Wikipedia:WikiProject UK geography/Embedded Audio Pronunciations

Aims
The spelling of English words is often an unreliable guide to their pronunciation; this applies equally to the United Kingdom's array of geographical names (settlements, counties, rivers, mountains and so on). Sometimes, a British English name does not match the pronunciation of the same name elsewhere in the English-speaking world (Birmingham); some letter combinations are notoriously misleading (Slough, Hough Green, Middlesbrough, Westhoughton); and some names simply give few clues away (Happisburgh, Wrotham, Milngavie).

Following discussions with various members of this project, I have decided to launch a mini-project within WP:UKGEO, aimed at creating, bringing together and co-ordinating a comprehensive set of spoken audio clips of names relating to UK geography: counties, cities, towns, rivers, lakes, hill and mountain ranges, canals and similar. Everybody is welcome to participate! All that is required is a microphone, an audio editing tool or program which can export files in .ogg format (the free, downloadable Audacity is recommended for this), your voice, and ideally a Wikimedia Commons account - although recordings can also be uploaded directly to Wikipedia.

Many of the advantages mirror those of the Spoken Wikipedia project. In particular, for people learning English, the association between the written name and its sound can be invaluable, especially where the pronunciation cannot be deduced easily. Even native speakers can benefit: I used to think Havant's first syllable contained a long "a" until I heard a railway station announcement. What if I never travelled by train?... Also, by uploading sound files to Wikimedia Commons, they can be used again in any number of related projects - not least in foreign Wikipedias, where having native British English voices attached to UK-related articles would be an even greater advantage.

Issues to consider include regional accents: some place names sound different when spoken by a local resident rather than with Received Pronunciation (Edinburgh is a good example). Ideally, where relevant (including, but not limited to, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish, West Country, West Midlands and Northeast England places), both an RP and a "local" pronunciation would be provided. This is where assistance would be particularly appreciated. Hassocks5489 (talk) 22:27, 28 November 2007 (UTC)

How to record an audio file

 * 1) If you choose to upload to Wikimedia Commons (recommended), sign up for an account.
 * 2) Ensure that your microphone is plugged into the correct port on your computer, and is picking up sound input!
 * 3) Choose a suitable sound recording program.  I use the free, downloadable HardDiskOgg.  This has the advantage of recording directly into .ogg format, although if you have Audacity this is not necessary as it can export into .ogg.  (This section explains why the .ogg format is used.)
 * 4) Record your chosen name: speak firmly but without shouting, and try to reduce the exPlosive effect of letters such as "p" and "b" by speaking to the side of, or at an angle to, the microphone (rather than directly into it), and/or by using something to screen your mouth from it.  (I hold a clean handkerchief between my mouth and the microphone - this absorbs the plosives and prevents them distorting the recording, but still lets the voice come through clearly.)
 * 5) See here for advice on editing the file.  A mono (rather than stereo) recording is suitable.  You may need to amplify the volume, remove white noise and compress the audio.  All of these steps are quick and easy in Audacity.

How to upload and link

 * 1) Go to the Upload screen in Wikimedia Commons, and select "It is entirely my own work".
 * 2) "Browse" to find the file on your computer.
 * 3) The naming convention is en-uk-xxxxx.ogg, where "xxxxx" is the name or word you have recorded.  Amend this if necessary under "Destination filename:"
 * 4) In the "Summary" box, add a description of the file, the date and your username.  Description might be, for example, "Pronunciation of "Hampshire" in British English (Received Pronunciation/South East England)".  Also add the file to the relevant category by adding this at the bottom:
 * 5) Select your preferred licensing arrangement from the drop-down box.
 * 6) Link the recording into the article by editing the text like this:


 * From:  Hampshire 
 * To:  Hampshire 


 * The effect on screen:


 * From: Hampshire, sometimes historically Southamptonshire, Hamptonshire, (abbr. Hants), or the County of Southampton, is a county on the south coast of England.
 * To: Hampshire, sometimes historically Southamptonshire, Hamptonshire, (abbr. Hants), or the County of Southampton, is a county on the south coast of England.


 * Users can then click on the wikilinked word "pronunciation" to open (and listen to) or save the file.

IPA
Even better than having an audio pronunciation would be to have an audio pronunciation and an unambiguous visual guide to the pronunciation, using the standardised notation of the International Phonetic Alphabet. The IPAc-en template can be used for this: for example, inserting will produce "", with a wikilink to a comprehensive guide to IPA. It can convert ASCII respellings into standardized IPA and displays a mouse-over IPA key for the reader: will produce the same. These also accept audio files. If anybody can enhance any articles by adding IPA templates, please do so!

Participants
If you may be able to contribute in any way, please add your name!

File links
Please add files here after uploading. Alphabetical order is recommended. Bold signifies Received Pronunciation or a non-local interpretation of the name; Italics signify a local pronunciation, or equivalent name in another language (e.g. Welsh).

Counties
Hampshire · Somerset

Cities, towns and villages
Aigburth · Alcester · Aldeburgh · Alnwick · Altrincham · Barnstaple · Beaconsfield · Beaulieu · Berwick-upon-Tweed · Bicester · Billericay · Birmingham · Blackburn · Blackley · Blackpool · Bolton · Boston · Bournemouth · Bradford · Bradley (West Midlands) · Brewood · Brighton · Bristol · Burgh-by-Sands · Cambridge · Canterbury · Cardiff/Caerdydd · Chiswick · Colchester · Coventry · Crawley · Derby · Dudley · Eastbourne · Elsecar · Ely · Erith · Esher · Exeter · Fowey · Frome · Gateacre · Gillingham (Dorset) · Gillingham (Kent) · Gloucester · Greenwich · Guildford · Guisborough · Hawarden · Hawick · Hereford · Heysham · Holyhead · Huddersfield · Hunstanton · Ipswich · Keighley · Kingston-upon-Hull · Kirkby · Leamington Spa · Leeds · Leicester · Leominster · Liskeard · Liverpool · London · Luton · Manchester · Marlborough · Middlesbrough · Milton Keynes · Newcastle-upon-Tyne · Northampton · Norwich · Nottingham · Oxford · Peterborough · Plymouth · Poole · Portsmouth · Preston · Reading · Rotherham · Sheffield · Shrewsbury/Shrewsbury · Slough · Southampton · Southend-on-Sea · St Helens · Stockport · Stoke-on-Trent · Sunderland · Sutton Coldfield · Swindon · Telford · Urmston · Walsall · Watford · West Bromwich · Wolverhampton · York

London boroughs
Barking and Dagenham · Barnet · Bexley · Brent · Bromley · Camden · City of Westminster · Croydon · Ealing · Enfield · Greenwich · Hackney · Hammersmith and Fulham · Haringey · Harrow · Havering · Hillingdon · Hounslow · Islington · Kensington and Chelsea · Kingston-upon-Thames · Lambeth · Lewisham · Merton · Newham · Redbridge · Richmond-upon-Thames · Southwark · Sutton · Tower Hamlets · Wandsworth

Lakes and rivers
Cherwell · Thames

Other geological features
Vale of Belvoir

Other links
Discussions which originally inspired this are here, here and here.

On Wikimedia Commons, this category is used for all single-word/phrase audio recordings with a British English accent.

Here's the Spoken Wikipedia project, for full spoken versions of entire articles.

The Voice of Hassocks is Hassocks5489's Commons identity.