If you’ve got a copy of the Dictionary of Regional English, you know that “hotdish” is a casserole-style meal popular throughout Minnesota. A “quahog” is common word for “clam” in New England. And “Euchre” is a card game beloved by Midwesterners of all stripes. Next month the final volume of the Dictionary of American Regional English, or DARE, will be released by the Harvard University Press. It’s a project that started in the 1950s, the singular passion of linguist Frederic Cassidy. Since then, the DARE’s editors have compiled 60-thousand of regionalisms found across the U.S.
We’re joined now by Joan Houston Hall, chief editor of the Dictionary of American Regional English.