Names for soft drinks in the United States

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Names for soft drinks in the United States vary regionally. Soda and Pop are the most common terms for soft drinks nationally, although other terms are used, such as, in the South, Coke (a genericized name for Coca-Cola). Since individual names tend to dominate regionally, the use of a particular term can be an act of geographic identity. [1] [2] The choice of terminology is most closely associated with geographic origin, rather than other factors such as race, age, or income. The differences in naming have been the subject of scholarly studies. Cambridge linguist Bert Vaux, in particular, has studied the "pop vs. soda debate" in conjunction with other regional vocabularies of American English. [3]

Contents

History

According to writer Andrew Schloss, "soda" derives from sodium, a common mineral in natural springs, and was first used to describe carbonation in 1802. [4]

Short article from the Washington Daily Star, District of Columbia, published on July 6, 1854, using the word "pop" to describe a beverage Word "pop" used for carbonated beverage 1854.jpg
Short article from the Washington Daily Star, District of Columbia, published on July 6, 1854, using the word "pop" to describe a beverage

The earliest known usage of "pop" is from 1812; in a letter to his wife, poet Robert Southey says the drink is "called pop because pop goes the cork when it is drawn, & pop you would go off too if you drank too much of it." [5] The two words were later combined into "soda pop" in 1863. Schloss gives the following years as the first attestations of the various terms for these beverages: [4]

YearTerm
1798Soda water
1809Ginger pop
1812Pop
1863Soda pop
1880Soft drink
1909Coke
1920Cola

Coke

In the Southern United States, "coke" is used as a generic term for any type of soft drink—not just a Coca-Cola product or another cola. This terminology is also used in areas adjacent to the traditional southern states such as western Kentucky, Southern Indiana and New Mexico. Several other locations have been found to use the generic "coke", such as Trinity County, California and White Pine County, Nevada, [6] although the small populations of these counties may skew survey results. A Twitter data scientist, however, found that while "soda" and "pop" dominate in the United States, the word "coke" (incl. "coca" or "cola") is by far the most common in other countries, including English-speaking ones. [7]

Pop

Price list at Chicago's Express Grill, showing the word "pop" at the bottom Maxwell Prices 2005.JPG
Price list at Chicago's Express Grill, showing the word "pop" at the bottom

"Pop" is most commonly associated with the Midwest and in most of the West, including the Mountain West and the Pacific Northwest. These include Illinois, Ohio, Minnesota, Michigan, Kansas, Oklahoma, Indiana, Iowa, Colorado, Oregon, Washington and Alaska. [8] [6]

Soda

"Soda" is most common in the northeastern states, California, Nevada, Arizona, [9] as well as Hawaii and a wide enclave or pocket around the Midwestern cities of St. Louis, Missouri, and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. [6] To a lesser extent soda is also fairly common further down the east coast in eastern Virginia, eastern Carolinas and coastal Florida. Here, soda is not too dominant but competes with multiple other terms such as "coke". Unlike other regions, the coastal south-east has a relatively higher degree of variance between local individuals in terms of what they prefer to designate their soft drink.

The sharper "soda/pop" divide line runs through western Pennsylvania and western New York, approximately through the Rochester area. Those west of the line (e.g., in Pittsburgh and Buffalo) say "pop" while those east of the line (e.g. Syracuse) use "soda".

Other names

See also

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cola</span> Carbonated soft drink

Cola is a carbonated soft drink flavored with vanilla, cinnamon, citrus oils, and other flavorings. Cola became popular worldwide after the American pharmacist John Stith Pemberton invented Coca-Cola, a trademarked brand, in 1886, which was imitated by other manufacturers. Most colas originally contained caffeine from the kola nut, leading to the drink's name, though other sources of caffeine are generally used in modern formulations. The Pemberton cola drink also contained a coca plant extract. His non-alcoholic recipe was inspired by the coca wine of pharmacist Angelo Mariani, created in 1863.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pepsi</span> Soft drink by PepsiCo

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coca-Cola Vanilla</span> Vanilla-flavored cola

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Coca-Cola Company</span> American multinational beverage corporation

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References

  1. ↑ Friedman, Megan (September 15, 2012). "Pop vs. Soda: A Regional Throwdown". Time . Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  2. ↑ Arbesman, Samuel (April 26, 2012). "The Invisible Borders That Define American Culture". The Atlantic . Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  3. ↑ "Pop, soda or Coke? Internet voters seek to settle debate". USA Today . September 12, 2002. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  4. 1 2 Schloss, Andrew (2011). Homemade Soda. North Adams, MA: Storey Publishing. p. 67. ISBN   9781603427968. OCLC   681503206.
  5. ↑ Southey, Robert (July 18, 1812). "2124. Robert Southey to Edith Southey, 18 July 1812". Romantic Circles. University of Maryland (published August 2013). Retrieved May 1, 2016.
  6. 1 2 3 "Soda vs Pop vs. Coke: Who Says What, And Where?". The Huffington Post . November 12, 2012. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  7. ↑ Condliffe, Jamie (July 9, 2012). "Soda Versus Pop, Visualized". Gizmodo . Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  8. ↑ Moser, Whet (September 9, 2012). "Pop vs Soda? I'll Show You Pop vs Soda". Chicago . Archived from the original on July 15, 2015. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  9. ↑ Florida, Richard (July 9, 2012). "Map of the Day: Soda vs. Pop vs. Coke". Bloomberg. Archived from the original on November 11, 2020. Retrieved May 12, 2023.
  10. ↑ Baker, Billy (May 30, 2018). "Can I have a tonic? No, not that tonic". The Boston Globe . Archived from the original on June 2, 2018. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  11. ↑ Baker, Billy (March 25, 2012). "In Boston, 'tonic' gives way to 'soda'". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on January 1, 2016. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  12. ↑ Jacobs, Ashlyn (September 27, 2020). "Slang in Different Regions of the U.S." Interverse Media. Archived from the original on January 19, 2024.
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