This partial list of city and town nicknames in the United Kingdom compiles the aliases, sobriquets and slogans that cities and towns in the United Kingdom are known by (or have been known by historically), officially and unofficially, to locals, outsiders or their tourism boards or chambers of commerce. City nicknames can help in establishing a civic identity, helping outsiders recognize a community or attracting people to a community because of its nickname; promote civic pride; and build community unity.Muench, David "Wisconsin Community Slogans: Their Use and Local Impacts" , December 1993, accessed 10 April 2007.
Nicknames and slogans that successfully create a new community "ideology or myth" are also believed to have economic value. Their economic value is difficult to measure, but there are anecdotal reports of cities that have achieved substantial economic benefits by "branding" themselves by adopting new slogans.Alfredo Andia, Branding the Generic City :) , MU.DOT magazine, 10 September 2007
Some unofficial nicknames are positive, while others are derisive. The unofficial nicknames listed here have been in use for a long time or have gained wide currency.
A
Aberdare "Swît Byr-dɛ̄r (Gwentian Welsh), Sweet 'Berdare (English)" – A nickname remembered by the very old in the town, but no longer in general use. Popular in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Example of its use in 1916: "You do not hear a lot about us, but we are nevertheless doing our duty toward our King and country. I hope that I shall be spared to see Sweet 'Berdare once again. – I remain, B. J. Edwards. Sto. No. I. Mess, H.M.S. Colossus, c/o G.P.O. London." Aberdeen "Energy Capital of Europe" "Furryboots City" – a humorous rendering of the Doric, "far aboots?" ("Whereabouts?"), as in "Far aboots ye frae?" ("Whereabouts are you from?") "The Granite City" – the most well-known, due to the copious use of local grey granite in the city's older buildings. "Oil Capital of Europe" – there are numerous variants on this, such as "Oil Capital of Scotland" etc. Accrington "Accy" – simple contraction of the name.
B
Basildon "Bas Vegas" – derived from the town's festival leisure park, in reference to the American city of Las Vegas. "Basilwood" or "Basil-wood" – derived from a Hollywood-style road sign for the town on the A127. "Basildump" – commonly used by locals who disapprove of the town. "Moscow on/down the Thames" or "Little Moscow on/down the Thames" - historic nickname for the town derived from its status as a left-wing, socialist stronghold for the Labour Party until the rise of Thatcherism in the 1980s. Bath, Somerset "Aquae Sulis" – Latin name for the Roman baths, still used sometimes in modern day as an alternative name. Barnsley "Tahn" or "Tarn" – derived from pronunciation of 'town' in the local dialect, although the term is often used with an increasing sense of irony given the relatively neutral accents of younger people in the town. Basingstoke "Basingrad" – reference to a perceived resemblance of the town to the Stalinist-era architecture of similarly suffixed Soviet cities. Belfast "Old Smoke" – reference to the observation that in the Victorian era, while much of Ireland (Dublin excepted) remained rural and agricultural, Belfast became the island's primary industrial city.Rick Steve's Europe – Belfast "Linenopolis" – a now largely defunct Victorian title given the city when it led the World's linen industry. "Belshaft" Birmingham "Brum" – shortened form of "Brummagem", a local form of the city's name. The derived term "Brummie" can refer both to the people of the area, and the local dialect and accent.Birmingham or Brummagem? , Birmingham City Council "City of a Thousand Trades"Chiefs admit Brum skyline mix-up, BBC News website, 14 August 200 – with reference to the city's former industrial might. "Venice of the North" – a name likening the city to Venice, Italy, in southern Europe, due to both having a large number of canals. "Workshop of the world"The Workshop of the World – An Outlook for Birmingham, Barclays Capital, 2011 – also a reference to the city's industrial heritage. "Second City" – used by many traders, politicians, and is the popular name of the derby between the city's two football clubs, Aston Villa and Birmingham City "The Pen Shop of the World" – Historical, in reference to Birmingham's huge pen trade in the 1800s. Bognor Regis "Little Poland" - Owing to Bognor Regis' large Polish and Eastern European population. Bracknell "Cracknell" – denigratory reference to Bracknell's predominantly lower middle class population, many of whom are assumed to be drug dealers. However, there is no evidence to suggest that drug use is higher in Bracknell than in any other part of the country.Bracknell #1 Chav Town Bradford "Bratford" – the way "Bradford" is pronounced by some Bradfordians. "Bradistan" – suffix -stan refers to the city's large Asian community, particularly from Pakistan. The nickname is used by white and Asian people alike, and came to many people's attention in the film East is East. "Bruddersford" – name coined by J. B. Priestley for his fictional portrayals of Bradford. "Curry Capital of Britain" or simply "Curry Capital" – a title gained by the city's rich history with curry. It won the Curry Capital of Britain (which ran from 2001 to 2016) a record seven times. It also hosts the World Curry Festival. "Woolopolis" – reference to the Victorian era woolen industry in the city, in the style of Manchester's "Cottonopolis"Jim Greenhalf, "Sir Mark hails our musical tradition", Telegraph & Argus, 20 September 2010 "Wool City" – same reason as above, as it was the former "Wool Capital of the World". "Worstedopolis" – as above, but more frequently used. "City of Film" or "Film City" – a title bestowed upon the city in 2009 when it became the first UNESCO City of Film. It has a long history with film and filmmaking, which started with inventors and