Strange though it may seem, Brighton is not the only Brighton in the world. Despite its inimitable uniqueness and unparalleled pre-eminence, many centuries of colonization, conquest and exploration have created over 48 communities, known as Brighton. Join Life, as we take you on a whistle stop tour of some of the most exciting places around the world called Brighton.

Brighton, England.

Originally called ‘Brighthelmston’ the name ‘Brighton’ is believed to originate either from a Saxon amalgamation of two words one meaning ‘stone’ and the other ‘valley’ or a combination of the Anglo-Saxon name ‘Boerthelm’ or ‘Brithelm’ and ‘tun’ meaning homestead. Brighton began life as a Neolithic encampment at Whitehawk Hill around 2600 B.C. and grew into a fishing village during the Saxon and Norman period. Brighton was burnt to the ground by French raiders in 1514, with St Nicholas church the only building withstanding. Plague ridden in the 16th and 17th centuries and virtually destroyed by the great storms of 1703 and 1705, Brighton grew in popularity during the 18th Century with the patronage of George IV.

Brighton, Christchurch, New Zealand.

Descendants of the first English settlers have said that the name was decided when one of the first pioneers William Fee, hastily chalked New Brighton over a sawpit where he was working. Labouring along side Brightonian, Stephen Brooker, Fee conferred the name on the spur of the moment when James Fitzgerald, the acting superintendent of Canterbury, promptly paid a visit. A seaside suburb of Christchurch, the town has a pier for hot rod races, a white sands beach with long rolling surf and even plans to create an artificial reef to improve surfing.

Brighton, Victoria, Melbourne, Australia.

11km southeast of Melbourne, Brighton is an affluent suburb with two piers and lavish seaside villas. When In 1840, a prominent stockbroker Henry Dendy, bought the land to supply farming produce for Melbourne, the town began to attract wealthy residents with the prospect of sea bathing. Brighton boomed in the late nineteenth century, principally in thanks to the corrupt premiership of Thomas Bent, who built the Brighton – St Kilda tramline with funds appropriated from the treasury.

Brighton, New York.

Established in 1814, Brighton is one of the oldest towns in Monroe County. Located in Western New York, New Brighton was settled in 1790. Originally a farming community, it has developed into a residential community with elegant homes, elaborate gardens and landscaped subdivisions. It provides a home for New York notables – leaders in business, industry, the arts and education.

Brighton, Trinidad.

Lying off the southwest coast of Trinidad, Brighton was discovered by Sir Walter Raleigh who thought the pitch was good for caulking his boats. Named after a British oil company; Brighton Terminal Limited, the port has shipped asphalt, coffee, cocoa, sugar and citrus. One of the early oilfield camps built to house British staff and management it houses a refinery, steam plant, tank farm, loading pier, nine-hole golf course and bungalow encampment. Brighton has fallen into disrepair since the camp was nationalized as it was later discovered that the submarine pitch is impossible to mine.

Brighton, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

A surfing resort near the famous Cave Rock complex, Brighton is a tourist honey pot with deserted beaches and snorkeling for dolphin watching. Although the African township has a 55 percent unemployment rate since General Motors pulled out in 1986, it was an area of great resistance during apartheid. It still has an operating presence of the Aryan Nation, despite the murder of four ANC activists in June 1985.

Brighton, East Berbice-Corentyne, Guyana.

Formerly Part of the British Empire it has been renamed Corentyne since Guyana’s independence in 1966. The sight of a slave rebellion in 1763, the town is composed of indigenous peoples – Wai Wai, Wapisiana, Macusi and descendents of freed slaves or Maroons. Due to the deforestation of the Kanuku mountain range, the port is subject to heavy flooding, an ongoing dispute between the indigenous peoples, foreign logging companies and forestry commission. Brighton operates as a port for rice farming, sugar production, balata bleeding and illegal drug smuggling.

Brighton, Ontario, Canada.

Located next to the scenic shores of Lake Ontario, in the County of Northumberland, Brighton is renown for its fishing, antique shops and bird watching. The first known settler arrived in Brighton in 1796, a British loyalist named Obediah Simpson who built the town upon the wealth accrued from apple farming – Brighton still celebrates ‘Applefest’ every September. The town is best known as ‘The Gateway to Presqu’ile Provincial Park’ a wilderness resort that provides a sanctuary for rare butterflies, flowers and wild deer.

Brighton, El Beni, Bolivia.

Set amidst the equatorial rain forests of the Amazon, just off the banks of the Yata River, Brighton is a small, isolated village in Northern Bolivia. Comprised of the indigenous peoples Amyara, Quechua and Moxos, they have a subsistence agricultural economy based on the trade in Brazil nuts. The surrounding region is used for gold prospecting, logging and illegal coca growing, and used as a habitat for the three-toed Sloth and Blue-throated Macaw.