When I moved to this beautiful part of Colorado, I encountered many challenging and unusual place names, such as Vallecito, Florida and Weminuche. I decided there should be a way to know – to be sure that I was saying it correctly.
Yes, being able to say something correctly is a passion for some, and I am one. We have so many “local” names in our beautiful area - we can show visitors how to say it the way it should be said. Here in Colorado we have a strong Native American heritage as well as that of previous explorers of various backgrounds such as English, French, Italian and Spanish. The labels they left behind – the names of many places or objects, need to be labeled in such a way that the newcomer or visitor will be comfortable saying those names.
For instance, I live near the Florida River. When I cross this river I would like to see a sign that says: “Say: Flo-REE-da River.” I would like to install signs that are “Say” signs explaining how names are pronounced. For example, “Say: ‘Va-ye-SEE-to” could be placed under the Vallecito signs. I invite people in the community to help me make this happen.
Polly Keys
Bayfield
