Comments on: What Do You Call This Drink?

By: Daan Van der Merwe

Daan Van der Merwe — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 06:45:21 +0000

I don’t know if Gerhi agrees but to my knowledge 98% of South Africans call it “cold drinks” and 2% “mineral water”.

I really root for you regarding that parachute heist being on your property.

By: Dale Emery

Dale Emery — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 07:15:10 +0000

In the ’60s and ’70s in southern Maine and neighboring parts of New Hampshire, we called carbonated drinks “tonic.”

By: Tami Meyers

Tami Meyers — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 08:28:26 +0000

Better yet, find D.B. Cooper and convince him to pay you to write a book about “the missing years” of his imfamous life! (all rights consigned to you since he can’t come out of hiding to claim them!) Bet you’d make more than he did on the original heist.

By: Debra

Debra — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 09:34:20 +0000

I’m in Western Australia and I call them cool drinks or by their brand name if I want a specific drink, Coke, Fanta, Solo, etc then sometimes it will be by flavour eg. lemon, ginger beer, cola etc etc. Toilets are called toilets but individual people will give them pet names like dunny, loo, the ladies and a number of other names though I think these are the more common.

By: Charlotte Babb

Charlotte Babb — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 10:29:43 +0000

Since Coca Cola was invented in Atlanta GA, it figures that most of the folks (like me) who call carbonated drinks “cokes” come from the US Southeast.

Locally in South Carolina, these drinks were also called “dopes” back in the 30s-50s, since at one time, there were more pharmaceuticals thought involved and less sugar and caffeine.

That is also the (possibly apocryphal) story that ice cream sundaes were sold on Sunday because the carbonation from the drinks poured over the ice cream “soda” was though “intoxicating”.

By: M.L. Eqatin

M.L. Eqatin — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 13:25:20 +0000

I remember when I was in York and ordered ‘lemonade’ off the menu I got a carbonated drink that appeared to be 7up.

By: Karla

Karla — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 13:36:35 +0000

Where are you from if you say “soda pop?” I grew up in Kansas and that’s what we say. But in Michigan it was Soda. In Indiana it’s just about anything I’ve heard it called soda, pop and coke — all three. I’m fascinated by colloquialisms and regional dialects. Fun stuff, Randy!

By: Karla

Karla — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 13:37:32 +0000

PS If you find money on your property, call me.

By: Carrie Stuart Parks

Carrie Stuart Parks — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 13:52:04 +0000

I was teaching in NJ (foreign country) and said there was a pop machine downstairs. I had to repeat myself as I brought so much humor to the group.

Randy, Randy, Randy, I can’t believe you’re coming to Coeur d’Alene and I’m not going to be able to attend your workshop!!!! I’m already signed up for another workshop in art. Aaaaarrrrrrggghhhhh!

By: Gerhi Janse van Vuuren

Gerhi Janse van Vuuren — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 14:12:38 +0000

Depending on who you are speaking to in South Africa it will be a cold drink or a cooldrink. Spelled as one word or two words. The Afrikaans would be “koeldrank” which is exactly the same, only translated.

Pepsi is virtually unknown in South Africa so most people drink Coke. A favourite Afrikaner drink is Brandy and Coke.

Lots of people also refer to brand names like Tab and Fanta if they drink something specific. Nobody will know what you are talking about if you ask for a soda. You will most likely get Soda Water.

By: Brian T. Carroll

Brian T. Carroll — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 15:27:29 +0000

Now ask yourself what you call the room where you sit guests when they visit, and what you call the piece of furnature they sit on and maybe sleep on if they spend the night. I once saw a map that used this to show where California settlers had come from. If you look at California on the Coke vs. Soda map, you see California has New Englanders and Southerners, but not many from, say, Oregon. (Oregoners would say there’s a reason for that.) It’s likely, then, that D.B. Cooper stayed pretty close to where he landed. He might have even changed his name and used his penchant for wild plots to start writing fiction. We’re on to you, Randy.

By: Livinus

Livinus — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 16:01:37 +0000

Some people call it mineral!

By: Sonja Hutchinson

Sonja Hutchinson — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 16:13:32 +0000

When I lived in Greece, we ordered “coca” when we wanted a carbonated beverage. Unless it was the lemon-lime version (like Sprite) we asked for “lemonita.”

As for the restrooms, we called them “WC” which is short for “water closet.”

By: Debbie Thorkildsen

Debbie Thorkildsen — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 16:17:55 +0000

Here in Ontario, Canada we call it pop. When we go to the States, we are careful to call it a soda. I always thought that was the regional difference. Thanks, Randy, for the education in more than just writing.

