Because I find language regionalisms fascinanting...

[editrx]

The "regionalism meme," gakked from ladychi (mine's going to be weird because I "grew up" in a number of wide-ranging areas of the US, plus was raised by a Scottish father and French mother

Comments

[prynne12]

I'm really entertained by the "bubbler" usage. That's kind of cute, actually.

[editrx]

"Bubbler" is really cool. What's interesting is that people in this part of New England all used it when I moved here. Now? Only people under the age of 30. It must be moving out of usage as a colloquialism. Which is a shame.

Same for "tonic" used for "soda" or "pop." I still tend to use "tonic" around here, as I'm tickled that it probably started as a word because a lot of the really old sodas that began as health tonics originated in New England, such as Moxie. :)

[prynne12]

Interesting.

As I say, all carbonated beverages are Cokes to me, but that could be because I grew up in a Coke-owned state...

[plaid_slytherin]

I find rummage sale interesting at a private home. To me, a rummage sale is, say, a church function or something like that. Bunch of people bring their stuff.

[madrobins]

I went to college in New London, CT, where subs were grinders, a usage I still find bizarre. And carbonated beverages (despite seven years in Boston) will always be soda to me. For the rest, despite the fact that I grew up in NYC, you and I are remarkably similar in usage. Creek might also be stream, and rummage sale might also be garage, but... yeah.

[lianneb]

20. In Canada, Every house has the underground space, and they are always called basements. My parents' basement includes a home office, a den, a spare bedroom, and a full bathroom. And they are not optional, since foundations need to go down so far.

[editrx]

I have lived in New England (Massachusetts, and now New Hampshire) since 1980, and our houses also have to have deep foundations because of the cold winters. But I've come to call what I used to call "basements" now "cellars" because that's what they're called, mostly, in New Hampshire. My cellar is a dirt floor with shelves for canned goods, and the raw laid stone granite foundation, which is a good 3-4 feet thick.