The Big Apple:

An etymological dictionary

Investigating the origins of American words, names, quotations and phrases. Over 40,000 entries.

G-Town (Galveston nickname)

"G-Town" is a nickname for Galveston (both the city and the island). "G-Town" probably borrows from Houston's nickname of "H-Town," a hip-hop nickname from about…

Houston Lite or Baby Houston

"Houston Lite" (or "Baby Houston") is a nickname for any city that attempts to grow into a large one, with tall skyscrapers like Houston has. Both "Houston Lite" and…

Land Between the Lakes (Steiner Ranch slogan)

"Land Between the Lakes" is a slogan of Steiner Ranch, a development between Lake Austin and Lake Travis, a few miles north of the city of Austin. Steiner Ranch features the University of…

Fun Central (Arlington slogan)

'Fun Central" is the Arlington Convention and Visitors Bureau city slogan, created in 2002. Arlington boasts "fun" attractions such as Six Flags Over Texas (the original Six…

Whole Wallet (Whole Foods nickname)

Whole Foods started its first store in Austin, Texas, in 1980. The food retailer is known for its organic foods -- and high prices. The nickname "Whole Wallet" was applied by at least…

Prisonville (Raymondville nickname)

The city of Raymondville is a small city in Willacy County in South Texas. Since at least 2006 (popularized by an October 2006 Texas Observer article), an unofficial nickname for Raymondville has…

Spaceman (Austin American-Statesman nickname)

The Austin American-Statesman is the daily newspaper for the capital city of Austin. The Democratic Statesman dates back to 1871, and today's newspaper is called "The Statesman" for…

Ice Cream Soda

The invention of the ice cream soda is usually attributed to Robert M. Green of Philadelphia (at the Franklin Institute in 1874) or Fred Sanders of Detroit (in 1880). John Robertson and Francis…

Texas BBQ Trail

"The Texas BBQ Trail" is a website of Central Texas barbecue places; the term "barbecue trail" became popular by the 1990s. The "Texas BBQ Trail" website surprisingly…

Texas Sausage Trail

The Texas Sausage Trail is not as established as the Texas BBQ Trail (that has its own promotional website). The term became popularized in the January 2003 Texas Co-op Power magazine with its…

Bubba-Q

"Bubba-Q" (also "Bubba Q" without the hyphen, or "bubba-q" without capitalization) is "barbecue" for a "Bubba" (Southern for "brother").…

Texas University (t.u.)

The University of Texas at Austin (UT) is called "Texas University" (always given lowercase as "t.u.") by the Texas A&M Aggies. The Aggies don't believe that their…

Veer (football offensive formation)

The "Veer" offensive formation (also called the "Houston Veer" or "Veer-T") is credited to University of Houston football coach Bill Yeoman (1962-1986), who installed…

“Two and barbecue”

"Two and barbecue" (or "two and barbeque") is a phrase that is probably most associated with baseball's College World Series. The event is double elimination -- lose two…