Royal cartography

[baleanoptera]

It's possible its all the work but several things have amused me greatly recently:

1. The Norwegian royals. They used to be boring and rather predicable, and the most exciting thing that happened was that stuff like Old King Olav taking the tram during the 1970's petrol crisis, so that he could go skiing.



In case you're wondering Olav is the grumpy old man by the window, insisting that he should pay his fare. Title of king be dammed. Incidentally this is perhaps the most famous photo of Olav in Norway. Hee.

But then Olav died, and his son Harald became king - and bless his little soul but Harald is rather dull. Thankfully he had kids, and his oldest daughter Martha Louise - previously famous and controversial for starting a new age school dedicated to communicating with angels* - has now given birth to her third child. The child will be called Emma Tallulah, and for some reason this has made the shit hit the fan. One Name-scholar went out and said he thought the name sounded too much like Abdullah (really? Really? Because I'm not really seeing that), then someone interviewed Harald and he said he would probably just call her Emma. Subsequently the papers managed to dig up the only other girl in Norway called Tallulah and write about her under the headline: "Tallulah is sad because the king won't use her name".

* She is also somewhat famous for marrying the so-called writer Ari Behn, who is basically famous for being a douche and paying some prostitutes in Las Vegas to do drugs so that he could film it for his documentary. He also showed up a bit stoned to a live television interview and kept on and on about how he had just shot a moose. Apparently this made him feel very manly.

It's event like these that make me reconsider my rather negative attitude to the fact that we have a royal house.

2. The blog called Strange Maps. I love cartography, and so this blog is perfect. Among other gems it includes :



The American pop vs. soda map. American f-lister, does this match your experiences? Sitting here as I do, in my little fishing village somewhere near the arctic circle, I have no way of knowing.

Also there is this glorious map about how the world looks when viewed from Paris:



One map detailing the Lost Rivers of London, which I find absolutely fascinating:



And one map of Canada made out of cheese:

Comments

[bzoppa.livejournal.com]

I remember hearing about the school to talk to angels thing! Have you posted this before, or did I happen to run across it somewhere else?

As for your map about soda, I'm amused because I live in Washington DC, which appears to be under the most geographically diverse (by term, at least) of the map. (DC is on the east coast in the middle, if you didn't know.) Although now that I look closer, DC is covered by yellow, and I do call it soda. I grew up in the suburbs just north of DC and learned soda. Interestingly, just below DC are a bunch of "pop" places, which I think are the midwesterners who moved to the Virginia suburbs. They're an eclectic gathering of rednecks in the suburbs.

[winterdahlia.livejournal.com]

I think that U.S. soda map is pretty accurate. I am deep in "soda" territory, and if you call it "pop" around here, you will get some weird looks. :-D I had a childhood friend whose family was originally from the midwest. It always made me smile when her mom would ask us (in her heavy Midwest accent) if we wanted some "pop." (Have you seen the movie Fargo? Well, her mom talked just like Frances McDormand's character. I always loved her accent!)

Well, anyway, I love that someone actually did an analysis of names for soft drinks, and then made this map! :-)

[lage-nom-ai.livejournal.com]

Heee! Your tales of Norwegian royalty are awesome.

And yes: whether someone here says "pop," "coke," or "soda" is one of the best instant identifiers of where they're from...

[nymeria-snow.livejournal.com]

The map of those "lost Rivers" is lovely =) I knew there are a few rivers flowing under the city, but I had no idea that are so many.

The whole map blog is actually quite interesting!

[sunnyskywalker]

California is definitely soda territory. My sixth-grade teacher grew up in a pop region, and we all thought that was weird.

So that's how Paris sees the world! Louisiana, hee :D Interestingly, I think "Australia: kangaroos" would also appear on the map of the world as seen from the US. Poor Australia. (BTW, what's Paris got against New Zealand?)

[losyark.livejournal.com]

Cheese map! I live right about where the mozzarella fades into the cheddar at the southern tip of the big province, Ontario.

I'm Canadian, so I say "pop". Most Canadians, unless they are first or second generation immagrants, say "pop".

And Olav rocks, wanting to pay his fare! Good man!

[mnemo-syne.livejournal.com]

Map of the world as viewed from Paris - brilliant.

