Here Are 10 Crazy Street Names In Denver That Will Leave You Baffled

The Mile High City has an awful lot of street names whose pronunciations get butchered on the regular, but they actually make total sense when you realize they stem from English, Spanish, French, and Native American origins. Our diverse population (and Siri) may not be able to properly pronounce all of our city’s place names, but we can rest in the fact that the right answer is just a Google away. Here are the 10 craziest street names in Denver and how they came to be.

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In the late 1800s, a man named William McGaa helped speculators obtain the land near Cherry Creek from the native Arapahoe and Cheyenne tribes, and Wewatta was the name of McGaa's Oglala Sioux wife...

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...while Wazee was reportedly his mistress.

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According to local legend, Champa was William McGaa’s Indian name.

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Though no one knows for sure, rumor has it that Glenarm was the name of a Scottish castle where McGaa's family once lived.

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Kalamath Street was reportedly named in honor of the Klamath Indians of the Pacific Northwest; however, when they made the street sign the fine folks apparently misspelled the word, and Kalamath Street was born.

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While some say that Galapago was named after the famed islands, others claim that it means tortoise in Spanish and is pronounced gal-uh-PAY-go, rather than the Spanish pronunciation, gah-LAH-pa-go. Things that make you go, hmmmmmm?

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Some say tēhōn, others say tāhōn, but either way, tejón means badger in Spanish.

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This gem is named after Chauncey M. Depew, who once said, "A pessimist is a man who thinks all women are bad. An optimist is one who hopes they are."

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(Not to be confused with Pepé Le Pew.)

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Edward W. Wynkoop was Denver's first sheriff, and he now has a popular street and brewery in LoDo proudly bearing his family name.

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I think this novelty in Littleton speaks for itself. Doh!

Colorado truly is colorful…even in our language! For a little more hilarity and history, here are 12 Towns Near Denver With The Strangest Names You’ll Ever See.