pioneers of film in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The city has many cinemas, and courses, festivals and other events to do with film. The city is often used as a location for film and TV productions, and is home to the National Science and Media Museum. Brighton and Hove Brighton "London-by-the-sea"Darwin Porter, Frommer's England 2011William Davenport Adams, Songs of society, from Anne to Victoria, 1880John Lane, Talk of the Town - reference to the high number of Londoners who move to Brighton. "The Queen of Watering Places" - owing to its perceived superiority as a seaside resort in Victorian times "Skid Row-on-Sea""Brighton's come a long way from Skid Row-on-Sea", The Argus Hove "Hove actually" – imagined response distinguishing the area from Brighton. Bristol "Bristle" or "Brizzle" – an unusual feature of the Bristol dialect, is the Bristol L (or terminal L), in which an L sound is appended to words. The British Seattle
C
Cambridge "City of perspiring dreams" – by contrast with Oxford's nickname, "the city of dreaming spires". Coined by author and screenwriter Frederic Raphael in The Glittering Prizes. "Perspiring Dreams" was later the title of the Cambridge University Students' Union alternative prospectus. "Silicon Fen" – often applied to Cambridge and the immediately surrounding region, because of the large number of high tech businesses in the area. The name alludes to similarities to Silicon Valley in California, and the city's location close to The Fens. In contrast to Scotland's Silicon Glen which relates to manufacturing. "Cam" Cardiff "Coalopolis" – Now fallen from use, but popular during the 19th and early 20th centuries when Cardiff experienced unusually rapid growth as a consequence of being the largest international exporter of coal. "City of Arcades" – city has the highest concentration of Victorian, Edwardian and contemporary indoor shopping arcades in any British city – see List of shopping arcades in Cardiff.The Free Library A world behind the shop fronts "The 'Diff" – Developed from a shortening of the city's name. Chichester "Chi" – shortened version of Chichester, pronounced 'Chy'. Chippenham “Chips and Ham” “Chip’numb” Coventry "Cov" - abbreviation of Coventry. "CoVegas" "Britain's Detroit" – arising from its one-time status as the centre of UK car manufacturing; an appellation dating back to at least 1916. "City of Peace and Reconciliation" – branding adopted from 2008 onwards, as part of the City of Sanctuary movement.City of Sanctuary – Coventry "City of three spires" – referring to the cathedral spire; Holy Trinity Church; and Christ Church's spire.Warwickshire from Camelot InternationalIain Soden, A Typical English Churchyard?, BuildingConservation.com "Motor City" – as with "Britain's Detroit", an allusion to the city's motorcar industry. "Poventry" - Portmanteau of poverty and Coventry - a denigratory reference to Coventry's societal deprivation, urban decay and uglification compared to other British cities.
D
Derby "Derbados" – portmanteau of Derby and Barbados Derry "The Maiden City"Lisa Smyth, "New twist in Maiden City name change row", The Belfast Telegraph, 24 September 2009 – name allegedly attaches since the city's walls were never breachedImages Of Ireland – The Maiden City "Stroke City" – referring to a normal form of presenting the two names of the city – Derry/Londonderry[Derry / Londonderry: Stroke City], BBC Radio 4, Routes of English Doncaster "Donny" – shortened version of Doncaster. Dumfries "Queen of the South" - hence the name of the local football team Dundee "City of Discovery" – name referring to the RSS Discovery, the sailing ship used by Robert Falcon Scott in his attempt to reach the South Pole – which was constructed in the city, and returned there in 1986.
E
Eastbourne "The Sunshine Coast"https://tourist.org.uk/east-sussex/eastbourne/ East Kilbride "Polo Mint City" - referring to its estimated 600 roundabouts. Eastleigh "Beastly Eastleigh" Edinburgh "Athens of the North" – a reference to the many new public buildings of the Greek neo-classical style built in the eighteenth century, the most visually prominent of which, the incomplete National Monument, was modelled on the Parthenon.Stana Nenadic, "The Rise of Edinburgh", British History in-depth, BBC "Auld Reekie""Auld Reekie is the most miserable place to live in Britain", The Times, 27 August 2008 (Scots for Old Smoky) – because when buildings were heated by coal and wood fires, chimneys would spew thick columns of smoke into the air. Ely "The Ship of The Fens" – referring to the size of the city's cathedral, and that due to the area's low-lying topography, it can be seen from miles around.
G Glasgow "Dear Green Place""Deadly Green Place". Daily Record – from one interpretation of the Scottish Gaelic name Glaschu. The name has older British Celtic (Brythonic) roots, reflected in modern Welsh as Glas-coed or -cae. (Green wood, or hollow). The Britons of Strathclyde (Ystrad Clud) were gradually displaced by the Dal Riata Scots, originally from Ireland, in the sixth and seventh centuries. "Red Clydeside" – based on a post-World War I reputation as a centre of left-wing activityIain Maclean, "No Mean City : 1914 to 1950s", The Glasgow Story "Second City of the Empire" – reference to the Victorian era industrial past of the city."Victorian Glasgow", BBC History "Shipbuilding capital of the world""Victorian Scotland", BBC History – another reference to the Victorian period in which the Clydeside shipyards were one of the foremost builders in the world. Great Yarmouth "Yarco" – simple contraction of the name.
H Hartlepool - British West Hartlepool. Disparaging nickname likening the town to a far-flung colonial outpost. Hebden Bridge "The lesbian capital of the UK" Huddersfield "Hudds" – shortened version of Huddersfield.
I Inverness "Capital of the Highlands"Did You Know? – Nicknames of Scottish Town "Inversnecky" and "The 'Sneck"
K Kendal