There’s nothing better than driving and spotting a funny road name. The UK has more than its fair share, thanks to historic towns and villages – and perhaps to the famous British sense of humor. Elsewhere in the world, there are confusion of pronunciation and places named after icons, which are sure to make you smile.
1. Ha-Ha Road
This road to Greenwich, London is sure to tickle your fancy. The story behind the name of the street is unfortunately not as funny as you might think, a Ha-Ha is just another word for a submerged ditch. Although it is not yet clear whether “Ha-ha” comes from the person who exclaims by falling or from those who watch someone fall.
2. Mad Dog Lane
A road with a bit of a scary name and located in Yorkshire, UK, in a town called Hook. We cannot help but wonder what could have happened on this street so that it receives this name.
3. Twatt
On the mainland of the Orkney Islands in Scotland is the small colony of Twatt. Despite its small size, it managed to gain a place on the map of the coarsest place names in the world.
4. Smellies Lane
Smellies Lane is one of the many Scottish streets for cutting, which you can find in the picturesque coastal town of Dundee. Rest assured, there is nothing to indicate that the smell lives up to its name.
5. Butt Street
The United States certainly has its fair share of ridiculous and hilarious street names. This gem is found in Columbia County, Benton, Pennsylvania. Imagine giving this as your address!
6. Chicken Dinner Road
Chicken Dinner road is located in a rural Canyon country in Idaho, United States. Earlier this year, the name of the road drew criticism from animal rights organization PETA, which protested that the name of the street be changed, calling it “unpleasant”.
7. Whip-Ma-Whop-Ma-Gate
Located in York, England, it is a street where its name is actually longer than the road. This song-filled street is one of the smallest in the historic city, full of silly names. In 1505, he was known as Whitnourwhatnourgate, which means “what a street”!
8. Knight Rider Street
Fans of David Hasselhof’s famous 80s crime-fighting TV show will be delighted with this funny street in central London, right next to St. Paul’s Cathedral. During the 14th and 15th centuries, the street was actually much longer and was used by knights on the way for jousting tournaments. A street in the town of Kent also shares this unforgettable nickname.
9. Bell End
Sometimes street names are controversial … like in Rowley Regis, where the locals of the unfortunately named Bell End (a rude word in Britain, don’t googling at work!) Have different opinions on whether to change it to something less likely to cause snickering from motorists passing through the UK. An original petition to change the name to “ something less silly ” got 100 signatures, but it was quickly followed by a counter petition, with 4800 signatures calling for keeping the historic name of Bell End.
10. Justin Bieber Way
This street was named by a true believer. When Caroline Gonzalez, 11, won a contest to be mayor of her city for the day, she chose to use her power for, uh, well, and renamed one of the streets after her favorite pop star.
11. Fanny Hands Lane
Fanny Hands Lane in Ludford, Lincolnshire was named Britain’s third roughest street in 2014 and some claim it affects property prices. The story behind the name is pretty sweet, and an example of how the change of language caused unintentional fun. It was named in the 19th century by John Hands, after his wife Frances – Fanny – Hands. Nothing rude about it, huh?
12. Squeeze Guts Alley
Squeeze Guts Alley in Truro, Cornwall, stretches between Duke Street and St Mary’s Street, and it does exactly what it says on the tin. If you have a wider girth, you will need to tighten your belly to get through the passage, which acts as a shortcut to the market area. It is seen on a map from 1842, but without a name, and is believed to be commonly known by this nickname – which eventually became official and the passage even received its own sign. It is now something of a tourist attraction.
13. Why Worry Lane
Embodying the ethos of California, this road name is guaranteed to make you smile in passing – and perhaps to encourage you to forget about some of your problems for a few minutes.
14. Back Passage
London has a ton of interesting names and Back Passage has to be one of its silliest. There is not much history here; the passage was simply the way back to Smithfields, a city market area.
15. Silly Lane
After that, what about the one who isn’t rude at all, just a little, uh, idiot? Silly Lane is in High Ivah, Lancaster and is a popular thoroughfare in Lowgill.
