Po-white or Pow-hite?
Po-white or Pow-hite? Let’s settle it once and for all. GO!
Po-white or Pow-hite?
Let’s settle it once and for all.
GO!
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Valerie Catrow
Valerie Catrow is editor of RVAFamily, mother to a mop-topped first grader, and always really excited to go to bed.
Notice: Comments that are not conducive to an interesting and thoughtful conversation may be removed at the editor’s discretion.
PO-white. Don’t listen to the broadcasters.
po-white. duh
Because it goes toward Pow-hatan, I figured it was supposed to be Pow-hite. But I prefer the sound of Po-white.
Here’s what wikipedia says: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_State_Route_76
I grew up in Richmond. It’s always been Po-white, and I would like to state for the record, that’s the way real Richmonders say it. Most broadcasters are from out of town anyway, so why believe them?
why is this “poll” not in a simple “click to vote” format instead of “leave a comment to vote”? It’s Po White.
I also grew up here and call it Po-white.
What about Parham? Pear-um or Par-hum? I go with the former.
Po-white obviously has connotations but it rolls off the tongue more easily. I’ve gotten to the point where I just say “the toll road” and everyone knows what I mean. P.S. Abolish toll plazas.
Po-white. Glad to see the majority of people here say it the same way. Sometimes I get a complex about it, like maybe I’m more po’ white trash than I thought since I say it that way? :)
I grew up here too, on the southside and STILL live there (i hate change I guess?) and it’s definitely po-white. But let me just say this, you can not be a po-white anymore to drive the po-white — too expensive!
And to your other question, pear-um.
@Jeb, I also call it the toll road. I love that you can say that in this town and everyone knows what you’re talking about.
@valeriecatrow @Jeb I’ve always wondered why the generic “toll road” never leaves people wondering /which/ toll road. Po-white, Pocahontas, or downtown expressway.
In my house, it’s Po-white, but we learned real good from all you native Richmonders.
When we say Parham at work, it usually comes out pearm. All one syllable.
By the way, I work at nTelos. Pronounced “IN-TEL-OHs.” _Not_ _EVER_ “NU-TEL-OHS” Company lore tells us that the name was going to be inTelos, but a little chip manufacturing company forced us to drop the “i” at the beginning of the name.
It is the native Richmonder Litmus test. If someone says Pow-hite (not from here) same goes with par-hum.
I always thought it was, “Poor Whites”
The only people who pronounce it Pow-white are people who have just moved here or newscasters/radio people who live in Richmond a short time.
I’ve lived on the Southside since birth and it’s Poh-white. Period. End of discussion.
And I agree w/ the previous poster. Coming from someone (me!) who spends $3.80 in tolls each day, you definitely can’t be poor to use it.
the experts say its POW-hite, but everyone says
po-white
What experts?
The people posting on rvanews?
no tv news folks, po-white sounds better, makes riding on it better
its named after edgar allan poe, after he swam upstream thru the james river rapids, they said, thats why its “po” not POW
I have no idea what’s “right,” but just to weigh in — I grew up here and have called it “Pow-hite” ever since I can remember. And I figure that the buck stops with the folks who tend it (RMA), and they say “Pow-hite.” Either way, no big deal. It doesn’t create confusion. I like the fact that people can say it either way and I know the road to which they are referring.
The fact that Tess says Pow-hite makes me question my pronunciation. DON’T TRY TO CHANGE MY WAYS, DIXON.
Also, @Robb, because with a simple, click-to-vote poll, no one gets to be CLEVER. OR USE ALL CAPS.
Like it, or not, when one spoke of the creek, Po-white is how it was pronounced for a long time.
Po-white. “Poor white people,” according to ‘Southern’ dialect.’ The poor white people had a small little shanty town beside the stone quarries they worked in. If you look to the right going South on Powhite parkway, after you cross the James, you can see the remains of the stone/granite quarry (looks like a lake with rock walls surrounding it). Looks similar to the lake (leftover stone quarry) on Belle Isle.
PO
WHITE
I am older than all of you (except F.T.) and that’s the way you say it if you grew up here.
I would never try to change your ways, Valerie! If Brandon is older than all of us, then perhaps his way is “right?” But then again, perhaps all the super old people aren’t commenting on RVANews, let alone turning on a computer. Note: I’m still going to say it “Pow-hite.”
po’aight
Po-White.
I’ve lived in Richmond since I was a little kid and I say Pow-hite because I hate butchering language! Virginians have a hard time with pronouncing places such as Buena Vista (some pronounce it Beauna) and Montpelier (some say Mont peel iER). Now, maybe it’s because all three of these places are named in other languages that many Virginians cannot say them in their original format. Who knew that places names for American Indians, Spanish, and French would be so hard to say?
I don’t care which way we say it, I just want everyone to say it the same way. I’m always nervous to say Powhite infront of someone else until they’ve said it their way. I then follow accordingly as to save myself any argument or embarassment. There’s nothing worse than talking directions with someone where you say Po-white and they say Pow-hite for the entire conversation. For the record, I say Po-white but I’m only an official Richmonder by address.
To the “Captain” … exactly! I’ve lived in South Richmond 54 years. It is Po White. So named, as the Captain has explained.
I grew up in richmond and never heard of pow-hite ’till I was 35 yrs. or so. So…….. the really good reason for this PROPOSED change is?