Whanganui, New Zealand
Wh-Is-It-Silent-Anganui
"Two names, one river, zero consensus"
Official Coat of Arms
A shield bearing the great Whanganui River in full flow, flanked by a silent 'h' rampant and a heritage villa on Victoria Avenue, all beneath a banner reading 'Fanga-noo-ee, Apparently'.
TripAdvisor Review
★★★★☆ 4/5
"Lovely wander along the river and the Victorian architecture on Victoria Avenue is genuinely charming, but I spent my entire visit too scared to say the town's name out loud in case I got the H wrong. The Whanganui River is stunning and the jet boat trip up to the Bridge to Nowhere was a real highlight. Docked a star because the whole town seems to shut early and I couldn't find a decent coffee after 3pm."— Gary Pronunciation, Palmerston North
Property Listing
Charming riverside living in a heritage-listed Victorian streetscape, with the mighty Whanganui River as your backyard water feature and a name so distinctive your guests will still be practising it in the car on the way over!
Twinned With
Reading — Both towns have spent decades being mispronounced by people who insist they know better.
Supporting Evidence
In 2015 the New Zealand Geographic Board officially confirmed both 'Whanganui' and 'Wanganui' as acceptable spellings, ending (and also cementing) decades of local debate.