CITIES AND THEIR NICKNAMES
Added on: 13th Jun 2015
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.
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