Barkisland, a “typical posh Yorkshire village” in Calderdale, is often mispronounced by outsiders, much to the amusement of locals. The village’s name is frequently pronounced as either Bark-island or Bark-iz-land, particularly when residents are dealing with utility bills over the phone. One local admitted he refrains from correcting people for fear of causing offence.
The correct pronunciation should be Bark-iss-land, with a soft ‘S’. The village, nestled near Ripponden and Sowerby Bridge, is described by its inhabitants as “affluent and posh”, embodying all the characteristics of a “typical Yorkshire village” complete with rural charm. Personal trainer Shaun Gray, 32, said: “It’s friendly, on the posher side but not too posh. I’d say, upper-middle class. It’s just a really nice, rural area, full of field, cows and sheep, etc. It’s just a nice scenic place.
“People say Bark-island. It’s usually Bark-island, that tends to be the main one. All the time, the sort of people that say it wrong are the people who are not from here. If you’re from here, it’s Bark-iss-land. Sometimes you want to correct them but I don’t want to do it in a horrible way but people can take it wrong, can’t they? So you just keep quiet.”, reports Yorkshire Live.
Retired businessman Ken Mager, 77, was visiting his mother-in-law in the village. He said: “All the locals call it Bark-iss-land. Other people speak differently and might say Bark-island but they’re not the locals. I think it’s a typical Yorkshire village with a cricket club, a local shop, a post office, a couple of pubs and it’s quite a rural place. Quite a nice place to live.”
Planning officer Janine Branscombe, 56, said: “It’s a lovely village, very quaint, very rural, quite a lot of housing and very friendly. It’s a very affluent part of Calderdale.
“Bark-island is the main one they don’t say properly but most of them do say it correctly as in Bark-iss-land. It’s usually when you’re speaking to utilities and people on the phone when they ask you you’re name and address. They do struggle to say it properly. I just think it’s funny, really, everyone has their pronunciations of places. I don’t take it to heart. It’s just a bit of fun, really.” Agricultural engineer Jerrel Rickman, 27, said: “It’s a small quaint little village, everyone knows eachother, it’s close-knit.
“Luckily, I’ve not experienced much of the mispronunciation but I’ve heard people saying it like Bark-iz-land and Bark-island which is an interesting one. It’s definitely Bark-iss-land.”
