# Uniquely Distinct Americanisms **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 22, 2004, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676 "2004-01-22T22:56:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 24
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2004, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676/461 "2004-02-09T19:34:28Z")
> [@amarone](#): > > Another is school performance: honors roll, As & Bs. We had no such thing when I was at school in the Unless the National Curriculum has changed a good deal in the eight-odd years I’ve been gone, I think you might be blocking the memories of school reports. When I was in school there we certainly had As & Bs, as well as the attendant Cs & Ds & Es. Which, I suppose, brings up another Americanism, possibly. UK schools use A/B/C/D/E; American schools use A/B/C/D/F(ail). Which system (if either) do other nations use? ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2004, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676/462 "2004-02-09T19:36:24Z")
When I was a kid, there were plenty of parents who had bumper stickers proclaiming their teens’ participation in the high school football team – “Wayne High School Football Parent” and such. The “honor student” stickers developed quite a bit after that. I thought it was only fair – why should only athletes get braggin rights? ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2004, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676/463 "2004-02-09T19:50:31Z")
> [@dutchboy208](#): > > Unless the National Curriculum has changed a good deal in the eight-odd years I’ve been gone, I think you might be blocking the memories of school reports. When I was in school there we certainly had As & Bs, as well as the attendant Cs & Ds & Es. Oh, we certainly had those. We did not, however, get certificates twice a year declaring that we were “All As and Bs” students, which my kids get from their American schools. ---
**Author:** ![fortytwo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f9ae1b/32.png) [@fortytwo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fortytwo)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2004, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676/464 "2004-02-09T19:50:35Z")
I think in the UK you’re much more likely to get stickers of a humerous nature such as: I want to die in my sleep like my grandfather… Not screaming and yelling like the passengers in his car. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2004, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676/465 "2004-02-09T20:40:38Z")
> [@](#): > > Oh, we certainly had those. We did not, however, get certificates twice a year declaring that we were “All As and Bs” students, which my kids get from their American schools. We didn’t get these either. We just got our report cards three to six times a year. These days it seems schools (and any kind of institution) hands out certificates at the drop of the hat. And kids have graduation ceremonies upon completing Kindergarten, elementary school, and junior high; whereas, we just graduated once, from high school. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2004, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676/466 "2004-02-09T22:24:16Z")
> [@acsenray](#): > > We didn’t get these either. We just got our report cards three to six times a year. These days it seems schools (and any kind of institution) hands out certificates at the drop of the hat. And kids have graduation ceremonies upon completing Kindergarten, elementary school, and junior high; whereas, we just graduated once, from high school. Never understood that either. Why the big hoopla over high school graduation? None of my friends ever adequately explained this to me, to the point that they had to resort to offers of free food, sex, and even to violence, to get me to walk with them. To me, HS graduation is essentially a ceremony proclaiming to all in attendance that one is now barely qualified to hold a few entry-level jobs. The fact that I didn’t turn to dope, crack, get a girl pregnant, or any of the other things that lead to people dropping out isn’t an achievement to me. On the other hand, I’ll be somewhat proud of myself when I get out of college in May, and even prouder should I successfully complete a J.D. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2004, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676/467 "2004-02-09T22:29:36Z")
> [@dutchboy208](#): > > The fact that I didn’t turn to dope, crack, get a girl pregnant, or any of the other things that lead to people dropping out isn’t an achievement to me. It occurs to me upon rereading that sentence that this might be taken as somewhat insensitive. Will the jury please disregard this bit, and instead let it read “I don’t feel I accomplished anything in finishing high school.” ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2004, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676/468 "2004-02-09T22:56:17Z")
> [@dutchboy208](#): > > UK schools use A/B/C/D/E Hardly. A Levels are from A to E, GCSEs from A to G, National Curriculum acheivement from 10 to 1, and any other assessment is whatever the school decides to use. ---
**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2004, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676/469 "2004-02-10T01:39:16Z")
> [@](#): > > Why the big hoopla over high school graduation? None of my friends ever adequately explained this to me, to the point that they had to resort to offers of free food, sex, and even to violence I didn’t care and neither did my friends. I did for my parents. BTW, did you collect on the first two? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2004, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676/470 "2004-02-10T03:43:57Z")
