down as Torpen Howe, and so on.

I love languages. They're fun.

 

[Rumple Foreskin]

Incidently, "los" is pronounced with an "o" sound, not with an "a" sound.

Angeles is pronounced with the "g" as an "h" sound and both "e"s pronounced

If ss is the "s" sound, the corect pronounciation is something like Loh-ss An-hel-ess, not Lah-ss An-gel-ess and most cetainly not Lah-ss Ang-el-eze.

RR,

I hate to break your bubble, but a town's name is correctly pronounced any way the local citiznes decide it should be pronounced. There are many examples in the US. My favorite is that fine Ohio town, Lima. It is, of couse, not pronounced "Lee-ma" as is the case for the pre-existing city in South America, but "Li-ma" the same as the bean.

Rumple Foreskin

 

[carsonshepherd]

Re: Re: What's In A Name?

RR,

I hate to break your bubble, but a town's name is correctly pronounced any way the local citiznes decide it should be pronounced. There are many examples in the US. My favorite is that fine Ohio town, Lima. It is, of couse, not pronounced "Lee-ma" as is the case for the pre-existing city in South America, but "Li-ma" the same as the bean.

Rumple Foreskin

And Cairo, Illinois - not like the city in Egypt, but like the corn syrup.

 

[minsue]

Re: Re: Re: What's In A Name?

And Cairo, Illinois - not like the city in Egypt, but like the corn syrup.

I never would've guessed it.

 

[sweetnpetite]

and Tuscan Arizona

 

[minsue]

and Tuscan Arizona

Tucson, Sweet. Not like the region of Italy.

 

[carsonshepherd]

Re: Re: Re: Re: What's In A Name?

I never would've guessed it.

Yes, we love our corn in Illinois.

 

[cantdog]

These function as shibboleths. The word is taken from the O.T. It could be fun for you to look it up in a concordance and read the story.

We have dozens of place names like that in Maine. They are everywhere. We know you're not from around here if you pronounce them sensibly-- I mean "wrongly," of course.

It can be useful, as the original shibboleth was. When my brother came home after Airborne training, on leave, he was approached by a man on the same bus, who asked where he was from, asked the name of his unit and whatnot. The man said he was from Maine, too.

"Really? Where?"

"Sayko," the man said. He had read a map or seen a sign on the road. Saco is a town in southern Maine, but we all pronounce it "Saw-ko" or "Socko." So Saab knew right off the guy had lied, and whatever scam the man had in mind to run was doomed to fail.

cantdog

 

[minsue]

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: What's In A Name?

Yes, we love our corn in Illinois.

 

[Guest]

Re: Re: What's In A Name?

RR,

I hate to break your bubble, but a town's name is correctly pronounced any way the local citiznes decide it should be pronounced. There are many examples in the US. My favorite is that fine Ohio town, Lima. It is, of couse, not pronounced "Lee-ma" as is the case for the pre-existing city in South America, but "Li-ma" the same as the bean.

Rumple Foreskin

That's the town I grew up in.

 

[BlackShanglan]

I let it go. They had something au gratin with cheese, too. I thought it might have been done on purpose.

There's a place in the British Isles called Torpenhow Hill. "Tor" and "pen" and "howe" all mean hill, each in a successive language once native to the place.

One assumes the invader asked the name of that, and was told "tor." So it was "Tor Pen." The next invader, Anglo-Saxons, were told that and it went down as Torpen Howe, and so on.

I love languages. They're fun.

I like Terry Pratchett's take on this. After reciting the old story about the name of the kangaroo meaning roughly "what did you say?" he goes on to record the "What, over there?" hills and the "It's your finger, idiot" mountains.

Shanglan

 

[R. Richard]

Re: Re: What's In A Name?

RR,

I hate to break your bubble, but a town's name is correctly pronounced any way the local citiznes decide it should be pronounced. There are many examples in the US. My favorite is that fine Ohio town, Lima. It is, of couse, not pronounced "Lee-ma" as is the case for the pre-existing city in South America, but "Li-ma" the same as the bean.

