The unstoppable march of katakana station names

[railsquid]

Let's give a wam welcome to Minami-machida Grandberry Park Station (南町田グランベリーパーク駅), until the end of September known by the much more prosaic name of Minami-machida.

 

Meanwhile, around the globe scientists are now feverishly trying to determine what kind of fruit a "Grandberry" is.

[maihama eki]

That's a mouthful.

 

Grandberrys are usually found in depachika selling at ¥10000 for 12 in a jewel box with a bow on it.

[Welshbloke]

This sounds rather like the English versions of some Welsh place names. Generally the original Welsh was geographical, relating to rivers and other landscape features near the settlement. The English versions don't tend to take the slightest notice of that, so you get Abertawe (mouth of the river Tawe, pronounced "tauwee") being mangled into "Swansea".

[railsquid]

This would be more like Wales adding random-sounding English names (mangled into to a Welsh-sounding pronunciation) to Welsh station names because it sounds cool. "Gorsaf reilffordd Llanelli Cupoftepark" or something.

 

Indigenous place names mangled into the language of the occupying culture can be found on Hokkaido.

[cteno4]

11 hours ago, maihama eki said:

That's a mouthful.

 

Grandberrys are usually found in depachika selling at ¥10000 for 12 in a jewel box with a bow on it.

such a deal a dozen for the price of 10!

 

jeff

[bikkuri bahn]

Unfortunate byproduct of railway companies also being real estate developers (and real estate is likely the more profitable end of the business).

[JR 500系]

Wow this sorts of reminded me of Ochiai-minami-nagasaki Station (落合南長崎駅 ) station ~  🙂

 

 

[railsquid]

On 10/5/2019 at 2:35 PM, JR 500系 said:

Wow this sorts of reminded me of Ochiai-minami-nagasaki Station (落合南長崎駅 ) station ~  🙂

 

Err, why?

[Socimi]

1 hour ago, railsquid said:

 

Err, why?

 

Probably due to the long and difficult to pronounce name.

 

There's far worse tho:

 

上越国際スキー場前駅

Jōetsu-Kokusai-Skījō-mae-eki

 

"Joetsu International Skiing Ground Station"

 

Opened in 1997 by JR East, located on the Joetsu Line.

 

or

 

高崎問屋町駅

Takasaki-tonyamachi-eki

 

Also on the Joetsu Line.

 

 

[railsquid]

36 minutes ago, Socimi said:

 

Probably due to the long and difficult to pronounce name.

 

 

Yeah, but it's not a katakana-infested name, which is the point of this thread.

 

IIRC it's a "double-barrelled" station name, which takes the name of two nearby neighbourhoods to keep the local residents happy. Tameike-Sanno on the Ginza line is another one.