Move to Melbourne, and one of the first things you’ll learn (maybe besides how to read a tram timetable) is how to say some of our tongue-twister suburb names.

If you’ve come from the US, you’ll learn it’s Mel-BEN, not Mel-BORN – same goes with Gisborne.

Those from Perth and Adelaide will be quickly shut down while trying to make Prahran sound posh; “It’s Pr–AAN not Pr-AHN!” the black-clad, latte carrying Melburnians will cry.

But where did all this come from? Who decided how these names get pronounced, and was there a decision at all?

Not really, says Professor John Hajek, a linguist from the University of Melbourne.

“People who live in a specific location say the name of the place where they live very often, and so they they get used to a particular way of saying the name, and over time the name tends to shorten or take on specific characteristics,” Professor Hajek says.

He says it’s hard to know whether there’s something about Melburnians that made the names evolve differently than they would have in other Australian cities.

“Australian English is very similar across the country because we’re relatively young and very mobile, but I have no doubt that in each city there are place names that only locals know how to pronouce.”

Prahran

According to the state government’s register of geographic names, Vicnames, the way this southern hipster enclave got its name was all a bit of an accident.

“Named ‘Pur-ra-ran’ by George Langhorne, Missionary to Aborigines, 1837. The name was a compound of two aboriginal words signifying, ‘land partially surrounded by water,’ and was given, orally, by Langhorne to Mr. Robert Hoddle, the surveyor,” the site states.

“Mr Hoddle wrote it in his notebook as ‘Prahran,’ and in that form it appeared on a plan of surveyed, but unsold, lands in 1840.”

Professor Hajek says the two syllables – Prah-ran – quickly became shortened to one – Pran.

“Part of the reason is there are two Rs in there, so it confuses people and can be a little tricky to pronounce,” he says. “You actually get that in other words like February and library where you get two Rs close together and you tend to get rid of one.”

Reservoir

This one trips up even long-time residents, but those in the inner north know it’s Reser-VORR, not Reser-VWAH, Professor Hajek says.

He says though the suburb was named for the water reservoir within it, people didn’t know how to say the French word.

“We have a bit of problem saying ‘wah’, it’s not something we usually have in English,” he says. “People who didn’t use the word, they might have called it a dam or a water tower, they see this word and they’re not entirely sure how to pronounce it.”

Hence, Reser-VORR.

Lalor

The suburb is named for Peter Lalor, the leader of the Eureka Stockade rebellion in 1854, so the pronunciation should be the same as his name – LAW-ler – right?

“Everyone who’s from there, from the north, will tell you it’s LAY-lor,” Professor Hajek says.

Similarly with Prahran and Reservoir, it was easier to say – so eventually that’s how everyone said it.

St Albans

If you head west and say “St Albans” and start the “Albans” part with an “Al” as in pal, you’ll quickly be told it is actually “All” as in Paul.

And if you’re a real local, the two words will merge to become “Sn’Albans”, Professor Hajek says.

“You say these words a lot; the faster you say them, they get reduced and you end up with something much shorter,” he says.

Malvern

Vicnames shows the suburb, formerly called Gardiner, was named after an estate in the area called Malvern, which was named for a town in Worcestershire in England.

There are actually three ways this one gets said – MOL-vern (that’s the right way), MAUL-vern and MAL-vern – though the first two are more common, Professor Hajek says.

“People look at the spelling. Part of the problem is the A-L, there are three different ways of pronouncing it in English, so they’ve got to make a decision,” he says. “The local pronunciation becomes commonplace, and then it’s a question of whether people from outside know about it.”

Melbourne

Most Aussies know how to say Mel-BEN and not over-pronouce the “bourne” part, but lately, locals are adding another twist to the name of our city, Professor Hajek says.

“We’re increasingly pronouncing it as MAL-BEN,” he says. “Not everybody does it, but it occurs often enough by Melbourne speakers that outsiders notice it, but it doesn’t occur often enough that it’s completely regular.”

He says some Melburnians also have trouble with names such as “Ellen” and “Allan” mixing up the way they are pronounced, but Sydneysiders don’t seem to have the same problem.

“It doesn’t occur in NSW, but there’s some evidence to suggest it’s starting in Brisbane as well,” he says. “It’s got to do with the L after the vowel.”

A local’s guide to Melbourne suburb (and other Victorian place) names:

Beaumaris: Beau-MAURICE, not Beau-MARRIS

Berwick: Berrick, not BER-wick

Cranbourne: Cran-BURN, not Cran-BORN

Doncaster: Don-CASTER, not Don-CASS-TER

Jan Juc: Jan JUCK, not ZHAN ZHUKE

Kallista: Kal-LIS-ta, not KALL-is-TA

Lalor: LAY-lor, not LAW-ler

Maidstone: Maid-stone, not Maid-ston

Malvern: MOL-vern, not MAUL-vern or MAL-vern

Melbourne: Mel-BEN, not Mel-BORN

Moorabbin: Mor-ABB-in, not MOO-rab-in

Murrumbeena: Murum-BEE-na, not Moo-RUM-beena

Narre Warren: Narry (As in ‘Harry’) Warren, not Nara Warren or Nar-ray War-REN

Niddrie: Nid-djree, not Nid-rie

Northcote: North-CUT, not North-COAT

Ormond: OR-mond, not Or-MUND

Prahran: Pr-AAN, not Pra-RAN or Pra-RAHN

Reservoir: Reser-VORR, not Reser-VWAH

St Albans: St ALL-bans, not Saint AL-bans

Travancore: Travan-CORE, not Trav-VAN-core

Truganina: Trug-A-NINE-A, not Trug-A-NINA

Vermont: VER-mont, not Ver-MONT