Rumple Foreskin

On August 2, 1769, the Portola expedition, which was marching to Monterey Bay to establish a Spanish claim to Alta California, camped along the Los Angeles River. They named the river El Rio de Nuestra Senora la Reina de Los Angeles de Porciuncula.

Later, the Spanish founded a pueblo along El Rio de Nuestra Senora la Reina de Los Angeles de Porciuncula. The pueblo was founded to support the Spanish soldiers who guarded the area. The pueblo grew into a city. The official name of the city was (and perhaps still is) La Ciudad de Nuestra Senora la Reina de Los Angeles (In English The City Of Our Lady The Queen Of The Angels).

The average resident of "Los Angeles" has no idea of the name of his/her city. When I say average resident, I include those of Mexican or Spanish descent. Ther have been several efforts (for some unknown reason) to change the official name from La Ciudad de Nuestra Senora la Reina de Los Angeles to the nickname, Los Angeles.

While the average resident finds is easy to mispronounce the nickname, mispronouncing the entire name is very difficult. Since the entire name is VERY Spanish, I stand by my original claim.

 

[English Lady]

I like Terry Pratchett's take on this. After reciting the old story about the name of the kangaroo meaning roughly "what did you say?" he goes on to record the "What, over there?" hills and the "It's your finger, idiot" mountains.

Shanglan

I seem to remember one being "It's your finger you fool" too

Ahhh I love Pratchett

 

[Rumple Foreskin]

Re: Re: Re: What's In A Name?

On August 2, 1769, the Portola expedition, which was marching to Monterey Bay to establish a Spanish claim to Alta California, camped along the Los Angeles River. They named the river El Rio de Nuestra Senora la Reina de Los Angeles de Porciuncula.

Later, the Spanish founded a pueblo along El Rio de Nuestra Senora la Reina de Los Angeles de Porciuncula. The pueblo was founded to support the Spanish soldiers who guarded the area. The pueblo grew into a city. The official name of the city was (and perhaps still is) La Ciudad de Nuestra Senora la Reina de Los Angeles (In English The City Of Our Lady The Queen Of The Angels).

The average resident of "Los Angeles" has no idea of the name of his/her city. When I say average resident, I include those of Mexican or Spanish descent. Ther have been several efforts (for some unknown reason) to change the official name from La Ciudad de Nuestra Senora la Reina de Los Angeles to the nickname, Los Angeles.

While the average resident finds is easy to mispronounce the nickname, mispronouncing the entire name is very difficult. Since the entire name is VERY Spanish, I stand by my original claim.

RR,

LA was organized as a town in 1781. In 1850, it was incorporated as the City of Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, USA.. City of Los Angeles is the name that appears on the official city seal.

And I stand by my original statement: the "correct" pronunciation of a city's name is whatever its citizens prefer. In addition to the examples others have given here, consider New Orleans. Locals do not use the three-syllable French pronunciation nor do they call their town "New Or-leens".

Rumple Foreskin

 

[cantdog]

And its Bahst'n. Mass.

 

[cloudy]

Re: Re: Re: Re: What's In A Name?

RR,

LA was organized as a town in 1781. In 1850, it was incorporated as the City of Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, USA.. City of Los Angeles is the name that appears on the official city seal.

And I stand by my original statement: the "correct" pronunciation of a city's name is whatever its citizens prefer. In addition to the examples others have given here, consider New Orleans. Locals do not use the three-syllable French pronunciation nor do they call their town "New Or-leens".

Rumple Foreskin

Thank you, Rumply.

I spent a big chunk of my growing up years in Los Angeles, and I promise, we knew how to pronounce it. If you grow up out there, and aren't at least semi bi-lingual, something's wrong with you.

Cloudy ~ who knows how to pronounce N'awlins...