Lego vs. Legos: Americanism? Regionalism?

Benjamin Zimmer bgzimmer at BABEL.LING.UPENN.EDU
Tue Jul 31 17:22:41 UTC 2007


On 7/31/07, Stephen Goranson <goranson at duke.edu> wrote:
>
> Quoting Alice Faber <faber at HASKINS.YALE.EDU>:
>
> > Beverly Flanigan wrote:
> >>
> >> But we DO remember Erector sets and Lincoln Logs, right, Arnold?!  Not to
> >> mention plain old wooden blocks.
> >
> > And tinkertoys...
>
> And a set of white plastic interlocking bricks (the brand name eludes
> me), which in my experience (b. 1950) arrived before Lego(s).

A bit later on was another Danish innovation, the SOMA cube, which was
first marketed commercially in the States in 1969 (by Parker Bros.).

http://www.fam-bundgaard.dk/SOMA/HISTORY.HTM


--Ben Zimmer

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