> [@smiling bandit](#): > > I didn’t care and neither did my friends. I did for my parents. > > BTW, did you collect on the first two? I take it you mean elementary and middle school…? Didn’t go to school here then. Lived in England until I was 14. No grad ceremonies for anything less than a bachelor’s there. ---
**Author:** ![Neurotik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/91b2a8/32.png) [@Neurotik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neurotik)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2004, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676/471 "2004-02-10T04:55:16Z")
> [@dutchboy208](#): > > I take it you mean elementary and middle school…? > > Didn’t go to school here then. Lived in England until I was 14. No grad ceremonies for anything less than a bachelor’s there. I think he meant free food and sex. And of course, there’s a lot of hoopla over high school graduation because that’s just how it is. Probably goes back to when not a lot of kids went on to college and this marked their entry into the adult real world. ---
**Author:** ![ruadh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d2c977/32.png) [@ruadh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ruadh)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2004, 6:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676/472 "2004-02-10T06:14:32Z")
I always thought it was because high school sucked and everybody couldn’t wait to get out of it. That’s why I celebrated, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2004, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676/473 "2004-02-10T06:35:13Z")
> [@ruadh](#): > > I always thought it was because high school sucked and everybody couldn’t wait to get out of it. To each his own. Overall, I enjoyed high school, and was sad to leave many good friends. ---
**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2004, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676/474 "2004-02-10T13:48:50Z")
> [@](#): > > I think he meant free food and sex. Oh yeah. I hate ceremony and pomp. Its all a waste of my time, when I could be doing something fun. ---
**Author:** ![tanookie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/48db29/32.png) [@tanookie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tanookie)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2004, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676/475 "2004-02-10T14:51:41Z")
Neither of my mother’s parents went to high school. My mother and aunt actually went to college and they had the lovely choices of teacher and secretary to look forward to. I think the big party for graduating high school is that there are still people who remember a time when graduating high school was a really big deal. Today college is necessary for any job above the service sector much like a high school diploma was a couple of generations ago. ---
**Author:** ![boofy\_bloke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9e8a1a/32.png) [@boofy\_bloke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boofy_bloke)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2004, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676/476 "2004-02-11T01:21:27Z")
Defining your home town as “City, State” like “Philadelphia, Illinois” or (written) “Pennsylvania MA”. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2004, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676/477 "2004-02-11T04:36:27Z")
> [@boofy\_bloke](#): > > Defining your home town as “City, State” like “Philadelphia, Illinois” or (written) “Pennsylvania MA”. Don’t Canadians do that, too? ---
**Author:** ![ruadh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d2c977/32.png) [@ruadh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ruadh)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2004, 7:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676/478 "2004-02-11T07:12:06Z")
> [@OpalCat](#): > > Don’t Canadians do that, too? Yes (or “City, Province”) anyway. And in Ireland, with a few exceptions, addresses are “Town, County”. ---
**Author:** ![Scipio\_Africanus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/919ad9/32.png) [@Scipio\_Africanus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scipio_Africanus)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2004, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676/479 "2004-02-11T14:19:57Z")
> [@clairobscur](#): > > I would assume he meant that only an ignorant would believe that an irish city would be named after an american one, which, in all likehood, has been founded much later than its european counterpart. Indeed. It’s not even a city, it’s a small village. With Lord Baltimore’s castle not too far from it. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![sinjin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ebca7d/32.png) [@sinjin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sinjin)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2004, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676/480 "2004-02-11T22:30:28Z")
Sorry Ground hog dayers, this is not strictly speaking an American thing. It originated as a pagan is spring coming thing? and got converted into a Christian kind of thing (Candlemass), then finally got changed to an American secular thing. “If Candlemass day be dry and fair, The half of winter’s yet to come, and more, If Candlemass day be wet and foul, The half of winter’s gone at Yule” Oh and I was one of those American kids taught in school that it was improper to put an “and” in between numbers. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676.md?page=23) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uniquely-distinct-americanisms/225676.md?page=25)