Editor's Corner

Years ago (2013), I found the world’s coolest maps, which I wrote about in Editor’s Corner. You can see them all here: 22 Maps Show Deepest Linguistic Conflicts in America – Business Insider. I’ve hoped for a new batch, but alas, none have appeared. I did find a Merriam-Webster article about region-specific U.S. terms. Here are the first five. The next few will be provided in a couple of days.

jimmies

Definition New England: tiny rod-shaped bits of usually chocolate-flavored candy often sprinkled on ice cream or pastries (such as doughnuts)

You may know these sundae toppings as sprinkles.

toboggan

Definition South/Midland: a long knitted cone-shaped cap with a tassel or pom-pom worn especially for winter sports or play

You’re probably familiar with the word toboggan as it refers to a long, flat-bottomed light sled made usually of thin boards curved up at one end, but some folks in the Southern and Midland United States also use it for a stocking cap. The word comes to English from the Canadian French tobogan, itself from a word of Algonquian origin that shares an earlier ancestor with the Micmac word tobâgun, meaning “drag made of skin.”

yinz

Definition Pittsburgh and environs: you guys, you all, y’all

Y’all know about yinz? If you enjoy reserving street parking spaces with chairs, eating sandwiches with French fries on them, and the colors black and yellow, the answer is maybe (who doesn’t love these things?). But Pittsburghers, or “Yinzers,” certainly do—they use yinz in addressing two or more persons.

pink stuff

Definition Midwest/Great Plains: a side dish consisting of gelatin, whipped cream, fruit, mini marshmallows, and sometimes nuts. [KC – I usually see this with green Jello, which makes me want to eat it even less. Wherever you go, though, someone always brings it to a potluck.]

This remarkable foodstuff goes by many names (and variable colors and ingredients) depending on where you live in the United States. As one of our editors, a native Midwesterner, reports: “I do believe the rest of the country calls it ambrosia salad. It is pink. Jello and whipped cream (usually) form the base, plus canned fruit cocktail, mini marshmallows, sometimes nuts.

sport pepper

Definition Chicagoland: a small, mild, yellow-green pepper that is pickled and used principally as a topping on a hot dog. [KC – How can you not love a special pepper that goes with your hot dog?]

Far be it for us to tell you how to festoon your frankfurter, but if you’re fixing to eat a wiener in Woodlawn or a sausage in Sauganash, locals may insist you include sport peppers amongst the fixings (and skip the ketchup). [KC – Oh no, there
must be ketchup and mustard (and I’d just keep the pepper for decoration).]

For now, I wish you a lovely day, far away from the pink stuff!

Kara Church | Technical Editor, Advisory | Knowledge Enablement

Pronouns: she/her | Call via Teams | jackhenry.com

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