CITIES AND THEIR NICKNAMES

THE CITY OF A HUNDRED SPIRES – PRAGUE

While many cities´ nicknames seem to be somewhat exaggerated,

the most common nickname of Prague, the capital of the Czech

Republic, is quite the opposite. It has been proven that this

spectacular city, packed with historical sites of all types,

features not hundreds but thousands of spires.

THE HARBOUR CITY – SYDNEY

The largest and most populous city of Australia owes its nickname

to Port Jackson, one of the largest natural harbours in the world.

The harbour is also where the city´s most popular attractions, the

Sydney Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge, are located.

THE STEEL CITY – PITTSBURGH

With a population of over 300,000 Pittsburgh, the second largest city

in Pennsylvania, is called the Steel City for obvious reasons – it’s

home to more than 300 steel-related businesses and companies. It’s

also known as the City of Bridges thanks to almost 450 of them

being found in the city.

THE CITY OF TIGERS – OSLO

The lion is not the only predator that appears in a city´s nickname.

As the capital and most populous city of Norway, Oslo is commonly

referred to as the City of Tigers. It is thought that the nickname was

first used by author Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson around 1870, due to his

perception of the city as a cold and dangerous place.

THE FORBIDDEN CITY – BEIJING

Originally, the Forbidden City was just a Chinese imperial palace built

in the centre of Beijing but later, over the course of time, the

nickname started to be used as a reference to the whole city.

THE CITY OF BROTHERLY LOVE – PHILADELPHIA

The sweet nickname of Philadelphia allegedly came from William Penn,

an English Quaker, who envisioned the city as a place where anyone

of any colour or background could live together in peace and harmony.

Actually, brotherly love is also the meaning of the city´s name in Greek,

“philos” meaning love and “adelphos” meaning brother.

THE CITY OF GAUDÍ – BARCELONA

Those who have ever been to Barcelona certainly know why it is

Dubbed the City of Gaudí. The second largest city of Spain is where

most of Antoni Gaudí, a world-known architect´s works are located.

The most famous of them, the Sagrada Familia, ranks among the most

visited Roman Catholic buildings in the world.

THE EMERALD CITY – SEATTLE

With a population of over 650,000 Seattle, the largest city of the State

of Washington, earned this noble nickname thanks to the lush

evergreen forests of the area and the city’s parks. Another popular

epithet of Seattle is the Jet City, as a reference to Boeing, the

airplane manufacturer that resides there.