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Cinema and literature make us travel through many cities and countries in which we have never been and in which, definitely, we will never be able to be. It even gives us names of cities we want to be in.
So cinema and literature are a way of knowing the customs, culture, and the most emblematic streets of faraway and imaginary places that always surprise us, because they are imaginary cities.
When we read a book, our imagination unleashes and we build cities in our minds, but it sure does not differ much from what the author actually thought.
And I don’t know if it happened to you, but we often wonder how they choose the names for imaginary cities.
Today we have thought about the number of stories in novels and movies set in places that do not exist in reality.
We have stayed with those with imaginary names who according to the narratives are on Earth, where fiction and reality mix and the experience is even more interesting.
For this reason, we propose a trip through the most fantastic and unreal cities that, supposedly, are on our planet.
Do you know any?
1. Shangri-La
In the novel «Lost Horizons» by James Hilton we can find this place that is a paradise where you can only find happiness and is isolated from the outside world.
It is inspired by any remote place in the Himalayas, since according to the novel, who practically achieves immortality there.
In addition to the novel, it has also been the setting for some video games such as Far Cry 4 or Call of Duty: Black Ops.
How the authors will decide the names for a city. Perhaps it is a mystery that we must address later.
2. Gotham or Metropolis
Go that these are each a name for cities with a lot of originality.
In DC Comics and movies, like Batman or Superman, we always see and hear about these two cities that do not exist in reality but are clearly inspired by a New York with the most exaggerated features.
Superman’s Metropolis shows us a city that is bright and full of hope, in keeping with the nature of the protagonist.
For its part, Gotham was created with the darkest side of the big city in mind.
Batman creator Bob Kane explained that to create Gotham he envisioned what Metropolis would be like when the sun went down, when corruption and crime shine in all their glory.
3. Argleton
We move away from cinema and literature to talk about a fictional city that brings with it a most curious anecdote.
And it is that Google Maps showed on its maps a city that in reality did not exist. Supposedly this town was in Lancashire, England, and although you could see it on Google Maps, if you impersonate there you would not see more than empty fields.
The error has been rectified in the maps application, but if you use Google Street View you can still take a walk through this fictional city.
In addition, it is one of the most curious names for fictional cities.
4. Wayward Pines
This novel written by Blake Crouch tells the story of a federal agent who wakes up badly injured and with a significant loss of memory in the surroundings of a most mysterious American town.
What happens there we cannot tell you so as not to reveal any of the secrets that this strange and claustrophobic place hides that, supposedly, you could find in the state of Idaho.
You can always take a quicker look at it if you watch the adaptation starring Matt Dillon on the TV series.
5. Hill Valley
In the mythical Back to the Future trilogy we see this fictional city in four different periods: 1885, 1955, 1985 and 2015.
Hill Valley is a good name for a fictional town.
Although, you will not be able to do a tourist visit since this town does not exist in reality, you can always go to Mill Valley (with a very similar name), a town near San Francisco (California) that could be the inspiration on which it was based the scriptwriter of the film.
Some Internet users have created the history of the town with the data that are known.
6. Innsmouth
Speaking of imaginary place names, science fiction horror novel author H. P. Lovecraft did not leave us indifferent when he spoke of Innsmouth in the Cthulhu Mythos.
Although it had already been mentioned in a previous story, the city became very famous in the story The Shadow over Innsmouth, since the whole story took place there.
It is inspired by a town on the coast of Essex County, near Massachusetts.
What is certain is that after being the protagonist of some of the most terrifying novels in history, we have little desire to visit it.
7. Liberty City
Video games also offer us a whole range of incredible places and we cannot miss the opportunity to talk about one of the protagonists of the video game Grand Theft Auto.
In each game, Liberty City is represented somewhat differently, but in all it is geographically very similar to New York, although it combines elements of other North American cities.
The fictional city has a large population, large transportation infrastructure, roads and railways.
8. Moulinstart
The Tintin comics took us to know this city that does not really exist, although its castle, which would end up being Tintin’s residence, is inspired by Château de Cheverny, in France.
Although this city is known to be situated in Western Europe, it is believed to be specifically inspired by Wallonia, a region of Belgium.
So it is a name of imaginary places that could be very similar to real places.
9. New Mombasa
We go back to talking about video games and we stop at the Halo.
There we have been able to walk the streets of Nueva Mombasa, a very important port city in the video game saga.
Supposedly, this place is located on an island in Kenya and in the XXVI century it became one of the most important populations in the world, so in the war against humans it is a key place.
10. Pndapetzim
Umberto Eco surprised us with this city in the novel Baudolino, a place in which all the inhabitants were humaoid monsters from the medieval bestiary.
So it is one of the fantastic city names that could not be missing from this list.
All the species that were there followed religious patterns similar to those we have in reality, but despite the cultural diversity, the city lived in peace.
It is based somewhere in Asia, east of Armenia.
11. Springfield
We have all seen The Simpsons at one time or another, and we know the city well enough, although its true location is a mystery.
In reality, the city is similar to many that we can find in the United States, since the series shows a generic population of the country.
It is believed to be inspired by the city of Springfield, Oregon, although its location in fiction would not be the same.
12. Quahog
Also in the animation series «Family Guy» we can get to know this fictional town.
In relation to Quahog, it is believed that it is inspired by a town in Providence County, since its creator lived there for many years and constant references are made that evoke the similarity.
13. Sunnydale
The mythical city where Buffy the Vampire Slayer survived chapter after chapter is also fictional, so don’t try to search the map for vampires.
It would be located in California, near the Pacific coast and despite being a supposedly small town, it has the infrastructure of an average city: it has a military base, a hospital, a university, 13 cemeteries, etc.
14. Vetusta
In the novel La Regenta written by Leopoldo Alas «Clarín», the author uses this name to describe a fictional city that is actually inspired by Oviedo, Spain.
And is that the writer was in love with the city, so he did not think twice before changing the name to refer to it freely.
15. Zion
We ended with another science fiction trilogy that made history in the world of cinema: The Matrix. Zion is the last human city left on Earth, built in order to save humanity.
It is located 4 kilometers deep, just above the earth’s mantle and is inspired by the caves that take us to the beginnings of the human being.
