# How did "Mississippi" become the state name used when counting seconds? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 2, 2016, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-mississippi-become-the-state-name-used-when-counting-seconds/753669 "2016-05-02T05:02:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Jim\_s\_Son](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19adc/32.png) [@Jim\_s\_Son](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_s_Son)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2016, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-mississippi-become-the-state-name-used-when-counting-seconds/753669/21 "2016-05-03T18:11:41Z")
I remember there was a song about how to spell Mississippi that would play on some children’s show…Sandy Becker probably…in the early 1960s. One of these “bouncing ball over the lyrics” like Mitch Miller. “M I S S I S S I P P I It use to be so hard to spell, it used to make me cry. But now I’ve learned this simple trick there is no reason why” Perhaps that helped elevate Ole Miss over the other 49 states in time counting. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Interrogator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/76d3ee/32.png) [@The\_Interrogator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Interrogator)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2016, 11:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-mississippi-become-the-state-name-used-when-counting-seconds/753669/22 "2016-05-04T11:17:48Z")
> [@Interrobang](#): > > Alabama. > Arizona. > California. > Colorado. > > Etcetera. > > There are several states with four-syllable names, which means that any one of them, theoretically, could’ve become the standard word used (in the US) to estimate seconds when timing something. > > How did Mississippi get the nod? Why do we count “one Mississippi, two Mississippi” instead of “one Indiana, two Indiana” or “one South Dakota, two South Dakota”? Well Mr. Interrobang, I can’t complain! Mississippi using as a bench mark for one second was set by our society. You have know that society sets the standard e.g. supply and demand. It’s not official, _yet_, but perhaps I could potentially evaluate your question. My thesis (or theory to you) is that when something gains popularity, it just becomes a standard in our society. So firstly it is just exist exclusively to virtue of what our general public sets. I can’t really announce officially why this is really what it is. So all in all on you behalf, I think you should look more into it instead of taking my word. If you really don’t know, then by all means take my word. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2016, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-mississippi-become-the-state-name-used-when-counting-seconds/753669/23 "2016-05-04T13:16:34Z")
So, your answer to “why is something popular?” is to say that it’s popular, and if we don’t know why, then we should look into it? I’m not sure that really helps. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2016, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-mississippi-become-the-state-name-used-when-counting-seconds/753669/24 "2016-05-04T14:12:10Z")
What I like is that it’s all one closed mouth vowel. It’s also fun to shorten it to 'Sippi when you get past twenty. ---
**Author:** ![Ignatz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/3be4f8/32.png) [@Ignatz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ignatz)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2016, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-mississippi-become-the-state-name-used-when-counting-seconds/753669/25 "2016-05-05T02:51:33Z")
I’ve found one thousand, two thousand, three thousand, etc., to be quite accurate, especially for longer time periods-much better and easier than putting of “one” before every “thousand” as mentioned so many times above. Lately I practice it when I’m electric toothbrushing and it blips every 30 seconds. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2016, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-mississippi-become-the-state-name-used-when-counting-seconds/753669/26 "2016-05-05T03:48:34Z")
The counting practice is not named after the state. It’s named after the river. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2016, 10:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-mississippi-become-the-state-name-used-when-counting-seconds/753669/27 "2016-05-05T10:09:12Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Here’s a source putting the use back to the 1950s: > > [The Games and How They Were Played, by Gregory J. Christiano -- MyRecollection.com](http://www.myrecollection.com/christianog/games.html) [Here’s 1936](https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=%22one+mississippi+two+mississippi+%22&biw=1362&bih=584&source=lnt&tbs=sbd%3A1%2Ccdr%3A1%2Ccd_min%3A%2Ccd_max%3A31%2F12%2F1937&tbm=bks), possibly. Google books dates are not 100% reliable. But it does [seem](https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=mpGBAAAAIAAJ&dq=%22one+mississippi+two+mississippi+%22&focus=searchwithinvolume&q=1936)to be valid. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-mississippi-become-the-state-name-used-when-counting-seconds/753669.md?page=1)