How Do You Say Pecan? Mapping Food Dialect Trends Across the U.S.
See this nut? We’ve posted about how pecans are grown, their nutritional benefits and our favorite pecan recipes, but we’ve never really discussed a popular topic of debate: Are they pee-KAHNs, pee-CANs, PEE-cans, pick-AHNs or some other pronunciation? How do YOU say pecan?
See More: Nuts About Pecans
Turns out, it depends on where you’re from. Joshua Katz, a doctoral student studying statistics at NC State University, recently created interactive dialect maps using data from Bert Vaux at the University of Cambridge. For example, check out the map showing how people pronounce “pecan”:
It shows that pee-KAHN is dominant nationwide, but in areas of Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Mississippi, pick-AHN reigns supreme. PEE-can is popular on the East Coast and in New England, while folks from Wisconsin, northern Minnesota and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula go with PEE-kahn.
See More: How Field’s Pies Became a Pecan Pie Powerhouse
The linguistics department at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee just also shared a pecan pronunciation map that gives another option – where people may say pee-KAHN by itself, but then say PEE-can when using a compound word, like pecan pie.
We found this research fascinating, so we’ve compiled a few of these dialect maps related to food. We had no idea that some people never refer to coleslaw as simply “slaw,” if other people also use “caramel” and “carmel” interchangeably, or if there really is a difference between frosting and icing. We did, however, know that The Great Soda/Pop/Coke/Soft Drink Debate will never be resolved.
Take a look at these maps, and learn if you pronounce mayonnaise like the masses, which syllable gets the emphasis in Thanksgiving, or if you’re the odd one out who says something not even provided as an option. Then, leave us a comment to let us know how you say pecan. (For the record, my parents are from Texas and Oklahoma, so I stand firmly with pick-AHN.)
26 Comments
Join the discussion and tell us your opinion.
[…] Brief History of the Pecan Depending on where you live in the United States, you either say “pee-CAN”, “pick-AHN”, or “pee-KAHN”. The word, however, dates back to […]
You can pee in a can, but you eat a PEE-kahn. North Carolina, born and raised, y’all.
We’re in the Deep South – south Georgia/north Florida and everyone I know says PEEcan and some clip it more on the end like PEEkin. Saying peeKAUN pie seems so awkward. Even Paula Deen says PEEcan. I guess it’s definitely where you’re from, Lol. PEEcan or peeKAUN no matter how you say it, it’s so good y’all!
I grew up in SW Connecticut, where we all said “pee-CAN” — which isn’t even on your map, altho it was in the narrative above the map. My impression is that a lot of people in Colorado and Virginia where I’ve spent most of my years also say it the way I do, “pee-CAN.” Arguably this is very close to “pick-CAN,” so I could be hearing the 2nd one, and supposing that it’s the 1st.
Not in Virginia. We say “Pi-cahn”. A pee can is something you use to go to the bathroom .
In Georgia we have ” pee- can” trees. Maybe a ” puh- con” tree grows elsewhere. 🙂
I’m from Georgia and I say pee-KAHN 🤷♀️
I’m here to tell you Long Island and pretty much any native New Yorker from downstate does NOT say may-o-nnaise with 3 syllables. Mayonnaise for sure only has 2 syllables here lol. Everything else seems correct though
You’re right, we all call it MAYO, not the full word.
Spending my first 60 years on Long Island, now in NC, it was always 3 syllables. We taunted anyone who used the 2 form unless is was MAYO. How do you get the almost universal MAYO from Man-aze?
I’m from Virginia and we say “PEE-kahn” where I’m from, even though the map has everybody in my state saying either “pee-KAHN” or “PEE-can.” To me a “PEE-can” sounds like what you used to have to put under your bed at night in the wintertime before indoor plumbing.
Exactly!!
From Virginia and I usually hear “Pi-cahn”. The first syllable is very quick. I agree with your 2nd part!
[…] It shows that pee-KAHN is dominant nationwide, but in areas of Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Mississippi, pick-AHN reigns supreme. PEE-can is popular on the East Coast and in New England, while folks from Wisconsin, northern Minnesota and Michigan's Upper Peninsula go with PEE-kahn. via […]
[…] How do YOU say pecan? It shows that pee-KAHN is dominant nationwide, but in areas of Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Mississippi, pick-AHN reigns supreme. PEE-can is popular on the East Coast and in New England, while folks from Wisconsin, northern Minnesota and Michigan's Upper Peninsula go with PEE-kahn. via […]
[…] It shows that pee-KAHN is dominant nationwide, but in areas of Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Mississippi, pick-AHN reigns supreme. PEE-can is popular on the East Coast and in New England, while folks from Wisconsin, northern Minnesota and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula go with PEE-kahn. via […]
My own nutty variant isn’t even mentioned!
puh-CAN! (In Piedmont area of NC.)
Puh-KAHN.
[…] How do YOU say pecan? It shows that pee-KAHN is dominant nationwide, but in areas of Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Mississippi, pick-AHN reigns supreme. PEE-can is popular on the East Coast and in New England, while folks from Wisconsin, northern Minnesota and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula go with PEE-kahn. via […]
[…] PEE-can is popular on the East Coast and in New England, while folks from Wisconsin, northern Minnesota and Michigan's Upper Peninsula go with PEE-kahn. via […]
What I want to know is where the heck are Hawaii, Alaska, and even Puerto Rico?
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[…] Quote from the source: … […]
[…] How Do You Say Pecan? Mapping Food Dialect Trends Across the U.S. […]
[…] Studies shows that pee-KAHN is dominant nationwide, but in areas of Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Mississippi, pick-AHN is the most popular. PEE-can is popular on the East Coast and in New England, while PEE-kahn is the most popular in Wisconsin, northern Minnesota and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. How do YOU say pecans? […]
Pickahn from SW Missouri we have 6 trees