Word Trivia II: Identify the world's longest place name 1

[SantaMufasa]

During the 1970's I actually lived in the quaint village of Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch, near the west end of the Menai Bridge, on the east edge of the Isle of Anglesey, North Wales. But there is at least one longer place name in the world. Can you identify any places with longer names?

Mufasa
(aka Dave of Sandy, Utah, USA)

http://www.dasages.com

@ 19:47 (16Dec04) UTC (aka "GMT" and "Zulu"),
@ 12:47 (16Dec04) Mountain Time

 

[SF0751]

[white]Taumatawhakatang­ihangakoauauot­amateaturipukaka­pikimaunga­horonuku­pokaiwhenuak­itanatahu (85 letters; the name of a hill in New Zealand).[/white]

Susan
"Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example." - Mark Twain, Pudd'nhead Wilson (1894)

 

[SantaMufasa]

Well done, Susan !

Mufasa
(aka Dave of Sandy, Utah, USA)

http://www.dasages.com

@ 19:54 (16Dec04) UTC (aka "GMT" and "Zulu"),
@ 12:54 (16Dec04) Mountain Time

 

[AnotherHiggins]

Holy crap! Can either of you pronouce those places?

[tt]-John[/tt]
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[SF0751]

Heck, I can't even pronounce "Aluminum" correctly.

Susan
"Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example." - Mark Twain, Pudd'nhead Wilson (1894)

 

[SantaMufasa]

Yes, John, and you, too, can say it like a Welshman (phonetically speaking). The main thing to remember in Welsh is that we pronounce double "l" ("ll") as though you are clearing your thoat...the closest I can come to a phonetic spelling of "llan" is "hchlan" (with the "hch" sounding much like a cat hissing from the back of the throat). The full phonetic pronunciation of "Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch" is:

"hchlan-vire-pwuch-gwin-gihch-go-gerihch-we'rn-drobwihch-hchlan-tis-silly-oh-go-go-gohch"

Meanings of individual word elements
Llanfair - Church of St Mary
llan (church) + fair (from "Mair", Welsh equivalent of the name Mary)

pwyllgwyngyll - pool (or hollow) of the white hazel trees
pwll (pool/hollow) + gwyn (white) + gyll (from "cyll", hazel)

gogerychwyrndrobwll - near the fierce whirlpool
goger (near) + y (the) + chwyrn (wild) + drobwll (from "trobwll", whirlpool)

Llandysilio - Church of St Tysilio
llan (church) + dysilio (from "Tysilio" a Welsh saint)

gogogoch - red cave
gogo (cave) + goch (from "coch", red).

Put it all together and it means: "Church of St Mary in the hollow of the white hazel trees, near the fierce whirlpool and the Church of St Tysilio, by a red cave".

Now, the meaning of Susan's entry, "Taumatawhakatang­ihangakoauauot­amateaturipukaka­pikimaunga­horonuku­pokaiwhenuak­itanatahu" (alternately spelled with 92 letters, "Tetaumatawhakatangihangakoauaotamateaurehaeaturipukapihimaungahoronukupokaiwhenuaakitanarahu") translates into English roughly as: "The brow [or summit] of the hill [or place], where Tamatea, the man with the big knees, who slid [down], climbed [up] and swallowed mountains, [to travel the land], [who is] known as the Land Eater, played [on] his [nose] flute to his loved one"

...and the pronunciation is, as with all Maori words, just as it is spelled, so I wouldn't add any value over your personal pronunciation.

Cheers,

Mufasa
(aka Dave of Sandy, Utah, USA)

http://www.dasages.com

@ 21:28 (16Dec04) UTC (aka "GMT" and "Zulu"),
@ 14:28 (16Dec04) Mountain Time

 

[dgillz]

Its only "Aluminum" here in the states, to the rest of the world it is "Aluminium", or so I've heard.

Software Sales, Training, Implementation and Support for Exact Macola, eSynergy, and Crystal Reports
askdon@srhconsulting.com

http://www.srhconsulting.com

 

[SF0751]

Luckily, since I live in Texas, I use the regional misnomer of "tin foil" when referring to aluminium foil.

Susan
"Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example." - Mark Twain, Pudd'nhead Wilson (1894)