Not kilts but Scotland

[Phil]

I used to work with Bostonians and they always pronounced it "Edinborrow" and brae became bree. What really irks a Scot though is not this but the people who, while they will happily discuss the music of Bach whose name they can pronounce perfectly, cannot manage to pronounce the word "loch". I was once in the company of an Englishman who, and this is a true story, in the space of one sentence entertained us all with "Lock Ness,Lock Oik, and Lock Locky" (all lochs in the Great Glen that he had fished). Fortunately he left out Loch Quoich. I am sure McClef has similar feelings when he hears place names such as Llanwrtyd Wells pronounced "Clanwurtied wells" on the national news by an announcer who has just pronounced some obscure place in Outer Mongolia perfectly. The main difference between American and Scottish pronunciation is that Americans stress the first syllable whereas Scots place the stress on the second so that INVERness for an American is inverNESS for a Scot.

[McClef]

Saint-Petersburg, at least, had lost his "h" long ago, i guess

The Russian city, after which the one in Florida was named. never had an h in to to begin with.

I am sure McClef has similar feelings when he hears place names such as Llanwrtyd Wells pronounced "Clanwurtied wells" on the national news by an announcer who has just pronounced some obscure place in Outer Mongolia perfectly.

Well certainly on Wales TV channels they get it right The "Ll" sound is not easy for those who may not have an acquaintance with Welsh pronunciation and who are not used to using their throats to make new sounds. But local practices do not always help as no attempt is made to pronounce the name as it should be. For example Llanhilleth is locally pronounced as "Lanhilleth" and Pontllanfraith is "Pontlanfraith" (the ll dropped again) and although a single f in Welsh should make it "vraith"!