Via Steve Cook.
In Kenya and especially in coastal region, places have strange and catchy names eg Dunga Unuse, Jamvi la Wageni, Kengeleni, Nyumba tatu, Stage ya paka etc.
In Naivasha Hells Gate has for a long time sent shivers to religious local tourists .
If Hells Gate scares you, in Austria and France, locals decided to name their villages as Fucking and Condom respectively but Canadians went for Dildo as a village name.
Read below….
Fugging (formerly Fucking), Austria
While most places learn to embrace the attention that comes with a notorious name, there are some that have reached breaking point from the attention.
Fuckingers – the residents of Fucking – were so weary of constant ridicule and the theft of signposts that the town voted to change its name in November last year.
Despite evidence that its former name dates as far back as the 11th century, Fugging – as the town is now called – is looking to begin a new chapter away from hordes of selfie stick-wielding tourists and tasteless jokes.
Condom, France
Fortunately for the French, Condom is a faux ami, or “false friend,” and will only make Anglophones snort with childish laughter.
Condomois – as the locals are known – live in blissful ignorance in this rather handsome town in the southwest of France.
As the capital of the Armagnac region, where the famous brandy originates, the town also boasts a rich architectural treasure trove, including elegant 18th-century mansions and a 16th-century gothic cathedral.
Intercourse, United States
As with many towns in the US (and the list is inexhaustible, trust us), the art of town naming has relied heavily on old parlance and phrases.
Intercourse, for instance, which was renamed in 1814 to replace the name Cross Keys, is believed to have been so named either as a reference to fellowship and community or its geographical position on a crossroads.
There’s a particular irony, though, in giving a town in the heart of what is now Amish country such a euphemistic name. At least it wasn’t called Horneytown (North Carolina) or Spread Eagle (Wisconsin).
Dildo, Canada
At the base of a peninsula in Newfoundland, Dildo is a short diversion off the Trans-Canadian Highway, which stretches nearly 8,000 km across Canada from the Atlantic to Pacific coast.
It’s also a stopping point on the road to the communities of Heart’s Delight, Heart’s Desire, and finally, Heart’s Content.
Given the sexual connotations of the word Dildo, the town has gained a degree of notoriety, including the attention of US late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel who became an honorary mayor.
