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Northeastern Pennsylvania Scranton, Wilkes-Barre, Pocono area
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View Poll Results: How do you pronounce Wilkes-Barre?
Wilks-Berry 22 46.81%
Wilks-Barry 11 23.40%
Wilks-Barr 6 12.77%
Other 8 17.02%
Voters: 47. You may not vote on this poll

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Old 12-20-2009, 05:48 PM
 
Location: Sunshine N'Blue Skies
13,321 posts, read 22,656,665 times
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  • The American Heritage Dictionary says it should be pronounced Wilkes-BARRIE.
  • The website called "You know you are from Pennsylvania when" says that Pennsylvanians pronounce it Wilkes-BARRIE.
  • And the AP newswire says it should be pronounced Wilkes-BARRIE. That settles it. Wilkes-BARRIE, it is. The AP folks do their research.( above quote from the Daily Apple)
I'm really stumped myself but the dictionary online said Wilkes BERRY...so I guess thats what I will use. Sometimes I shorten it for 'easy' sake.
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Old 12-20-2009, 07:54 PM
 
Location: Wilkes-Barre, PA
2,014 posts, read 3,896,647 times
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Go figure Summering, I was just at a party and some of the People there were saying Bear.

How to pronounce it should be in the volume of Heynabonics.
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Old 12-21-2009, 05:39 AM
 
Location: Mid-Atlantic
32,919 posts, read 36,316,341 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KarenRice View Post
If I posted this before, forgive me. Don't want to look thru the posts.

I once heard something advertised on TV (like a sham wow type thing) and the address given was pronounced "Will - kess - bar" LOL.

Most commonly I've heard "Wilkes- Bare" and "Wilkes-barry"

Never heard Wilkes-beret. LOL
...Never heard Wilkes-beret. LOL

Oh, geez, I hope not.
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Old 12-21-2009, 08:50 AM
 
Location: Sarasota, Florida
15,395 posts, read 22,515,219 times
Reputation: 11134
Quote:
Originally Posted by Summering View Post
The two widely accepted ways to pronounce Wilkes-Barre are "Wilkes-BERRY" and "Wilkes-BEAR". Named in honor of British Parliament members, John Wilkes and ...
www.wilkes-barre.pa.us/wbpro.php -

That accent on the e' ........should make the "e" sound like e'..........
I was taught it was French...and the e' is pronounced "a or ah" accordingly, but the slant line over the "e" was dropped...I think it was called "e" acute..I took French many moons ago. .
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Old 12-21-2009, 09:52 AM
 
Location: Scranton
1,384 posts, read 3,175,995 times
Reputation: 1670
Quote:
Originally Posted by Chefkey View Post
After rereading this I guess they are saying it sounds like beret after all. Read closely and it says to pronounce the last e like the a in the word mate.

As to the pronunciation of this name...The name--a compound word of three syllables--is pronounced neither Wilks-bä r, Wilkes-bä r, Wilks-bare-ry nor Wilks-bare-eh as so often heard, but Wilks'-ba-ra--with a slight accent on the first syllable; 'i' in the first syllable being sounded as 'i' in 'pin', 'a' in the second syllable as 'a' in 'mat' and the final 'è'; as 'a' in 'mate'. The French 'e' with the 'close' accent has the sound last noted."
So then, it should be Wilks-Barray
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Old 12-21-2009, 10:54 AM
 
302 posts, read 868,323 times
Reputation: 460
I assume the "Barre" part is pronounced the same way as the city in Vermont--"barry." "Barrah" seems like "Missourah." Just wrong.
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