Telling time in U. K. English

[Freeshadow]

@HarryT
Isn't the name Tara (the irish-rooted variant) connected with that?
AFAIR the names etymology was "the higher place"

[wodin]

Originally Posted by boxcorner

Viewpoint: American English is getting on well, thanks
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-14285853
26 July 2011

We think the daddy's a Chihuahua.

[Bookworm_Girl]

Originally Posted by SeaBookGuy

As opposed to going "down the Shore" (sic)?

Does "down the Shore" specifically mean to go to the beachfront in the East? Or does it also mean to go the boardwalk and other areas too?

One thing I haven't figured out in England is that seaside towns will use promenade, esplanade and parade to describe the waterfront areas. Are these terms interchangeable, or do they have different meanings?

I love walking on the Downs. It is so relaxing and great exercise for the body and spirit. The English footpath system is very impressive!

[issybird]

Originally Posted by Bookworm_Girl

Does "down the Shore" specifically mean to go to the beachfront in the East? Or does it also mean to go the boardwalk and other areas too?

Down the Shore is a phrase specific to New Jersey only. "I'm going down the Shore" is said rather than, "I'm going to the beach."

And then there's the Maine seaside, where going down means heading north.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by Bookworm_Girl

One thing I haven't figured out in England is that seaside towns will use promenade, esplanade and parade to describe the waterfront areas. Are these terms interchangeable, or do they have different meanings?

They're interchangeable. All mean a paved area for walking by the sea.

[boxcorner]

Originally Posted by HarryT

They're interchangeable. All mean a paved area for walking by the sea.

So Victorians could inhale ozone.

[Bookworm_Girl]

Originally Posted by HarryT

They're interchangeable. All mean a paved area for walking by the sea.

Thanks for the explanation! That mystery has perplexed me for awhile as I could not see any obvious difference.

[pholy]

Originally Posted by issybird

Down the Shore is a phrase specific to New Jersey only. "I'm going down the Shore" is said rather than, "I'm going to the beach."

And then there's the Maine seaside, where going down means heading north.

Down as go north is also true in Newfoundland - perhaps in the Maritime provinces as well, I haven't spent enough time there.

And I have no idea why.

[DMB]

The American expression "Downtown" puzzled me for a long time. I think it's what we call the "city centre". Of course, that reminds me of another strange usage in England. "The City" (short for the "City of London" aka the "Square Mile") is physically the oldest part of London, site of the original mediaeval walled city. Most of its buildings were destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666. It was rebuilt and then a good part of it was demolished by Hitler's bombs. There are still, however, some mediaeval survivals.

But "the City" is like "Wall Street" and can refer to the financial workings of the country as well as to a real location.

The "City of London" is quite distinct from the rest of London. London as a whole has its own Mayor and its police force, the Metropolitan Police Force ("the Met") with its headquarters at New Scotland Yard. The City has its own independent City of London Police Force. It has aldermen, a hangover from the middle ages, and liverymen, representing its livery companies or guilds. It also has a Lord Mayor, whose official residence is the Mansion House.

Every year a new Lord Mayor takes office and there is a splendid procession called the Lord Mayor's Show. It is a proverbially lavish display. In the days when everything was horse-drawn there was a saying: "After the Lord Mayor's Show comes the dung-cart", signifying something along the lines of "pride comes before a fall".

[issybird]

Originally Posted by DMB

The American expression "Downtown" puzzled me for a long time. I think it's what we call the "city centre".

Now I've got Petula Clark for an earworm, thankyouverymuch.

I had no idea that downtown was uniquely Yank. When something's in the common parlance I suppose you don't stop to question its etymology, it just sounds "normal".

I could look it up, but it's more fun to speculate. I wonder if downtown originated in New York, where the southern tip of Manhattan was settled first and spread northward? When you're in New York, downtown refers specifically to that part of the city, also known as Wall Street or the financial district. As an aside, the first capitol of the new USA was located on Wall Street.

"New York, New York, a helluva town, The Bronx is up but the Battery's down." Thank you, Comden and Green. Now move over, Petula.

Muddying the waters, downtown in New York can also just be part of town south of where you are at that moment; it's directional as well as a specific location.

