Dialect in Los Gatos: We Say 'Soda' and 'Mow the Lawn'

Written by Jennifer Squires and Jacob Bourne:

San Jose area residents go to "garage sales" and drink "soda," but we just can't decide how to pronounce "mayonnaise."

These are just a few of the factoids about language in the United States that are depicted in a new series of maps created by a masters student in North Carolina State University.

Joshua Katz's maps have gone viral this month, spurring online debate about who says what where and why that is.

On the West Coast, the night before Halloween is simply "October 30th" but Michiganites, it's "Devil's Night." Near Philadelphia, it's "Mischief Night."

The regional differences in the term for a sweetened, carbonated beverage are also pronounced. Texas and many nearby Gulf states call it "coke" while much of the Midwest and Northwest use "pop." Here in California — as well as back East — it's "soda." Among those surveyed from in and around San Jose, more than 72 percent say "soda" and 11.8 percent use "coke." Another 9.6 percent term it "pop" and 6.4 percent use "soft drink." 

Katz, a graduate student in statistics, made the maps from Bert Vaux's online survey of English dialects.

The northern half of the U.S. says "garbage can" while the southern half prefers "trash can," though in San Jose about one-third of those surveyed reported that the two terms refer to different items. 

More than 52 percent of San Jose area residents don't think it's correct to refer to coleslaw as "slaw," though that's an appropriate term for the cabbage dish in the South.

Here in California — and throughout the West — a bear claw is a pastry. Elsewhere, people know the term but don't use it.

There's also divide with kitty-corner vs. catty-corner, the later of which being widely used in the South.

West Coasters have garage sales. Yard sales are more of an East Coast thing and, in a tiny area in the Dakotas and Nebraska, the events are called rummage sales.

In total, Katz mapped 122 dialect questions. See them here.

What unique vocabulary do we use in Santa Clara County and California? Share your favorite localisms in the comment section below.