Pathros_1983
Soda water is called club soda, not to be confused with tonic water which is club soda with quinine in it.
Yosemite Babe said:
The ways of strange tribes continue to astonish me. Until now, I’d never heard this outside of a commercial.
Around here in Minnesota it is mostly pop. We even used to have The Pop Shoppe back in the old days that sold (surprisingly) nothing but pop, but that was in the refillable bottle days (when pop tasted BEST). I starting using soda because when I travelled I had to explain what I wanted.
-me- …and give me a large pop.
-high school dropout- A what?
-me- A large pop.
-hsd- What’s that?
-me- The stuff that comes out of the machine over there in the corner!
My brother spent 20 years in the Navy and the Marines would harrass him for his “midwest” accent whenever he accidentally ordered a pop instead of a soda.
So Hail Ants, what type of coke do you drink?
It’s pop here in Toledo, Ohio.
While being curious about this topic earlier, I found this interesting website: http://www.ugcs.caltech.edu/~almccon/pop_soda/
It tries to plot who says what and where. It has a nifty java applet that you can zoom in on.
FWIW, over here in the UK, we don’t use the term soda except when talking about soda water and the term pop is regarded as very old fashioned.
I think the norm here is to refer to the drink by it’s type or brand (Lemonade/Cola or Pepsi/Tizer) or if a generic term is needed: fizzy or sparkling drinks is what most people would say.
And then you get a beer.
**Works quite well. **
[/QUOTE]
Yeah, I guess it would.
I always ask for a Coke. (Not the generic “coke”, But Coca-Cola Coke)
“Whaddaya want?”
“Ya got Coke?”
“Naw. Will Pepsi do?”
(Gag)“How about root beer?”
Thank goodness for Barq’s.
Okay enough already. Now… it is a water fountain or a bubbler?
*Originally posted by K3v1n *
K3v1n,
Thanks for the site…I was wondering if anyone had done some kind of mapping on the regional variation of the terms.
I can understand the use of the term “Coke” (mostly a southeastern phenomenon), but not sure why the bicoastal (New England/east coast and west coast) pattern for “soda” versus the predominantely midwestern “pop”. I would be interested to hear any theories as to why and how the regional pattern emerged as it did.
Oh, and the correct term is “pop” - short for “soda pop”. Being a Midwesterner (I’m from Ohio), I wouldn’t want to “put on airs” and call it soda like those fancy Easterners do 
Pehaps carbonated drinks are called “tonic” in the Boston area because they may have been the original type of fizzy drink before the other flavours came on the scene. Just like people call all ball-point pens “Biros” because they were the first brand .
*Originally posted by K3v1n *
K3v1n,
Thanks for the site…I was wondering if anyone had done some kind of mapping on the regional variation of the terms.
I can understand the use of the term “Coke” (mostly a southeastern phenomenon), but not sure why the bicoastal (New England/east coast and west coast) pattern for “soda” versus the predominantely midwestern “pop”. I would be interested to hear any theories as to why and how the regional pattern emerged as it did.
Oh, and the correct term is “pop” - short for “soda pop”. Being a Midwesterner (I’m from Ohio), I wouldn’t want to “put on airs” and call it soda like those fancy Easterners do
cornflakes:
Two cases of Jolt a day!! GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!
I can assure you that in Southern California during the mid 1900s the generic term for a non-alcoholic carbonated beverage was “soft drink.” Asking for a “soda” would probably get you a soda water and asking for a “pop” would get you the sampe look you’d get it you exclaimed, “Oh, pshaw!”
One other term I’ve heard used (but only in one Southern California establishment) was “phosphate” but this may have referred only to fountain drinks made by adding a flavored syrup to carbonated water, not the ready-made, store-bought kind.
Growing up in St. Louis, we all called it “soda.” But, we had relatives in Decatur, IL, not very far away at all, and more or less the same longitude as St. Louis, who called it Pop. And I’ve met some people from Decatur later in life who called it Pop.
So there’s your imaginary latitude line dividing the Midwest on this issue. St. Louis: Soda. Drive an hour directly East to Decatur: Pop
As an Army brat I have heard many different versions.
In the south and Texas, noone blinks an eye is you ask for coke (although it is a bit confusing, many lives have been lost unnecessarily) Although, in my experience both soda and soft drink are also acceptable. My Texas grandad however says “sody pop”.
When I lived in Mass., tonic seemed used a lot however i believe that soda would not get you any strange looks. However, don’t order a milkshake there if you want ice cream in milk, you will receive flavored milk. You need to order a frappe.
I’ve known many midwesterners, and believe me nothing is worse than hearing them in their accents say “pop” I have always found it annoying.
Also, in the south if you want to have sweet tea, you only have to order tea. However Texans will serve unsweet unless otherwise specified.
My personal opinion: soda is the best word, then soft drink, then coke, and tonic and pop tied for last.
Thank you, thank you, thank you. You put it so well. I was trying to be open to the concept that some Southern Californians said “soda”, but to be honest, I can’t recall any. I think you are right-on about it all.
“Soft Drink” has been the word to use in S. Calif. for many, many decades. My dad was a native (as are my sisters and I) and I am sure he used the term through most or all of his lifetime. (He wasn’t one to pick up “new terms” easily, so I assume he grew up using it.) It has been the word to use, all during my lifetime as well.
Seltzer!!
From an Irish perspective, neither ‘soda’ nor ‘pop’ are used.
We generally use the word ‘mineral’ when refering to a soft drink… (eg one might say ‘I can’t drink alcohol because I’m driving - I’ll have a mineral instead’.)
Presumably, the origin of ‘mineral’ in this context is from ‘mineral water’, but the word is used for all manner of soft drinks - colas, fizzy orange drinks, etc…
Buffalo, New York – hardcore pop country. The term is defended quite vehimently, considering the onslaught of college students from soda-speaking Downstate that invade the region every fall.
Isn’t there some part of the country where phosphate is still the dominant term?
Studoggie said:
I don’t have an accent, YOU have the accent! 
POP, POP, POP!
Pop seems reasonable to me. Unlike soda and tonic it does not refer to a base beverage product. Want pop? Mix flavored syrup with soda water (essentially).
Thanks for reminding me of the Pop Shoppe, Swede Hollow! That brought back a few childhood memories of dumpster diving for returnable bottles.