Unique Washington

See that patch of blue in the middle? Around here it's called a "sun break." On overcast days the weather people talk about the likelihood and timing of "sun breaks." More on sun breaks here. Every state has its unique phrases and place pronunciations. Here are some we've discovered. 

People talk about the mountains being "out," kind of like the moon's out tonight or the sun's out. Read more here and here. 

The term skid row came from Seattle. Originally skid road, it meant the road used to drag or skid logs down to the waterfront for transport.

Washington has many place names that come from the various Native American tribes in the area. We were very puzzled by pronunciation initially - and still sometimes come across names that make us wonder how to say them. Here are just a few. Check out the links below for more. 

Sequim - squim

Cle Elem - clay-ELL-um

Puyallup - pew-ALL-up OR pew-AL-up (In the indigenous language, it's pronounced poy-ALL-up. In English it's pronounced pyu as a single syllable, like the Japanese pyu. jht - I had a friend in Worthington who was raised in Puyallup. When she said the word, I could never envision how to spell it. 

Mukilteo - muk-ull-TEE-oh

Additional place names are here and here. This link has audio. 

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Bonus - here's a link to Washington symbols, nicknames, state animals, and all that kind of good stuff. According to the site we even have a state dance, the square dance! Does your state have a state dance?