By: Cathy

Cathy — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 16:41:16 +0000

I’ve lived in Oregon all of my life. I grew up about 40 miles SE of Portland and later married and moved east of the Cascades. I’ve heard it called coke, pop, soda, or by the name of the flavor or Brand. Pop is probably the word I hear and use the most when not referring to a specific kind.

By: Paul D

Paul D — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 17:01:26 +0000

My family just had a Japanese exchange student for a week, and she said “cola” refers to all carbonated beverages in Japan.

By: Gina

Gina — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 17:22:06 +0000

As a teen I worked at a concession stand at the beach club in NY. A lady with a foreign accent asked me for a pop. I thought “ice pop.” After she refused several of my suggestions, and I stared at her puzzled, I finally figured out she wanted a soda. Now living here in the midwest, it’s still hard for me to say pop when what I really want is a soda!

By: Peg

Peg — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 20:43:18 +0000

This is why I like writing historicals! You use the terms prevalent to the era. *grin*

Now, would I be dating myself if I remark that, when I was a teen (in the upper midwest) the term ’soda’ meant an ice cream drink with a carbonated beverage — think Root Beer Float. The Walgreen stores of the day all had a Soda Fountain. Yes, the ’soda jerk’ who stood behind the counter ready to mix up your Cherry-Lime Phosphate and who wore the stereotypical cap seen in Normal Rockwell paintings. only this was in the 50’s. *grin* My favorite drink was a Cherry Coke, made with rich cherry syrup and Coca Cola syrup pressurized and mixed with carbonated water - maybe club soda? - yum! Nothing like the canned product available today.

By: Camille

Camille — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 22:02:22 +0000

Cathy - I think I’m in your stompin grounds.

It’s Pop here in Oregon, and a Coke means the actual brand name drink. If you order a coke in a restaurant, they might ask, “Is Pepsi okay?”

DB Cooper drinks Diet Coke and watches LOST.

By: yeggy

yeggy — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 02:35:37 +0000

I’m from the Northern Territory in Australia and have also lived in Queensland and South Australia and visited New South Wales and Victoria. What goes for Western Australia goes for us all. (Sorry haven’t visited Tasmania, yet.) We would add ‘long drop’ to toilets. But the sign in malls, airports etc would be toilets.

The one expression that has a lot of regional differences in Australia is the nomenclature for what you wear when you go swimming: swimming costume, swimmers, bathers, togs and cossie.

BTW Debra said:
I’m in Western Australia and I call them cool drinks or by their brand name if I want a specific drink, Coke, Fanta, Solo, etc then sometimes it will be by flavour eg. lemon, ginger beer, cola etc etc. Toilets are called toilets but individual people will give them pet names like dunny, loo, the ladies and a number of other names though I think these are the more common.

By: Christophe Desmecht

Christophe Desmecht — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 04:45:53 +0000

A restroom in Dutch is referred to as WC (Water Closet) or toilet (from French). As for soda drinks, we call them “frisdrank”, which means cool drink. Since Afrikaans leans in with Dutch so closely, I’m guessing this is the reason why there is such a similarity. Up to some years ago, all soda drinks were referred to as “lemonade” (limonade), but these days I hardly ever hear that anymore.

By: Klara

Klara — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 18:03:17 +0000

I’m from the UK, and we say pop. If you ask for soda, you get soda water. Basically here, soda is anything that you put in a soda machine and it comes out fizzy. I stayed with a family in Germany once there were obsessed with putting everything into this soda machine.

If you ask for lemonade, you’ll get fizzy lemon soda. If you ask for a coke or cola, you’ll get a Coca cola or a Pepsi.

Even though I’m British, I’ll find myself occasionally using American words, because out media is so dominated by the US, that even if we don’t use the words, they sound ‘right’, or more common in fiction.

By: Klara

Klara — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 18:05:57 +0000

I did have a funny incident in Dublin, Ireland, where I asked for a lemonade, and the barman frowned and said “a 7up?” and I replied “I don’t mind what brand you give me.”

So, in Ireland, ask for a 7up to get a fizzy lemon soda.

By: Rebecca

Rebecca — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 04:09:42 +0000

i’m very confused as to what to ask for when i go to the U.S in december. i am from victoria in australia and drink what is called soda water here. it would be a disaster if i couldn’t get my vodka, lime and soda’s!! if anyone could help me out who has been to the u.s, it would be greatly appreciated.