Definitely so...I was thinking about this last night and realized the error when I said Wister....what was I thinking? There are no R's in Massachusetts, unless, of course, something ends in A, then we add an R, like Donna to Donner. But at least we don't pronounce "wash" as "worsh" like some of you mid-westerners!! Twigs1991@aol.com wrote: > Interesting all the possible ways to pronounce 'Worcester'. As a native of > the area, I tend to agree with the 'Wuster' people but I think I actually > pronounce it more like 'Wus ta". We hardly ever pronounce the 'r' as > anything but 'a', which is why were ever I live, someone will say, "Where are > you from??" <smile> (even with a Yankee accent it is still SMILE)

Hi Lyn, As a matter of correction - very few Midwesterners add an R in the middle of words like watch (wartch) or wash (warsh). I have lived in MN and WI all my life and have never encountered this. I have traveled through Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio on many occasions and have encountered this very rarely - the 3 or 4 times have been in Ohio, and that seems more east than midwest to me based on a map. Whoever thought that OH was in the middle of the country? BUT... alot of people from the Northwest seem to do this, WA, OR and NE seem to come to mind. Just have to protect the reputation of the TRUE Midwesterner. <<grin>> Jo Hogle jhogle@mn.mediaone.net

Wait Just A Minute! I live in Washington and I grew up in Orygun. And I don't say Warshington. And I don't say Oreegone, like you people "back east" do! When in Boston several times a year.... I don't even try and pronounce the names I see on the map. I just say "that place"... as in "hey you". I came home this summer and told my mother that I fell in love with Concord and want to move there. How do you pronounce it? Tee Hee, I should learn. I have been spreading the rumor that it is pronounced ConKorD. Probably wrong huh? Shawn AT&T wrote: > Hi Lyn, > As a matter of correction - very few Midwesterners add an R in the middle of > words like watch (wartch) or wash (warsh). I have lived in MN and WI all my > life and have never encountered this. I have traveled through Illinois, > Indiana, and Ohio on many occasions and have encountered this very rarely - > the 3 or 4 times have been in Ohio, and that seems more east than midwest to > me based on a map. Whoever thought that OH was in the middle of the > country? > BUT... alot of people from the Northwest seem to do this, WA, OR and NE seem > to come to mind. > > Just have to protect the reputation of the TRUE Midwesterner. <<grin>> > Jo Hogle > jhogle@mn.mediaone.net

Dear WRG, This is how you would pronounce Concord. Concord=KawnKed, or KawnKid. Maureen ----- Original Message ----- From: "Shawn Whitney" <cyberboone@worldnet.att.net> To: <WHITNEY-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Sunday, January 21, 2001 3:52 PM Subject: Re: [WHITNEY-L] Worcester > Wait Just A Minute! > I live in Washington and I grew up in Orygun. And I don't say Warshington. And > I don't say Oreegone, like you people "back east" do! > > When in Boston several times a year.... I don't even try and pronounce the names > I see on the map. I just say "that place"... as in "hey you". I came home > this summer and told my mother that I fell in love with Concord and want to move > there. How do you pronounce it? Tee Hee, I should learn. I have been > spreading the rumor that it is pronounced ConKorD. Probably wrong huh? > > Shawn > > AT&T wrote: > > > Hi Lyn, > > As a matter of correction - very few Midwesterners add an R in the middle of > > words like watch (wartch) or wash (warsh). I have lived in MN and WI all my > > life and have never encountered this. I have traveled through Illinois, > > Indiana, and Ohio on many occasions and have encountered this very rarely - > > the 3 or 4 times have been in Ohio, and that seems more east than midwest to > > me based on a map. Whoever thought that OH was in the middle of the > > country? > > BUT... alot of people from the Northwest seem to do this, WA, OR and NE seem > > to come to mind. > > > > Just have to protect the reputation of the TRUE Midwesterner. <<grin>> > > Jo Hogle > > jhogle@mn.mediaone.net > >

In Texas, it's commonly pronounced *WOR-CHESTER* except by those who happen to bear the surname. Those unlucky souls pronounce it *WOOSTER* themselves but learn early on to answer to the -CHESTER version. Theola

Hey Shawn - Yes, Concord is Konkord, as it is spelled. To every rule there is an exception. It's one of the few names that really sound just like the spelling. Some other goodies - Gloucester = Glosta; Cities ending in "ham" like Stoneham, Chatham - last syllable is "um", so Chat - um and Stone-um. And then there's Wellesley - Wellsly. We're just too busy to get the whole word out! Lyn Shawn Whitney wrote: > Wait Just A Minute! > I live in Washington and I grew up in Orygun. And I don't say Warshington. And > I don't say Oreegone, like you people "back east" do! > > When in Boston several times a year.... I don't even try and pronounce the names > I see on the map. I just say "that place"... as in "hey you". I came home > this summer and told my mother that I fell in love with Concord and want to move > there. How do you pronounce it? Tee Hee, I should learn. I have been > spreading the rumor that it is pronounced ConKorD. Probably wrong huh? > > Shawn > > AT&T wrote: > > > Hi Lyn, > > As a matter of correction - very few Midwesterners add an R in the middle of > > words like watch (wartch) or wash (warsh). I have lived in MN and WI all my > > life and have never encountered this. I have traveled through Illinois, > > Indiana, and Ohio on many occasions and have encountered this very rarely - > > the 3 or 4 times have been in Ohio, and that seems more east than midwest to > > me based on a map. Whoever thought that OH was in the middle of the > > country? > > BUT... alot of people from the Northwest seem to do this, WA, OR and NE seem > > to come to mind. > > > > Just have to protect the reputation of the TRUE Midwesterner. <<grin>> > > Jo Hogle > > jhogle@mn.mediaone.net

Hey! I confess, as a So. Calif. native, I say 'warsh' instead of wash. After years of ridicule, I realized that I learned it from my mother, who is from Colorado. It reminds me of the time I was being kidded by my husband while at a football game. A woman who was sitting in front of us, turned around and told my husband, that in N.J. the people pronounce it warsh! Needless to say, my husband stopped teasing for the rest of the game. Unfortunately, I'm still teased by my family! Have fun everyone! {:-) Brenda Nichols

Hey Jo - My Bostonian upbringing has embarrassed me yet again, despite my many efforts to overcome this. When I was raised, we were basically taught that anything outside of Route 495 (mid-Mass) is barren waste-land until California. I had to read Gone with the Wind to know there was a Southern point of view in the Civil war and have worked incredibly hard to differentiate between Illinois, Indiana and Idaho. But, alas, I did again err. As I think about it, the worst offender of the "worsh" pronounciation just might have been from Ohio. In this millenium, I have a general idea where that is, sort of next to New York. But when I knew her, I got the mental impression of "out west" and that has stayed with me. Thank god I'm in school again at this late age. Perhaps I should take geography????? LYN AT&T wrote: > Hi Lyn, > As a matter of correction - very few Midwesterners add an R in the middle of > words like watch (wartch) or wash (warsh). I have lived in MN and WI all my > life and have never encountered this. I have traveled through Illinois, > Indiana, and Ohio on many occasions and have encountered this very rarely - > the 3 or 4 times have been in Ohio, and that seems more east than midwest to > me based on a map. Whoever thought that OH was in the middle of the > country? > BUT... alot of people from the Northwest seem to do this, WA, OR and NE seem > to come to mind. > > Just have to protect the reputation of the TRUE Midwesterner. <<grin>> > Jo Hogle > jhogle@mn.mediaone.net