Beaulieu is one of the place names people find hardest to say

Every year hundreds of internet users ask Google how to say Beaulieu, the name of the picture perfect village in the heart of the New Forest.

Beaulieu - pronounced 'bew-lee' - is 19th on a newly-published list of 26 UK place names that cause problems for visitors.

A spokesperson for London Barratt, which carried out the research, said: "The English language is famous for having some of the most nonsensical pronunciations on the planet.

"British place names, in particular, are often not spelt phonetically. This means they are not pronounced how they are spelt.

"Visitors to London will tell you the city is a minefield of mispronunciations. The British capital is plagued with silent letters and dropped syllables."

Beaulieu has been named as one of the places that have the most difficult to pronounce names (Image: Newsquest)

Beaulieu also appears on a list of 103 most phonetically-challenging place names in nations across the globe.

"These names span six continents and 66 countries and all accrue more than 1,000 searches for pronunciation help each year," said the spokesperson.

"The Spanish island of Ibiza comes first in terms of the most difficult place names outside the UK.

"Also making the top five is Slovenia’s capital, Ljubljana, the Icelandic capital Reykjavík, Thailand’s biggest island, Phuket, and the Hungarian capital of Budapest."

Beaulieu, which is French for "beautiful place", is home to historic Palace House and the award-winning National Motor Museum.

A museum spokesperson said staff at the visitor reception centre had heard the village's name pronounced in a variety of ways, including 'bo–lee–o' and 'beau–loo'.

Beaulieu is home to historic Palace House and the National Motor Museum (Image: Newsquest)

In 2023 The Telegraph, using data from Savills estate agents, described Beaulieu as one of the most desirable places to live in the UK.

Earlier this year, it was named as one Britain's 48 poshest villages by Telegraph Money, again working in conjunction with Savills.

The paper noted that the average house price in Beaulieu was more than £1.5m. It also drew attention to its 16th century high street, its "artisan" shops, and its close proximity to the sailing hub of Lymington.

Frances Clacy, analyst at Savills, told The Telegraph: “People want villages that have a bit of everything, from schools to stunning countryside, with accessibility to cities and transport infrastructure.

"Less well-trumpeted factors count too, such as the main road through the village should only lead to other villages."