Sussex's most mispronounced place names and where they come from

Sussex is no exception. 

It has a rich history and many of its place names are rooted in its Anglo-Saxon heritage, meaning they can be difficult to pronounce now, as the spellings do not reflect phonics in modern English.

Residents told us some of the ones that they hear all the time and we picked the top 11.

1. Exceat

The 'lost' Sussex village wiped out by the Black Death (Image: SDNPA)

One particular demon is Exceat.

There isn’t much left of the settlement which was wiped out during the Black Death in 1337 but the marker on the map still stands.

Often mispronounced as Ex-set, or Exy-at, the correct pronunciation is Ex-seat.

In the Saxon times it was a fishing village, and the name may come from the Old English for “the place of the Aese”, who were the first kings of Kent.

2. Ovingdean

A view of Ovingdean from Cattle Hill (Image: The Voice of Hassocks)

This might come as a surprise to people from Brighton, who probably think “how else can you pronounce it” but a lot of newbies to Sussex struggle with this one.

The name of this Brighton suburb translates as the “valley of Ofa's people”. The first record for Ovingdean is in the Domesday Survey, where the manor is identified as “hovingedea”', and the settlement was made up of a small church and a population of approximately 50 to 100.

People who aren’t from Brighton tend to stumble in the first two letters, emphasising the v to sound more like Ovv-ing-dean than Oh-ving-dean.

3. Ardingly

Ardingly is home to the South of England Showground (Image: Charles Drake)

This Mid Sussex village near Haywards Heath is home to the South of England Showground, so many tourists flock there for its annual events. Most are baffled to find it is not pronounced Ar-ding-lee, but it is actually Ar-ding-lie, just like Hellingly and Chiddingly.

The name Ardingly means the clearing of the people of Earda, a folk name it was given in the Saxon times.

4. Alfriston

Alfriston is a chocolate box village on the River Cuckmere

The chocolate box Sussex village of Alfriston nestled in the Cuckmere valley can stump visitors when they try to say its name. The F sound is often over-emphasised to sound like Alf-friston, but the correct way to pronounce it is All-friston. The name comes from the original name for the settlement Aelfric tun, which meant farmstead of Alfric in Anglo-Saxon times.

5. Herstmonceux

Herstmonceux Castle (Image: Michael Coppins)

This peaceful village near Hailsham even looks difficult to pronounce with the X at the end. It is thought to come from the Anglo-Saxon word hyrst which means wooded hill and the name of the Norman Monceux family.

The X at the end is silent and it should be pronounced Herst-mon-sue. The village is known for its 15th-century brick-built castle and its observatory and science centre.

• READ MORE: The lost Sussex village wiped out by the Black Death

6. Hooe

The Oast House in Kiln Lane, Hooe (Image: Oast House Archive)

Also in the Wealden district, the name of this village comes from the Saxon word meaning a ridge since it stood on a ridge of land between two arms of the sea. Hooe is often mispronounced as Hooey, but the correct pronunciation is much simpler – Who.

7. Steyning

Steyning is a market town in the South Downs (Image: Antiquary)

Steyning is a market town in the South Downs. The Y can be confusing here and people who are not local often say Stey-ning.  Stenn-ing is the correct way to pronounce it and the name could come from the Old English staene meaning stony place and the group name suffix -ingas. Put together, it might mean dwellers of the stony place.

8. Lewes

Tourists walk towards the Barbican Gate at Lewes Castle (Image: Andrew Gardner / The Argus)

Home of the infamous Lewes Bonfire, this chalk downland town is popular for visitors from London thanks to the direct train line from Victoria. And with tourists come strange pronunciations of its name. It should be said like the boy’s name Lewis, but the second e can lead to confusion. Common mispronunciations include Lews and Le-wes.

The name derives from the Old English word hlaew meaning hill or barrow, presumably referring to School Hill.

9. Cuckfield (and Cuckmere)

Kingsleys in Cuckfield, where the Victorian novelist Henry Kingsley lived (Image: Antiquary)

Part of the reason Cuckfield can be so confusing to people who aren’t from Sussex is because the pronunciation is different from Uckfield, which is said as it looks. Cuckfield, however, is pronounced Cook-field, as are the Cuckmere Valley and Haven.

10. Halnaker

The tree tunnel in Halnaker (Image: Joanna Kaczorowska)

This picturesque hamlet near Chichester is home to a windmill and a beautiful tunnel of trees on the path that leads up to it, so it attracts visitors from far and wide. It looks like it should be pronounced Hal-na-ker, but the L is silent, so it is said Ha-na-ker.

11. Bosham

Bosham waterfront (Image: Phil Gullen)

Last but by no means least is Bosham, a coastal village on Chichester Harbour.

You would be forgiven for mispronouncing it as it can even trip up Sussex native.

Rather than Bosh-am, it is said Bozz-um. The name comes from the Old English word Bosanhamm, meaning Bosa’s water meadow as it was known in the 8th century.