> What is the proper pronunciation of location names? Is it the way the locals pronounce it or the "proper" way, whatever that means?
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> Examples that I have heard include the name Ponce de Leon. In Atlanta, if you ask a local to name the explorer who searched for the Fountain of Youth, they will say, Ponce "Day Lay-own." But if you are getting directions to the street in downtown Atlanta, you will be told to turn onto Ponce "Dee Lee-awn."
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The one i love is St. Augustine. The hisoric man's name is correctly pronounced "Au-GUS-tihn," whereas the Floridian city's name is correctly pronounced "AU-gus-teen."

Sometimes learning names' proper pronunciation in an original language can really distract people in conversation and make one's speech appear pedantic (i.e., using learning for display of one's knowledge, as in overpronunciation). I've struggled with this a lot in Music History presentations, because correctness is important and some of those Slavic names are just so fun to say, but foreign preciseness can draw attention from a speaker's point. Better to be understood and get one's point across, using accepted common pronunciation, than to be "right" and distract listeners.

> Up until last year, I had always heard and said the name "Carnegie" as, "Car-nuh-ghee." After visiting Pittsburgh, I now know it is also called "Car-negg-ee." Thus, Carnegie Mellon and Carnegie Hall have a new option for me to say.
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Webster's Pronouncing Dictionary only allows "Kar-NAY-gee" or "Ker-NAY-gee" for general American English. Any other pronunciation is considered a regionalism (localised accent).

> So, what is the right way to say a name? The way the locals profess or the way that the majority of a random sampling would say it? Or, possibly neither?
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The two general barometers given by my phonetics teacher for pronouncing correctly without being pedantic (and i mean REALLY general) are a standard pronouncing dictionary (a strictly phonetic reso