Worcester", Mass.

[James Harbeck]

>My daughter (Clark U., '07) isn't around to ask, but I've never
>heard it pronounced any way other than [wUst at r] or [wUst@] by rhotic
>and non-rhotic locals respectively.

Really? When I lived in Boston ISTM they tended to say /wIst@/
(you'll find some Google hits with "Wistah"). And of course they
would often take the time to mention how "It's spelled like
'Worchester'" -- I often saw the h stuffed in there too.

I did a silly blog post on this theme a couple of years ago:
http://sesquiotic.wordpress.com/2009/09/13/worcestershire/ . It
presents my impression of Boston-area "townie" pronunciation.

James Harbeck.

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