What wrong with "San Fran" and "Cali" anyway? (San Francisco: new home, neighborhood)

[toni650]

Originally Posted by SandyCo

In all honesty, there's nothing wrong with either one of those nicknames, but for me it's like fingernails on a chalkboard. I realize my response isn't logical; it's more of a visceral reaction.

Yep. There is no logical explanation. We just hate it. Seriously.

I notice "San Fran" being used with the younger generation and recent transplants. "Frisco" is super old fashioned and the worst one of all. (Again I can't explain why. It just feels wrong in my bones.) "Cali" is ok because it reminds me of LL Cool J In fact one of the owners of my local 7-11 had a shirt that said "Keep Calm and Cali On." I thought it was cute!

Just try not to say Frisco to me if you can help it. I'll bite my tongue on most of the nicknames, but if I hear Frisco from the same person multiple times I will (nicely) tell them I really hate that name. I wouldn't give them actual attitude about it though. It's their voice, their freedom of expression, they can say whatever the heck they want. But by the same token I'm allowed to say it sounds lame.

Just out of curiosity, muffincake, how did you get chastised over it?

[Macrina]

Originally Posted by SandyCo

Life is full of petty annoyances and we all learn to cope.

Most people know that CA is an abbreviation for California, not Canada. Most people also know that when you say "L.A.", you mean Los Angeles, not Louisiana.

I think I've seen it in urls, such as Yahoo.com.ca or Hotmail.com.ca ( Or maybe without the .com in there.) And Yahoo & Hotmail are just examples. I'm speaking of large businesses which have divisions in both Canada and the US.

[gnomatic]

CA is the International Standards Organization (ISO) 2 letter country code abbreviation for Canada. CAN is the ISO 3 letter country code abbreviation.

CN is the ISO code for China.

.ca is the country code top-level domain for Canada.


Most people in the USA thinks CA stands for California. It's not true for the rest of the world, especially if you are dealing with global business transactions and have to travel a lot.

[Macrina]

Originally Posted by gnomatic

CA is the International Standards Organization (ISO) 2 letter country code abbreviation for Canada. CAN is the ISO 3 letter country code abbreviation.

CN is the ISO code for China.

.ca is the country code top-level domain for Canada.


Most people in the USA thinks CA stands for California. It's not true for the rest of the world, especially if you are dealing with global business transactions and have to travel a lot.

Thanks for giving a more cohesive explanation of the meaning of CA.

[mateo45]

It's no coincidence that "Cali" and "San Fran" (or "SF") have increased with the popularity of the internet, simply because they're faster to type and more intuitive to use, as also noted previously by others.

So really the only folks who seem to get their knickers in a twist, are just a few self-styled "natives", who feel entitled to censor how other folks talk, especially if it's about "their home"! BTW, another pet peeve of the self-appointed "language police", is anyone who says "the Sierras" (a previous thread about that one went on for several pages…lol)!

Which means that in a way, it's just a sort of 'territorial imperative', perpetuated by a few annoying anal-retentives… kinda the same way an obnoxious neighborhood mutt will 'anoint' your yard to 'mark its turf'.

“Language evolves and moves on. It is an organic thing. It is not stuck in an ivory tower." – E.L. James

[dalparadise]

Originally Posted by ServoMiff

When referencing San Francisco, I just say "the city" to anyone from the area - if talking to outsiders, I just say San Francisco. I'm relatively new to the area though.

I've found that "the City" is recognized to mean "San Francisco" for about a 250 mile radius with no context needed.

[muffincake]

Originally Posted by dalparadise

I've found that "the City" is recognized to mean "San Francisco" for about a 250 mile radius with no context needed.

I think it's weird when people in places like Sacramento refer to San Francisco as "the city." Sacramento is a city too. Using the term "the city" to me feels like a country bumpkin thing to say, like it's just a reference to the novelty of being in an urban area. Talk about nails on a chalkboard.

[Gentoo]

Originally Posted by SandyCo

If you want to immediately be known as a newcomer or nonresident, please continue to use "Cali" and "San Fran". The locals never use these terms, and to us they sound "pretentious and douchey".

In all honesty, there's nothing wrong with either one of those nicknames, but for me it's like fingernails on a chalkboard. I realize my response isn't logical; it's more of a visceral reaction.

I've heard New Yorkers don't care for the name "Big Apple".

[Gentoo]

Originally Posted by LoriBee62

There's nothing wrong with it. Using it just lets folks know that you are new to the area.

As for folks getting their panties in a knot over it, you would get that in every big city, if you perpetually called it by a term no one used. If I tried to call Portland "Port-town", locals would laugh. Call St. Louis "Louie" or New York "Yorkie". You'd get the exact same reaction from the locals. So I don't buy the "elitist" nonsense.

^^^Exactly!

[Gentoo]

Originally Posted by muffincake

CA is an abbreviation for Canada sometimes, like USA.

People shortening California to Cali is deciding your nickname? I bet your name is Michael and you get fuming mad if someone calls you Mike. How dare they!

Ca. is Canada. CA is California