Vol. 41 No. 4 (1993)
Research Article

Some Informal Neighborhood and Street Names in Manhattan: From Alphabet City to The Dead End

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  • Irving Lewis Allen
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1179/nam.1993.41.4.219

Published 1993-12-01

Copyright (c) 1993 Maney

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Abstract

Abstract

An annotated glossary of thirty-five informal, often slang-like historical placenames of socially symbolic neighborhoods and streets in Manhattan is given. The list is limited to the more enduring names of probable New York origin and to similar names that took on highly specialized meanings in Manhattan. The glossary is preceded by a short essay which discusses the social uses and gratifications of informal placenames in city life.

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References

  1. Allen, Irving Lewis. The City in Slang: New York Life and Popular Speech. New York: Oxford,1993.
  2. Cohen, Gerald L. “The Origin of NYC’s Nickname The Big Apple.” Names 21 (March 1993): 23–28.
  3. Read, Allen Walker. “A Few Derivatives from The Big Apple ‘NYC.’” Comments on Etymology 21 (No. 8, 1992): 14.
  4. Shulman, David. “The Great White Way — Broadway.” Comments on Etymology 19 (No. 7, 1990): 33.
  5. Titcomb, Caldwell. “The Significance of ‘Sugar Hill.” Comments on Etymology 21 (Nos. 5–6, 1992): 29-30.