Pop Vs. Soda

[Tybee Swing 286]

Nobody down here calls it "pop", unless they're a recent transplant from the north, and we do get lots of transplants.

 

We generally call it Coke, but it depends on how it's used. Let's say I'm going to the store to pick up things for a party, and I'm coming back with several varieties. I'll ask, "What kinds of soda do you want me to get?" So, when we really mean it generically, we (at least my family) call it soda.

 

What we prefer: Diet Coke. My husband drinks gallons of it every week. I only drink carbonated beverages occasionally. When we're out, I order what most true southerners drink....tea! The word "tea" means one thing only, and all waiters and waitresses in the South know this: cold, sweet, iced tea. Since I don't do sugar, I have to order "UNSWEET tea", strong emphasis on unsweet. Half the time I still get sweet tea and have to send it back for unsweet. I'm not exaggerating!

[havefuninsun 122]

The word "tea" means one thing only, and all waiters and waitresses in the South know this: cold, sweet, iced tea. Since I don't do sugar, I have to order "UNSWEET tea", strong emphasis on unsweet. Half the time I still get sweet tea and have to send it back for unsweet. I'm not exaggerating!

 

I've had to learn to like unsweet tea myself, but girl, nothing is better on a hot summer day than a tall glass of sweet ice tea with a lemon slice.

 

We went out to dinner with the kids recently and one of the boys ordered sweet tea and the waiter said, "we only have unsweet." You could have heard a pin drop. He then ordered a "coke" -- and after the waiter left, he said, "this is the SOUTH!! No SWEET tea?!?" I was gonna go into the fact we are really a mid-atlantic state, but somehow I don't think he really cared at that moment

 

On Thanksgiving, I'm gonna drink me some good sweet tea though. It's the proper thing to do.

[sensualtouch 16]

Sometimes, I refer to soft drinks as a coke or pepsi, in the generic sense, no matter what brand it actually is. However, being almost obsessive as to accuracy, I usually call my soft drink by its actual brand name: Coke, Pepsi, Dr. Pepper, Royal Crown (usually with a Moon Pie, of course), etc.

 

A Cheerwine salute to you.

[NCcuriouscpl 15]

Yes, we in the South love our Cheerwine!!

 

I grew up in New England tho, where a 'soft drink' was actually called 'tonic'!

Yep, sounded like you were drinking medicine! Of course, I'm dating myself there!!

 

I now live in the land of 'tea', where you'd better let the waitress know if you want it UNsweet or you will get a very sugary drink. And you order a soft drink or soda when you want something 'fizzy'. :rollseyes

 

TGIF ALL!! It's time to party!

 

MsNCCurious

[SCcpl40 74]

We call it a soft drink.

[savpagancpl 15]

When I was in the military I got to travel the world, and you hear some odd things, originally I am from Portland Oregon, there it's Pop, being stationed in GA I have had to adapt to Soda so people dont look at me like I'm a retard, My wife is from Ny there it's soda, I have been place's where it's Coke, or Pepsi regardles of brand and flavor. It's kinda funny, how many things are differant, in the North West Extacy is called "E" in the south it's "X" damn it now I am really gonna start looking for stuff thats differant between the area's thanks.

[SnakeBabe 51]

I LOVE the link to the map. Moving from Chicago to Las Vegas we had to make an effort to stop saying pop and say soda. Now I find myself saying soda or coke.

 

Hugs and Hissessss,

Maria

[nwmifun 16]

The north won the war. It's called pop. Soda is that stuff you stick in the fridge to keep it from stinking!!!

[nwmifun 16]

lol - that thinking has never been popular when we bring it up in the south.

[Gr8dad2 15]

Well I guess I am an ol timer from the Boston area and when I was growing up it was 'TONIC".. now I am in Philly and its soda..when I was real young I had a job as a carbonation engineer(soda jerk)

[untamedhawk 15]

I've always called it Coke - and those that don't around here give a funny look as if I was asking for the powder :-D

[MRnMSbhaven 45]

Coke. It's always Coke. I don't care if you serve me Pepsi but I'm ordering Coke so stop asking if Pepsi is ok!

 

MSBhaven

[playinginmacon 15]

LOL. Y'all are too funny.

 

It's soda and a Coke is a Coke. I hate traveling in pop country where when I say I want a coke they give me a pepsi. I'll drink either, I'm not that picky, but they are different drinks and when I want one, the other won't do.

 

Do you take your grits with sugar or salt? Or maybe I should be asking if you know what grits are.

