Play Street
A "play street" is a street closed to vehicular traffic so that children can play. "Play streets" -- cited in New York since 1915 -- usually are designated during the summer,…
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Pasta e Fagioli (“Pasta Fazool”)
The next time you're at La Guardia airport, mention that someone, somewhere there, should serve this dish. 21 August 1937, Lima (Ohio) News, pg. 7, col. 3:Goin' to town with MARK…
MePa (Meat Packing District)
The "meat packing district" on the west side of Manhattan, around 14th Street, has turned into a "meet" market almost overnight. The new name is "Mepa" or…
Hash House Lingo
"Sunny side up!" Where does that come from? New York City (and Chicago) provided the nation with a hash house lingo that was spoken for over fifty years. Most of the lingo is lost to…
Jewish Penicillin
Chicken soup for the New York soul. (Dictionary of American Regional English)Jewish peniclllin nChicken souo.1968 DARE (Qu. HH30, Things that are nicknamed for different nationalities) Inf NJ30,…
Yellow Journalism
In the mid-1890s, Joseph Pulitzer's newspaper, the World, published The Yellow Kid. This is sometimes called the first comic in a newspaper. Joseph Pulitzer's and William Randolph…
Empire City, Empire State
New York State is the "Empire State," and New York City is the "Empire City." New York City's tallest building for many years was the Empire State Building. "Empire…
Curry Hill (curry + Murray Hill)
The Indian restaurant "Curry in a Hurry," at Lexington Avenue and 28th Street, helped give rise to the neighborhood nickname "Curry Hill." The neighborhood is just south of…
Koreatown
Koreatown is a new name for the area around West 32nd Street. A "Korea Way" street sign was dedicated in 1995. The Koreatown name is similar to Chinatown, although "Little…
Sweatshop (Sweat Shop, or Sweating Shop)
A "sweatshop" or "sweat shop" or "sweating shop" is a place where people work for very little pay ("sweat" wages). In New York and Chicago and Boston, the…
Superman; Superstar; Supermodel
New York City is just "super." It all began with Superman, followed by Superstar and Supermodel. SUPERMAN "Superman" was born in Germany in the 1890s, when Friedrich Nietzsche…
Brooklyn Side, New York Side (tenpins)
The terms "Brooklyn side" and "New York side" in bowling go back to around 1900. "Jersey side" and "New York side" are sometimes used now, but "Jersey…
Stick Ball
The New York City game. Here's "stick ball" and "stickball." 3 September 1922, New York Times, pg. E1:Games of tag, prisoner's base, relay racing, leapfrog races,…
Tar Beach
"Tar Beach" is the rooftop (often composed of tar) where one can sit and get a tan, as if on the beach. The term "tar beach" has been cited in print since at least 1941. New…
Johnny Pump
A "Johnny Pump" is a fire hydrant. It's a name that I don't hear much anymore. I found it first in the following novel, which is full of "classic" New York speech.…
Avenue of Heroes; Canyon of Heroes
New York City celebrates heroes. There were many large "tickertape parades" before the 1940s, but "Avenue of Heroes" and "Canyon of Heroes" seem to both were…
Hip-Hop
"Hip-hop" (also spelled "hip hop" and "hiphop") comes from New York City. Russell Simmons is planning a Hip-Hop Institute, museum and cultural center, probably for…
Big Apples Are Top of the Barrel
The big apples, the best fruit, are "top of the barrel." This was well known by the late 19th century. It was speculated that farmers often placed the best apples on top of the barrel to…
Ragtime
E. L. Doctorow's 1975 novel Ragtime is set in New Rochelle and in New York City. It is not known for certain that "rag time" can be claimed for New York City. However, when the…
Silicon Alley
"Silicon Alley" was always a name more than a place. It was meant to imitate California's Silicon Valley nickname. Mark Stahlman claims that he coined it and that he had Broadway in…