Why is leicester pronounced

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. Press releases. Journalist resources. Search for an expert. Personal tools Web Editor Log in. Search Site only in current section. Advanced Search…. It only takes a minute to sign up. Connect and share knowledge within a single location that is structured and easy to search. What is the origin of the pronunciation of words like Leicester, Gloucester, Worcestershire?

Presumably, the spelling predates the pronunciation but what is the history here? What language do the words originate from? Is this just simple elision or is there a more specific, shared origin of these words and the process that changed them? These are all quite old names with many syllables—an ideal place for ellipsis, elision, and contraction.

The -cester bit is from the Old English word ceaster , which in itself is borrowed from Latin castrum. It is thus cognate to castle. In Old English, ceaster referred to a Roman town or settlement in England.

As tchrist notes in his comment, some other places that have this element in their names include Lancaster , Doncaster , and Manchester. The first part of names that have -cester tend to be inherited place names of either Anglo-Saxon or even earlier British Celtic stock, often names of rivers or other local toponyms. Going from Old English down through the centuries, the cities the first element of whose names ended in a consonant like Lan- , Don- , Man- usually kept a fuller version of the word ceaster , retaining the initial consonant.

The Grammarphobia blog gives a good run down of the evidence which traces these pronunciations through history; the scansion in Shakespeare, for example, suggests that the elision was in common use in his time.

Sometimes pronunciation can swing back into line with spelling; while Cirencester is now generally pronounced as spelled, it had been elided to cicester. The relative lack of shortening in such names as Manchester, Lancaster, Chichester, Colchester looks to be caused by the middle consonant 'catching' the speaker and preventing further elision. The examples in the question, by contrast, don't have a strong middle consonant.

I would consider my answer personal observation due to a software project. I believe it is a general trend. It would be helpful, if people would offer corrections to my observation.

Human attention span seems to constrain a concept to be pronounced no longer than 3 syllables. This human tendency is due to the angst of wanting to say as much as possible within a given time.

I can say this about English and Hebrew, since these are the languages I am familiar with. Perhaps someone could verify that French, Chinese, Hausa, Japanese, etc succumb to the same constraint. The latest on travel, languages and culture by EF Education First. Back Topics.

How to say it: SUMMER-sett Leicestershire British people love it when Americans try to say the name of this county and the city of Leicester that gives it its name because they incorrectly pronounce it lee-sess-tur-shurr. How to say it: LESS-turr-shurr Gloucestershire Another one that confuses Americans or anyone else, to be fair is this county that houses the city of Gloucester.

Want to visit these UK counties? Learn more. Share this article. Latest articles from Language learning. How to improve your written English: 7 tips. So next time an Englishman corrects you saying Norwich is pronounced Norij or Loughborough is said Lufbruh, you might have a better understanding of the reasons why.

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