MR Challis (Letters, December 30) should be re-assured that incomers are not unwelcome in this area, indeed my mother's family were originally from London and integrated into Tamar Valley/Tavistock life seamlessly.

Of course, they weren't impertinent enough to think that their pronunciation of local place-names was better than people who had been born here . . . which probably helped.

I think he may have a point with the American influence though, except the opposite is more likely. That is, we have influenced their pronunciation.

Americans, nowadays, speak their own version of English but some scholars believe that, initially, it most resembled that of the rural accents of Southern England.

So the emphasis on the HAM in Morwellham would be natural to them but not to people from other regions of the UK.

Mark Carter

Calstock

IN reply to Mr Challis' letter. I am Tavistock born and bred. I have lived here most of my life and I worked at MorwellHAM for several years. We have always spelt Plaisterdown with an 'i' but pronounced it without.

Hilary M Davie

Peter Tavy