Kaliningrad is the Russian exclave sandwiched in between Poland and Lithuania on the Baltic coast. Every time I think of it I find myself saying "Kalinograd" because in English usage substituting the vowel 'o' for the full syllable 'in' makes the verbal flow easier. And to me, anyway, it sounds cooler in American jargon for the third syllable to contrast with rather than repeat the second syllable. Would residents of Kaliningrad or elsewhere in Russia take offense at this alternative pronunciation, or might they be intrigued by it?
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Thank you, and I will refrain from any such references in Russia, and on any medium in America. It should be mentioned that Chicago where I grew up is often referred to as "Chitown" to reduce the number of syllables. Some San Franciscans take offense to their city referred to as "Ess Eff", despite that contraction commonly used by that city's beloved newspaper columnist Herb Caen, who was revered by its establishment.– Bill StremmelFeb 20, 2021 at 23:51
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They might be intrigued by it. Калина is a beatiful plant. :> We have a songs and poetry about it.– ПилумFeb 26, 2021 at 23:24
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@Пилум please don't be aggressive even as a joke, this is not a place for anything apart discussing Russian language - whatever habits you do believe we have is just not relevant, sandwiched is a common verb in English which is translated as "зажатый между".– shabunc ♦Mar 1, 2021 at 19:41
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shabunc "aggressive" ? :> it's just the True. The author had joked, I had joked, there is always some part of joke in my every joke; we all joke well. "sandwiched common verb" - it's not important absolutely, here; That is not clear why he even spoke about this, here and in general in our time. :)– ПилумMar 2, 2021 at 5:58
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@Пилум this kind of jokes won't be tolerated, nobody will joke about physical violence here - also, this joke was totally uncalled for.– shabunc ♦Mar 2, 2021 at 8:27
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1 Answer
Bill, would you take offense if I will call, dunno, Boston Bosstown because, you know, I feel that it's a Boss Town. I like how it sounds, I like the connotations and the very vibe of it.
It's a strange way to state a question. If you are interested in whether one call it that way - nobody does. Nobody calls Калининград Калиноград. If you'll try to do it the reaction would be pretty much similar to the example with Bosstown. Someone will just shrug their shoulders, someone will decide not to mess with you, someone will try to correct you.
It's a very subtle issue. Even Solzhenitsyn failed to coin new word - he once proposed "Невоград" as a new name for guess which exactly city. People outside "Нижний Новгород" call it sometimes "Нино", locals can be very offended if they will hear it.
I would advise you not to experiment till you 100% know what you are doing.
