From the editor's desk: Waimarie ... Why-maree or Waimare-aye, which is it?

Working with words all day, every day kind of gets you wondering.
Actually my curiosity with words, their meanings and the way we use them goes way back before my involvement in the newspaper industry. But the interest remains, especially with the language constantly evolving.
I often find myself puzzling over various words, and how people use and pronounce them. Locals will know of the most obvious example that has been subject of many headlines and even resulted in an official ruling. And even after the decision on the H in this city's name, there arose a whole new controversy - the pronunciation, and even now, you are as liable to hear Fongernui as you are Wanganui.
Other words, where issue of tradition, history and righting of past wrongs do not come into play, suffer likewise from inappropriate use, or mispronunciation and it can seem as if there are alternatives but some people aren't sure on which is correct. The debates that ensue can be rather heated. And really, it can simply be a case of what you learned when you grew up; where you came from. Much as in the case of Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady.
So, without starting a sequence of events that might cause an apocalypse, I have a question in relation to a Wanganui icon that I would like help from readers to resolve. Since moving here, I have variously heard the city's famous steamboat referred to as the Waimaree and the Waimare-aye-aye. I want to know what this is, and which is actually correct.
Reading the name as it is written, Waimarie, makes it appear simple: why-maree. It's not like women whose names are Marie are referred to as Maree-aye, so why the difference? Is it a case of I say tomahto, you say tomayto... neether, naither?
Is there some historical significance to the pronunciation that I don't know?
All I do know is that the only certainty is that of a sample of people, you are bound to get a smattering of each variation.
I was lucky enough to take a cruise on board, and even then the issue arose with one of the party querying how I said the word, then congratulating me for saying it the way he deemed to be correct. If anyone can enlighten me to this apparent mystery, I'd be pleased to have my curiosity put to rest.
Feedback to editor@wanganuichronicle.co.nz