Pronouncing East Texas City Names…CORRECTLY

Call it a pet peeve of mine, but something that tends to bother me when talking with other people is when they pronounce names of our towns and cities incorrectly. Yes, we do have some that don't follow the common grammar rules, but after reading this post, you shouldn't have any excuse.

Let's start with one that lots of people have trouble with. Nacogdoches. Now, all the locals, or even people that have spent more than a day here know exactly how to pronounce it, no problem. This is for those of you that have trouble with it. Phonetically, it's Nac-uh-dough-chess. There is no "knock" in this word. Also, the "g" is silent. If you pronounce the "g" you're doing it wrong. One more time: Nac-uh-dough-chess. Nacogdoches.

Let's move onto another one. This one doesn't cause quite the confusion that Nacogdoches does, but people still have a little bit of trouble with. San Augustine. This sounds simple enough...to some people. However, there are those people that pronounce it like that city in Florida. It's St. (SAINT) Augustine, Florida. However, this is SAN Augustine, Texas.

Next up on the list, Chireno. No, it does not start of sounding like the "chirping" that a bird makes. The "ch" makes a "sh" sound, like when you say "the shirt on your back." Also, the "e" sound. just like the letter. It's an "E" not an "A".

So there you have it. Three of our towns, and how to pronounce them. Now that you've read this post, like I said earlier, you don't have ANY excuse for mispronouncing at least these three names. Now, go tell your friends, and let the knowledge spread.