The British Isles aren’t unfamiliar to an invasion themselves. We have to go back as far as 43 AD to find the first invasion by the Roman Empire. The Romans transformed Britain, which was largely an unorganised society of farmers into one with roads, towns industry and luxury.
Around four hundred years later, it was the turn of the Saxons and the Jutes, who came from modern day Germany and Denmark and left their mark on the south and east coasts of England.
By 793 AD the Vikings had arrived on the shores of the north east of England, making their mark on British culture. By the tail end of their influence, there was another arriving from the south in the shape of William the conqueror from Normandy.
These are just a few who have influenced Britain and even though all of them occurred many years ago, their footprints are still firmly cemented in the modern day through the variety of different place names up and down the British Isles.
Many of these place names rally firmly against the norms of the English language, making them difficult for even the most travelled Brits. In fact, there’s probably plenty of place names people mispronounce every day.
Service apartment site City Base Apartments have created a fun infographic which offers up plenty of examples. Take a look at ‘Have You Been Pronouncing These 20 British Place Names Incorrectly’ below.
Infographic by: www.citybaseapartments.com