6 Boise Streets That Visitors Can’t Pronounce

Having lived in the Treasure Vally for a while now, it's become easier and easier to spot a visitor. No, it's not the California license plates or that visitors pronounce Boise "Boy-Zee" rather than "Boy-See." It's the way they pronounce specific street names that is a dead giveaway.

Here are the five most difficult to pronounce street names in Boise:

#1 - Nez Perce - I didn't rent an Airbnb on this street because I didn't want to attempt to pronounce Nez Perce. The road is named after a Native American tribe that has a reservation in Nez Perce County. Unfortunately, this isn't even their name. The actual name of the tribe is actually the Nimi'ipuu people. Nez Perce means "Pierced Nose" in French. When the French came across people with pierced noses, they assumed that they were part of the Nimi'ipuu tribe, even though the Nimi'impuu don't have pierced noses. You know what they say about making assumptions. Nez Perce is pronounced Nez-PURSE.

#2 - Resseguie - This street was named after the couple that owned the land where the road is. The Resseguie's were from Salt Lake and sold the land in 1890. It is pronounced "Rez-uh-goo" like residue with a "g" instead of a "d."

#3 - Kootenai - This street was named after another Native American tribe from Northern Idaho. The Kootenai Reservation is headquartered in Bonner's Ferry. It is pronounced KOO-tuh-nee.

#4 - Owyhee - The street was named after the Owyhee Mountains, but Owyhee is actually an older English spelling for Hawaii. When you see Owyhee, it is typically because the expeditions mapped these areas had Hawaiians in the group. The Owyhee Mountains were named for three such trappers who went missing. It is pronounced very similar to Hawaii: oh-WHY-hee

#5 - Ustick - The street was named after a small town located between Cloverdale and Five Mile, but the town was named after a doctor, whose last name was Ustick. It is pronounced exactly as it looks. YOU-stick.

#6 - Chinden - The name of this street is a real Idaho history lesson. In the 1860s, many people from China came through the Treasure Valley to work in the mines in Idaho City. Along the way, they planted amazing gardens. These gardens were called the Chinese Gardens, and they were here until World War 1. Because of these Chinese Gardens, Garden City got its name, and Chinden is a combination of the two words "Chinese" and "Garden." It is pronounced CHIN-den.