Lego vs. Legos: Americanism? Regionalism?

[Wilson Gray]

At least 40 years, Beverly?! Damn! "Unhip" is one thing, "totally
clueless" is another. I thought that Lego was something new, like
within the past five years or so. I remember Lincoln Logs, but that's
about it. IAC, thank you for the description of it. "Live and learn,"
to coin a phrase.

-Wilson

On 7/30/07, Beverly Flanigan <flanigan at ohio.edu> wrote:
> ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Beverly Flanigan <flanigan at OHIO.EDU>
> Subject:      Re: Lego vs. Legos: Americanism? Regionalism?
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Legos are plastic blocks with interlocking sides for stable
> constructions--very popular with kids for at least 40 years, I
> think.  They're a Danish (or German?) product, hence the original European
> pronunciation of [lego] and the only pron. we heard when we first bought
> them for our son about 35 years ago.  Over the years I gradually heard the
> pron. change to [lEgo], a normal English shift probably boosted by the
> waffle ad.  I was just curious to see if anyone still said [lego]--not
> because I'm judgmental about it but simply because it's my 35-year habit.
>
> Beverly
>
> At 04:52 PM 7/30/2007, you wrote:
> >---------------------- Information from the mail header
> >-----------------------
> >Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> >Poster:       Wilson Gray <hwgray at GMAIL.COM>
> >Subject:      Re: Lego vs. Legos: Americanism? Regionalism?
> >-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> >I've heard only [lEgo] (<sigh!> Yes, I do remember "Leggo my Eggo"). I
> >had no idea that [lego] was a possible pronunciation. Before I heard
> >the [lEgo] pronunciation, I said [ligo] in my mind and I'd since
> >assumed that [lEgo] was a foreign pronunciation of some sort, since it
> >doesn't match the spelling. I've never had occasion to discuss Lego in
> >real life and I'm not even really sure what it is. A game of some
> >sort, I suppose.
> >
> >-Wilson
> >
> >On 7/25/07, Beverly Flanigan <flanigan at ohio.edu> wrote:
> > > ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> > -----------------------
> > > Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> > > Poster:       Beverly Flanigan <flanigan at OHIO.EDU>
> > > Subject:      Re: Lego vs. Legos: Americanism? Regionalism?
> > >
> > -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> > >
> > > I've never heard anything but "Legos."  But more interesting to me is the
> > > shift in pronunciation (understandable in AmEng) from [lego] to [lEgo], as
> > > in "Leggo my Eggos" (remember that one?).
> > >
> > > At 02:56 PM 7/25/2007, you wrote:
> > > >---------------------- Information from the mail header
> > > >-----------------------
> > > >Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> > > >Poster:       James Callan <james.callan at COMCAST.NET>
> > > >Subject:      Lego vs. Legos: Americanism? Regionalism?
> > > >-----------------------------------------------------------------------
> > --------
> > >
> > > >
> > > >On his blog, Jeopardy champ Ken Jennings recently discussed what one
> > > >reader considered an error in his book Brainiac: Lego vs. Legos. Jennings
> > > >says "Legos," which LEGO (the company) and many Lego fans don' t care for.
> > > >As Jennings says:
> > > >
> > > >Some households say "Let's play with Lego." Others (a majority in America,
> > > >I'm guessing) say, "Let's play with Legos."
> > > >(http://ken-jennings.com/blog/?p=496)
> > > >
> > >
> > > >I say "play with Legos" -- born in '70, raised in Wisconsin's Fox Valley
> > > >and Milwaukee suburbs.
> > > >
> > > >How does the Lego vs. Legos issue break down elsewhere? National
> > > >boundaries? Regions?
> > > >
> > > >  -- James Callan
> > > >
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> >--
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> >                                               -Sam'l Clemens
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--
All say, "How hard it is that we have to die"---a strange complaint to
come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
-----
                                              -Sam'l Clemens

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