Why is Leicester Spelled ‘Leicester’?

Imagine the confusion as stories were published worldwide about little old Leicester City Football Club winning the English premiership for the first time in their history. “Did you hear about Lay-kes-terr winning the title?” a non-native English speaker might say.

So why is it spelled Leicester but pronounced Les-ter? We look at some interestingly spelled English place names and their origins so we can try and unravel the mystery.

Linguistic Elision

Many British people won’t know where these pronunciations come from as they’re simply handed down over time. And with English place names being a mix of Roman, Saxon and Viking, it’s no wonder the way we say things got changed along the way.

The most common theory is that of linguistic elision, where inconvenient sounds or syllables are omitted to make the word quicker and easier to say. This is common in stress-timed languages like English. An extreme example is the fact the town of Brighton started life as Brighthelmstone, but over time became commonly contracted in speech, and eventually the spelling changed to match the way it was actually spoken.

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Interestingly though, English place names aren’t shortened vocally in all instances of similar spellings, making it particularly difficult for those learning English to know how to say certain towns and cities. We now know that Leicester in pronounced Lester. And read more about Japanese translation here.

Likewise, Gloucester is spoken as Gloster and, rather humourously, Brits call Towcester ‘Toaster’. However, Cirencester is said exactly as it’s spelled.

If we look back at the origins of the word Leicester we can start to understand why. First recorded as Ligora-ceastre, Ligora is said to be the name of a river and the second part of the word comes from the Latin for castra/castrum meaning a Roman fort or camp.

By 1086 the word had compressed to Ledecestre and you can see from there how the spelling Leicester came about. With the knowledge of Ledecestre spelling, you can get more help with our Translation Services.

As for the way it’s said, there seems to be a clear rule about whether or not you shorten words ending in -cester, and its derivations -caster and -chester. In cases where the first part of the word ends in a vowel, such as Lei-cester or Glou-cester, the middle part of the word is not pronounced.

Where a consonant precedes the -cester variation, the full word is pronounced, retaining the consonant. This explains the Ciren-cester full pronunciation and why we articulate other well-known English places like Man-chester and Lan-caster exactly as they’re spelt.

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Exceptions That Make the Rule

Of course, there’s always an exception to the rule. In steps Cambridgeshire town Godmanchester to throw a spanner in the works, as those in the know call it Gumster.

It seems that the British have been somewhat lazily shortening words for quite some time. The abbreviated way of pronouncing place names ending in -cester is old enough to show up in Shakespeare, but it was going on even before this.

As the majority of people couldn’t read, they chose the easiest way to say the place name without having any idea how it was spelt.  Old place name spellings are simply relics of the way they were once pronounced. Likewise, for Dutch Translation Services, you can contact us anytime for the best services. 

So next time an Englishman corrects you saying Norwich is pronounced Norij or Loughborough is said Lufbruh, you might have a better understanding of the reasons why. Readers with knowledge of Leicester’s pronunciation may need a translated  certified bank statement. If so, we have expert translators to help.

Why Is Leicester Pronounced Lester

Leicester is a city with diversity in the UK. Thousands of tourists visit the city every year to explore its rich history and famous art.

And when they arrive at Leicester, the same question arises, “Why is Leicester Pronounced Lester?”

Similar to other English cities, the pronunciation of Leicester is easier than writing. So, here is how the Leicester city pronunciation came into existence.

It was the Shakespeare era when the abbreviated name began pronouncing for the cities ending with “cester.”

However, the word was spelled “ceaster” in old English. That originated from the lain word “castra,” meaning camp. That basically meant the encampment of the Roman Empire in ancient British.

But why did the “cester” have the “ster” pronunciation?

Historians believe that it started in the early 18th century. When William Johnston crafted a dictionary, “A Pronouncing and Spelling Dictionary,” in 1746. It suggested that “c” is not pronounced words like Gloucester, Worcester, and Leicester.   

However, in English, “ceaster” is a toponymic suffix. It can be adapted in many forms like – cester (Leicester), caster (Lancaster), and Chester (Manchester).

We hope now you get how Leicester pronunciation UK originated. Let’s forget about Belvoir now!

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How To Pronounce Leicester

It’s because of linguistic elision. It omits all the inconvenient sounds and syllables. That makes it easier to say or pronounce the words.

That’s why the Leicester England pronunciation is “Lester.” This is very common in stress-timed languages like English.

Similarly, “Leicester Square Pronunciation” is “Leh-Stuh-Skveuh.”

Let’s Conclude

Leicester is a happening city with a rich cultural heritage and history. The city, famous for its art, attracts many tourists every year. But, when they hear Leicester pronounce it as “Lester,” they find it interesting.

However, Leicester is known for its diversity. The biggest Diwali celebrations are performed in the city outside India. You will find numerous attractive traditional Indian jewelry shops, boutiques, and restaurants in the city.

We hope you liked the history and interesting aspects of the Leicester Pronunciation. We will come up with many such interesting blogs for you.

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