List of city nicknames

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This partial list of city nicknames compiles the aliases, sobriquets and slogans that cities are sometimes known by, officially and unofficially, to locals, outsiders or their tourism boards.

Contents

There are some common types of city nicknames.

Many cities have nicknames which claim that the international or, less commonly, the national or regional capital of a particular industry, hobby or other phenomenon, especially the agricultural production of a certain plant. These include:

Many cities and towns (particularly in North America) claim to be a "Capital of the World" of a certain subject or other item. These nicknames are usually based on the city's cultural heritage or history. Here is an incomplete list of those cities.

Some cities take nicknames based on an industry, invention or other phenomenon which allegedly arose there. These include:

These are usually self-explanatory.

Some cities have nicknames which refer to other cities with established reputations. For example, a city might bill itself as the "Athens of ..." to establish a similarity with the major cultural contributions of Athens in Antiquity.

Many places have been compared with Venice in Italy, usually due to a high density of waterways (especially inner city canals) and/or maritime trade connections.

See also Places named Venice. There is also Venise-en-Québec, Quebec. Also, the name of Venezuela means "little Venice".

Several cities around the world have been named the 'Little Vienna' due to their characteristic Vienna-inspired architecture. These include:

The American folk hero Paul Bunyan, and his blue ox Babe, have at least three towns vying for being considered his homeland. These include Bemidji, Minnesota, Brainerd, Minnesota and Westwood, California.

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.
  • Hong Kong — gourmet paradise, shopping paradise, adventurers' paradise

  • Buenos Aires
    • The Paris of the Americas
    • Queen of the Plata
  • Mar del Plata
    • Queen of the Coast
    • La Feliz (the Happy)
  • Rosario
    • "La Chicago Argentina" (Chicago of Argentina) in reference to Mafia connections of Rosario at 1920.
    • La mejor ciudad para vivir (The best city to live in)
    • "Capital nacional de las potras" (National Capital of the pretty girls)
  • Ushuaia
    • The End of the World

  • Adelaide
    • City of Churches
    • City of Trees
    • Athens of the South
    • City of Churches and Chappells, as the Chappell brothers (cricketers) come from there
  • Alice Springs
    • The Alice
  • Brisbane
  • Canberra
    • The Bush Capital
    • The City Of Lights
    • Porn and Fireworks Capital of Australia
  • Geelong
    • Sleepy Hollow
    • City By The Bay
    • G Town
  • Gold Coast
    • Hollywood On The Gold Coast
    • Australia's LA
    • The Theme Park Capital Of The World
  • Melbourne
    • Sporting Capital of Australia/The World (both due to Melburnians love of sport and many sporting events)
    • World's Most Livable City (a title the city has won a number of times, which some residents have adopted as a slogan)
    • Marvellous Melbourne (rose to prominence during the city's 1880s boom but still widely known)
    • That's Me!bourne (official promotion, note the "!" symbol in place of "L")
    • Melbin (translated to Melbun for Kiwis)
    • Cultural/Musical Capital of Australia
    • Multicultural Capital of the World (due to its massive population of migrants from other nations)
    • Smellbourne (in the early days of settlement there was a lack of sewerage)
    • The City of 'Four seasons in one day'
    • City by the Bay (popularised by weatherman Mike Larkan)
    • The true Capital of Australia
    • Garden City (after Garden State - Victoria, Australia)
    • Bleak City (by residents of Sydney)
    • Europe of Australia
  • Sydney
    • The Harbour City
    • Emerald City (after to a 1987 play of the same name by David Williamson)
    • City Of Lights
    • Sin City
    • Steak and Kidney
    • The Big Smoke (was a popular nickname until around the 1980s)
    • The Unplanned Estuary (so named for its unfortunate lack of planning after the arrival of the first fleet)
    • Australia's New York
  • Wollongong, New South Wales
    • 'The Gong'
  • Rockhampton, Queensland
  • Perth
    • City of Lights
    • Dullsville (somewhat derogatory)
  • Launceston, Tasmania
    • Lonny
  • Ballarat, Victoria
    • The rat