[Youngcalcpl 125]

Growing up half on the west coast and the second half on the east coast I'd say this is a topic that has always annoyed me.

 

I call it soda. Everyone I know out here on the west coast seems to say the same thing.

 

BUT when I lived in Buffalo NY they called it POP, and it drove me nuts. Not Pop like the sound but like one would say PAP. They did the same thing with words like Pasta(pronounced "Past ah" for them), or Plaza, or Mazda. It still makes me shiver when I hear people say it like that. Hence another reason why I will never move back to NY.

[curiouscpl0416 15]

I usually say Soda, but Coke occasionally Pop(s) in there too.

[curiouscpl0416 15]

I LOVE the link to the map. Moving from Chicago to Las Vegas we had to make an effort to stop saying pop and say soda. Now I find myself saying soda or coke.

 

Hugs and Hissessss,

 

Maria

 

(Sprout here) And thus explains my previous post... I was born and raised in Las Vegas, and have lived most of my life, since leaving home, in the South... excepting the 4 months I spent in Great Lakes, Illinois while going to Corps School when I was in the Navy, and the 8 or 9 months we (DH & I) spent in Philly right after we were married. DH was also in the Navy and his ship was in dry-dock at the time.

 

Occasionally I'll even say "soda pop".

[MRnMSbhaven 45]

Do you take your grits with sugar or salt? Or maybe I should be asking if you know what grits are.

 

I'm a bad southern girl...I take them with sugar! About 16 packets of it to be precise. facelick

 

MSbhaven

[twoforone100 45]

It is and always will be a coke.

[Majikcream 15]

Ohhh Julie, I'm from Michigan, I've called it Soda for years now. Some brands still say, Flavored Soda, on the can/bottle. The only ones that say Pop, is usually in the name, ie; Red-pop.

[two4youinswva 3,068]

Going to offer a visual aid.

 

Generic names for soft drinks by county.

[LikeMinds321 1,527]

two4youinswva said:

Going to necro this thread to offer a visual aid.

 

Generic names for soft drinks by county.

So this is what you're doing on a Saturday night, digging up a thread that hasn't been posted on since 2007.

 

And me...replying to it.

 

I'm a "Popper"

 

LM

[two4youinswva 3,068]

So this is what you're doing on a Saturday night, digging up a thread that hasn't been posted on since 2007.

 

And me...replying to it.

 

I'm a "Popper"

 

LM

 

Yes, I lead the exciting swinger lifestyle.

[LFM2 1,482]

Yes, I lead the exciting swinger lifestyle.

 

Geez, me too. I'm reading this thread.

[SW_PA_Couple 4,019]

Geez, me too. I'm reading this thread.

Not me. I'm at a wild party using a fifty-inch LCD TV screen to demonstrate to a room full of naked people how The Swingers board works. The host and hostess are serving pop.

 

~M

[rpu3 630]

Funny, I've lived equally in soda country and pop country. I've always called it soda, even though the formative years were in pop country.

 

And I did read this last night, but I was going to try to look less "I didn't have any plans for Saturday night" by waiting until morning to post!

[Guest warrencouple]

I generally ask for a "Coke" and tend to call it coke. I don't generally refer to it as "soda" or "pop." I think, when I was a kid, I did call it "pop" though.

 

I think I use coke as a kind of generic term, although it helps in restaurants, as I ask for a coke, and either get a Coke, or get asked "is Pepsi OK?" At which point I huff, and puff, and storm right out!

No, not really, I drink either.

 

BTW, Michigan born, and raised.

Jason

[N8ture Girl 318]

I went with "other". I call it by its name, Dr Pepper perferably, Coke (if it has Jack in it ) I dont recall ever asking for it by soda, but soda is used commonly here in my neck of the woods.

[Speed & Trixie 162]

It's pretty much "soda" in Denver. I'm from Chitown, so I rebel and call it "pop."

 

Speed says "soda" so I guess we're a blended family.

 

Trixie

[SW_PA_Couple 4,019]

. . . Speed says "soda" so I guess we're a blended family.

OK, time to hyjack the thread. How many of you call a milkshake a "frappe"?

 

~M

[Begood03 15]

I say pop, my wife says soda.

[likkit69 17]

soda or sody, yeah sometimes the hick really comes out in me.

[Guest screaminggood]

I grew up in south Texas where we called it "sodawater." But I married a "pop" or Pepsi man. Now, we usually call it "coke."

 

Except....Dr. Pepper is a Texas creation. Everyone has affectionately shortened it to its' abbreviation.

