Spanish Street Names - Part 1
Have you ever driven or walked around the Mesa and wondered what the Spanish street names mean in English? Sure, names like Mesa and Oceano are easy enough to figure out, but what about some of the others? What is, or who is, Alella or El Faro? In some cases, the names are easy to figure out — like Del Mar Avenue; in other cases, the names might have been chosen simply because they would look good in a real estate brochure. Do you know what your street name means in English? You might be surprised. Read on…
Aurora Avenue — (ow-ROE-rah) Is it Spanish or is it English? This one swings both ways. Both come from Aurora, the Roman goddess of the dawn. Aurora is also a woman's name.
Barranca Avenue and Lane — (bah-RAHN-kah) A barranca is a hill, slope, ravine, or gully. There were numerous ravines in the Mesa years ago that have since been filled in, so this is a name that makes sense.
Calle Alella — For starters, calle means street. The correct pronunciation is KAI-yay, (rhymes with SKY-hay). Most Santa Barbarans pronounce this correctly, although I have heard some people say KAH-lee. Alella (ah-LAY-yah) is a village on the Mediterranean near Barcelona, Spain known for its wines.
Calle Almonte — (al-MON-tay). Almonte means "to the mountain." It's the name of a town and a river in Spain, as well.
Calle Brevo —Brevo (BRAY-voh) is not a word that occurs in any source that I consulted. Perhaps it was meant to be bravo (fierce) or breve (short)?
Calle Canon — Cañón (cahn-YUN) can mean a cannon, the barrel of a pistol, or a canyon.
Calle Cortita — Cortita (core-TEE-tah) is the diminutive of corte (short), but it's actually a medium-sized street.
Calle del Oro — (ORE-oh) This name means "golden street" or the proverbial "street paved with gold". Unfortunately, for the residents of this street, it is not actually paved with gold.
Calle Galicia — (gah-LEE-cee-uh) Galicia is an autonomous region in northwest Spain. People from this predominantly rural location are often the subjects of "country-bumpkin" jokes in Latin America.
Calle Linares – (lee-NAR-ess) This means the street of flax, and is also the name of a city in north Mexico. It's related to the English word "linen."
Is your brain full yet? Part 2 will be posted next week.