OCTOBER 24, 2018. NATIONAL FOOD DAY... AND NATIONAL BOLOGNA DAY

in #stupid6 years ago

Why is "bologna" pronounced "baloney"?

Bologna_lunch_meat_style_sausrage.jpg

Today is National Food Day in the United States.. and Bologna Day. Isn't bologna food? Bologna Day, really tho? Does it really need to be squeezed in with the one day that celebrates the generalization of all foods? What is bologna anyways? And why the fuck is it not pronounced bo-log-nah? We pronounce the Italian "lasagna" just as it's spelt, not |laˈzaɲɲˈi|.

Baloney is the evolution of bologna; it means both nonsense and sausage made from odds and ends. I had to know more about where this pronunciation originated. I found that when referring to the Italian town of Bologna, it is pronounced |boˈloɲɲa|, somewhat of a ryhme with the Italian lasagna (|laˈzaɲɲa|). I also learned that most of Italy refers to the meat as mortadella. So, bologna is essentially unique to American culture. And the mispronunciation of the meat has been slang for nonsense since notably the 1920's. But now I'm like, honestly, who fuckin' cares.

balogna/baloney -> |bəˈloʊni|