 

....the other day, I had to hide my laughter when I realized I said, "I'd like a DP." How this lifestyle changes us!

[CXXC 435]

I have the miss-fortune OR fortune to have been all over the globe. And from a very young age, I was instrcted by my father to call any carbonated beverage one of two things;

1. Carbonated Beverage

2. Cola

 

No matter where I traveled, I have NEVER had any confusion with it. I generally use cola tho! Even in the 70's when 7-up was the un-cola. Then again, I never liked that stuff.

[normals 21]

Lots of things are different down under in Australia and one of the curious things is that we all speak the same. Even the lingual experts cant tell what part of the country we are from by listening to our accent and its over 4000 km across our little island and 3000 km top to bottom.

 

Although we have some differences among individuals we mostly refer to the brand, coke, Pepsi, for cola based drinks and then call the rest "Soft Drinks".

 

We Hardly ever call lemonade - 7up, Dr. Pepper is rare, and neither pop nor soda are common at all.

[bobo 16]

Oh the contraversy. Is it pop? Is it Soda? Is it Coke? What do you call it.

 

This map shows the US breakdown of where what term is used.

 

So what do you call it?

 

Had aan uncle who called a coke , or any other drink a dope. He was born in maybe the 1890's.

[divenaked 318]

I grew up hearing it called a soft drink (north Alabama), or "cold drink". I usually order by brand, if I order it at all. Ms Dive (who prefers Pepsi) will order a co-cola (showing her redneck roots), and will be pleased when the waitress asks if Pepsi will be ok.

[Baconheads 397]

Where I grew up, (in Neberaska) we called it "pop." I now call it soda, but will drink neither pop nor soda unless it's tonic water mixed with a liberal amount of gin or vodka.

 

We also used to call a small river tributary a "crick," nowadays known as a creek.

[Big Rock 173]

We've always called it Soda. We drink a lot of RC where I'm from and so don't say Coke. Pop is just wrong.

[charms123 52]

Philly and the burbs... Soda

[Guest softswingpei]

We Canadians always, or almost always, call soda pop "pop". Sole exception might be Kim Mitchell's song "Go for Soda".

 

Well, I learned something - I though ALL Americans called soda pop "soda"!

[Coupleerotic22 1,417]

A Southern boy here, we say coke as the generic term we use for "soda".

 

"There is a coke machine down the hall."

 

And we use coke and Coke in the same conversation:

"Can you get me a coke out of the frig?" "Sure, what do you want?" "A Coke is fine."

 

It is just what we are raised on, and I still won't drink Pepsi unless I am hard pressed, it just doesn't taste right.

[a_d_xxx 663]

Call me overly pedantic but I always ask for the drink I want by name: Coke, Sprite, Ginger ale... I cannot remember the last time I used a generic term, but it was probably "pop".

 

As an aside, years ago I worked for the design firm owned by the Cott Corporation (the makers of RC Cola) and it was considered politically correct to order a 'cola beverage' when in a restaurant (to avoid mentioning the competitors by name).

 

D

[BigNikki 43]

Big Nikki here.

 

For those interested, DARE, DARE | DICTIONARY OF AMERICAN REGIONAL ENGLISH, tells us where the griddle cakes are on the skillet and where the flap-jacks are on the frying pan.

 

-- Big Nikki

[Powerglide 235]

Grew up in western New York (Corning) where we all called it "pop." Went to camp where there were a lot of kids from NYC - they called it "soda." At first I thought they were talking about an ice cream soda. Later moved to Pittsburgh, where it's called "pop." I'll bet that somewhere there's a linguist who has a map showing which terms are used where.

[Alura 2,766]

The following conversation might have happened in any Pharmacy's Soda Fountain in the mid-1950s in Tulsa, Oklahoma:

 

"What'll ya have, Alura?"

 

"Gimmiemea Coke, Henry."

 

"What kind?"

 

"Dad's Root Beer."

 

"You want a Float?"

 

"Why not, It's hotternhell out there."

 

"Comin' right up!"

[two4youinswva 3,068]

I'll bet that somewhere there's a linguist who has a map showing which terms are used where.

 

From the first post in this thread.

This map shows the US breakdown of where what term is used.

 

(I can laugh because I've done the same thing myself many times. )

[weloveeachother 29]

Live in the Hill Country in Central Texas. I guess everybody pretty much says Coke when referring to soft drinks.

 

I moved to California after high school and lived there for about 3 years and have called it Soda ever since....44 years old now..