[RDaneel54]

And even downtown is not always used for the city center in the U.S. In Westerville OH, they call their city center uptown. Bothers me as all the other cities in central Ohio use the ubiquitous downtown.

[Bookworm_Girl]

Originally Posted by DMB

The American expression "Downtown" puzzled me for a long time. I think it's what we call the "city centre".

Downtown probably sounds as odd to you as "High Street" does to us.

Originally Posted by issybird

Muddying the waters, downtown in New York can also just be part of town south of where you are at that moment; it's directional as well as a specific location.

I have seen "downtown" and "uptown" used in other cities too to mean south and north.

[SeaBookGuy]

Originally Posted by DMB

The American expression "Downtown" puzzled me for a long time. I think it's what we call the "city centre". Of course, that reminds me of another strange usage in England. "The City" (short for the "City of London" aka the "Square Mile") is physically the oldest part of London, site of the original mediaeval walled city. Most of its buildings were destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666. It was rebuilt and then a good part of it was demolished by Hitler's bombs. There are still, however, some mediaeval survivals.

But "the City" is like "Wall Street" and can refer to the financial workings of the country as well as to a real location.

The "City of London" is quite distinct from the rest of London. London as a whole has its own Mayor and its police force, the Metropolitan Police Force ("the Met") with its headquarters at New Scotland Yard. The City has its own independent City of London Police Force. It has aldermen, a hangover from the middle ages, and liverymen, representing its livery companies or guilds. It also has a Lord Mayor, whose official residence is the Mansion House.

Every year a new Lord Mayor takes office and there is a splendid procession called the Lord Mayor's Show. It is a proverbially lavish display. In the days when everything was horse-drawn there was a saying: "After the Lord Mayor's Show comes the dung-cart", signifying something along the lines of "pride comes before a fall".

A tourist is unlikely to run across this, but in the outer boroughs of New York City, one will hear Manhattan referred to as "the City" (as in "We're going into the city tomorrow (from Brooklyn)"). There are some municipalities in the States where the local officials, usually known as the town (city) Council elsewhere, are officially the Board of Aldermen.

[vans]

Originally Posted by DMB

The American expression "Downtown" puzzled me for a long time. I think it's what we call the "city centre". Of course, that reminds me of another strange usage in England. "The City" (short for the "City of London" aka the "Square Mile") is physically the oldest part of London, site of the original mediaeval walled city. Most of its buildings were destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666. It was rebuilt and then a good part of it was demolished by Hitler's bombs. There are still, however, some mediaeval survivals.

But "the City" is like "Wall Street" and can refer to the financial workings of the country as well as to a real location.

The "City of London" is quite distinct from the rest of London. London as a whole has its own Mayor and its police force, the Metropolitan Police Force ("the Met") with its headquarters at New Scotland Yard. The City has its own independent City of London Police Force. It has aldermen, a hangover from the middle ages, and liverymen, representing its livery companies or guilds. It also has a Lord Mayor, whose official residence is the Mansion House.

Every year a new Lord Mayor takes office and there is a splendid procession called the Lord Mayor's Show. It is a proverbially lavish display. In the days when everything was horse-drawn there was a saying: "After the Lord Mayor's Show comes the dung-cart", signifying something along the lines of "pride comes before a fall".

In my part of England when going to London, it is common to say that you are "going to the City". Everyone will know which city you mean.

[taosaur]

Originally Posted by SeaBookGuy

A tourist is unlikely to run across this, but in the outer boroughs of New York City, one will hear Manhattan referred to as "the City"

Originally Posted by vans

In my part of England when going to London, it is common to say that you are "going to the City". Everyone will know which city you mean.

I think that's common in the outlying areas of pretty much any large metro area.

Originally Posted by RDaneel54

And even downtown is not always used for the city center in the U.S. In Westerville OH, they call their city center uptown. Bothers me as all the other cities in central Ohio use the ubiquitous downtown.

Well, Westerville is a 'burb close enough to Columbus that people would pretty much assume if you said "downtown" you meant downtown Columbus.

I wouldn't swear by it, but I had the impression "downtown" referred to lower-numbered streets and avenues.