The Hardest To Pronounce Town Names in Texas and Louisiana

(KMDL-FM) What's in a name? I am sure when William Shakespeare asked that question centuries ago, he had no idea of where the English language was headed. Much like our societal norms, our language has become a melting pot of dialects, accents, cultures, and conundrums. Honestly, I don't see how anyone can learn English as a second language.

And as if learning English isn't difficult enough, here in Louisiana and in Texas, we have cultural influences that shape and flavor the pronunciation and spelling of many words and locations. In Louisiana, there is a decided French influence on nomenclature. In Texas, the influence comes from Mexico and people of Spanish descent.

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And if all of that wasn't enough to keep you totally in the dark on the proper way to pronounce persons, places, and things in Texas and Louisiana, we can't forget personal preference. For example, in Louisiana, you might order a glass of champagne (Pronounced: shum payne) and have it served by a gentleman whose last name is Champagne (Pronounced: shum pine).

What Are The Hardest Town Names to Pronounce in Texas and Louisiana?

The folks at Preply have done an in-depth study of state names, city names, and community names that many of us have trouble pronouncing correctly. Oddly enough, the two towns that earned the distinction of "Hardest to Pronounce" in both Louisiana and Texas are extremely similar. The confusion in pronunciation between these two towns has been going on for decades.

Have you figured out the two towns yet? They both start with the same letter; based on spelling, you'd think the two towns would be pronounced similarly, but they are not. Have you figured out what the hardest to pronounce town in Louisiana and the hardest to pronounce town in Texas is?

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If you guessed Natchitoches or Nagodoches, then you would be correct. See how similar the names are? Yet, the pronunciations are very different. For Natchitoches, the city in Louisiana, it is pronounced "NAH-code-ish". The town in Texas, Nacogdoches, is pronounced "NAH-coh-DOE-chess".

What Are The Hardest to Pronounce Town Names in Neighboring States?

In case you're wondering, some of the hardest to pronounce towns in other states include Ouachita "WASH-ee-tah" in Arkansas, Loachapoka "LOW-cha-POH-kah" in Alabama, and Louisville "Loo-iss-ville" in Mississippi.