16. Crotch Crescent
Residents of Crotch Crescent in Marston have the dubious distinction of having lived in the ‘fifth most embarrassing place’ in the United Kingdom, according to a 2014 survey. And while many think it is funny, some s worry about the name’s effect on property prices.
17. Slag Lane
The pinnacle of many coarse place name trips, Slag Lane in Westbury, Wiltshire, was the subject of another name change request in 2014, but locals decided to keep it as a connection to history of the region. It was the site of a forge, which created boreholes and piles of local slag – and of course, when the road was built, the word slag did not have the modern offensive connotation.
18. Fuk Hing Lane
This rather childish example was taken by an English-speaking student on the way home from class in Hong Kong. It means “rejuvenate or revive”. But phonetically sounds a little rude!
19. Tickle Cock Bridge
The Tickle Cock Bridge in Castleford was another disputed title. The original bridge was replaced in 2008 and received a new name, Tittle Cott. But after a demonstration organized by a local group over 50 years old, the Wakefield Council reversed its decision and a plaque bearing the original name, Tickle Cock, was installed.
20. Ugley
Ugley in Essex is actually marked “Yews-ley” with a soft “g”. Well, that’s what the locals say anyway. But thanks to the confusion, the Ugley Women’s Institute changed its name to Women’s Institute of Ugley.
21. Savage Gardens
What came first, the Australian pop duo or the place? Well, actually the place, but the two are not really related. Savage Garden named their group after a phrase from The Chronicles of Vampires by Anne Rice: “Beauty was a wild garden”. Temporarily, the street is just named after a Sir Thomas Savage, who owned a house here in the 17th century.
22. Dull
Dull in Scotland! It is in fact anything but, with beautiful landscapes and charming inhabitants, who clearly have a good sense of humor.
23 Dumb Woman’s Lane
Another example of changing languages. This path is believed to be named after a dumb woman who practiced traditional medicine and herbs in the area. Or there is a more horrible idea – that it was after a woman who ran into smugglers and had her tongue cut off to keep her mute (in the original sense of the term).
24. North Piddle
Experts believe the word “Piddle” is an old English word for a small flow, but has since become a slightly more polished word for peeing. The small parish of North Piddle takes its name from Piddle Brook, on which it is located in Worcestershire, in the United Kingdom.
25. Shoulder of Mutton Alley
This could be a specific link to a market or a pub historically on this site near Canary Wharf in London, whose specialty was this cut of meat. Or, sheep was an old slang term for sex workers, so it could have been called that for an entirely different reason, lost in time.
26. Mincing
This isn’t the most camp street in the Square Mile, but the houses on this lane were once possessed by the nuns of the church St Helen’s Bishopsgate. The primitive name for nun was mynchen, from which mincing derives.
27. Frying Pan Alley
Just outdoor the square mile in London is one for the chefs, Frying Pan Alley. Charles Dickens had an office in the courtyard in 1831 and it takes its name from a shop sign, common among blacksmiths and braziers, and also used for taverns.
28. Titty Ho
Apparently, that tickling name is why you are four times less likely to sell a house in Titty Ho, near Raunds in Northamptonshire.
29. Sod Hall Lane
Sod Hall Lane, near Blackpool, Lancashire, is required to raise an eyebrow and a laugh from passersby.
30. Hammertime
This sign for the city of Hammertime, is perfectly placed above a stop! sign. Stop. Hammer time! But is it a real place?
31. Break-Me-Neck Hill
The English names for Australia tend to be fairly modern, as Westerners renamed many areas populated by indigenous peoples during the 1800s. And they tend to be a bit on the nose, like this one, in Tasmania, which warns drivers (and walkers) to be careful.
32. Boring, Oregon
Nothing to see here, move on! At least the people of Boring have a sense of humor, looking for another boring place to pair up with…
33. The Glory Hole
Lincoln has a lot of funny named streets, The Glory Hole is near the main High Street along the Witham River. The street houses the oldest bridge in England with houses above it. The street owes its name to the narrow opening of the arch of the upper deck, which has sets of twisted arches that limit the size of the boats that can pass.
34. Wetwang
Another tiny village name that certainly needs no explanation. Situated in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, we can see why Wetwang is often named as one of the rudest places in Britain.
