Around here, Wednesdays aren't just Wednesdays. They're Words Days.
My Wednesday posts are devoted to all things wordy - grammar, etymology, writing, the works.
If it involves language, I'll be talking about it here.
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My Wednesday posts are devoted to all things wordy - grammar, etymology, writing, the works.
If it involves language, I'll be talking about it here.
*****
EXTRAORDINARY WORDS #3 - PLACE NAMES
Longest Place Names
Shortest Place Names
There are several one-letter place names in the world, including:
Longest Place Names
- 85 letters: Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateapokaiwhenuakitanatahu is a hill in New Zealand. The name, which is shortened to simply "Tamatea" for ease of use, means "the summit where Tamatea, the man with the big knees, the climber of mountains, the land-swallower who travelled about, played his nose flute to his loved one."
- 58 letters: Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch, a village in Wales, has the longest official one-word place name in Europe, which means "Saint Mary's Church in a hollow of white hazel near the swirling whirlpool of the church of Saint Tysilio with a red cave."
- 45 letters: Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg is a lake in the town of Webster, Massachusetts and translates from Nipmuc as "fishing place at the boundaries - neutral meeting grounds." It is the longest one-word place name in the US.
- 31 letters: Pekwachnamaykoskwaskwaypinwanik is the longest one-word place name in Canada. It is the Cree name of a lake in Manitoba and means "where the wild trout are caught by fishing with hooks."
Shortest Place Names
There are several one-letter place names in the world, including:
- A, a district in Kumamoto;
- B, a village in Central Ohio;
- D, a river in Oregon;
- O, a river in Devon; and
- Y, a settlement in Alaska.
Unusual Place Names - The Animals
- Beaverlick, Kentucky
- Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania
- Catbrain, South Gloucestershire
- Deadhorse, Alaska
- Fishkill, New York
- Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan
- Porcupine, South Dakota
- Toad Suck, Arkansas
- Worms, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany
Unusual Place Names - The Sillies
Unusual Place Names - The Naughties
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