Also yes, I would say the soda vs. pop map is pretty accurate, except that if you live in a university town you'll get more mixed responses, but that doesn't extend to the whole county, so. Being from Nebraska, I grew up saying pop. Now in Florida, I've settled for the median, soda. I refuse to call everything Coke. That's just ridiculous. :P

[wildtiger7.livejournal.com]

I've always lived in the south and we call all soft drinks "coke," so I'd say that map was pretty accurate.

[baleanoptera.livejournal.com]

I sort of love the fact that the Norwegian royals translate so well. Hee. *pets their little crowned heads*

And this is the fun princess, I haven't even started on the Crown prince and his slightly scary wife who now talks warmly of piety and Calvinism - but who used to be a single mom with what the press described as a "very party going attitude". Apparently there is a sex tape of her somewhere, or so the rumour goes. Maybe that explains the calvinism...

whether someone here says "pop," "coke," or "soda" is one of the best instant identifiers of where they're from...

See, I had no idea, but that is simply fascinating. I can't think of an equivalent in Norwegian except for different regional slang for moonshine, and they are not the safest indicator to begin with. Then again Norwegian is a very dialect heavy language, and so you can usually tell from that. (Interesting fact: Norwegian has two official written languages, but none of them correspond completely to the way people actually talk. At school we have to learn them both, which leads to much hilarious confusion).

But serious question: Is the difference between "pop", "soda" etc social as well as regional?

[baleanoptera.livejournal.com]

I had no idea about the rivers either. I new the Fleet river and the Thames, obviously - but the others were just a mystery to me. I guess it really goes to show how much a city changes the face of the landscape.

And great to hear you liked the blog. I'm utterly fascinated by maps so to me it was quite a find.

[baleanoptera.livejournal.com]

Is it wrong that I dragged out an atlas and spent minutes trying to match the position of said cheeses to the map proper? Hee.

Aha! So the high percentage of blue in the soda/pop map is a result of sneaky Canadian influences? Didn't I just know it. ;)

And yes - Olav was a wicked cool king. There are all these stories about him that are just wonderful, and a bit odd.

[baleanoptera.livejournal.com]

You know, I think the Paris map was my favourite. After spending way to much time being annoyed at Parisians (long story) it just felt nearly cathartic. But don't let the French know I said that! Hee.

I refuse to call everything Coke. That's just ridiculous.

My English teacher taught us that "In the states they say 'coke'". I think you and her should have words. Or maybe not. She was a horrible person who was rather obsessed with the British Queen Mother, and so she would drag her into everything. Sort of: "Yes I know 'Peter crossed the road' but what did the Queen Mother do?"

But seriously - I'm fascinated by this whole soda & pop thing. As I said to lage_nom_ai above, we don't have the equivalent here and so that the same product could be called different things dependent on region is rather cool.

[baleanoptera.livejournal.com]

That is so fascinating - and also good to know that Strange Maps are cartographically sound. ;)

[baleanoptera.livejournal.com]

I love the map, and comments like yours makes me love it more. :) I honestly find this very intriguing, though I'm not entirely sure why.

And yes, I've seen - and loved- Fargo. I'm rather fond of the Coen brothers films, though the dramas more than the comedies. I like how their films, even Fargo, has this half mythic quality about them. Have you seen "Miller's crossing"?

And sadly I have only a bloody Seth to go with your "Lolz" one. (and for some reason it cracks me up that Seth Bullock is on a Lolz icon. It's just perfection)

[baleanoptera.livejournal.com]

Until this map I didn't know there was a regional difference, and now you are all sharing these intriguing pieces of information. It just so interesting. Hee.

As for the hate against New Zealand I think it is connected to French nuclear testing. IIRC the French tested on some islands near New Zealand and that led to some harsh exchange of words. (and I'm obviously tired because now I pictured that scenario in a somewhat Monty Python'esque manner.)

[baleanoptera.livejournal.com]

I admit to posting about the Royal angelica school. I cannot help it - when politics turn sour (which seems to be a more and more frequent occurrence) I focus on the royals instead. After all - they have no power and so it isn't as worrisome if they are a bit odd.
At least that is my excuse - if I continue down this path I will probably end up with a large amount of cats and a house that smells funny.

They're an eclectic gathering of rednecks in the suburbs.

Hee! I think my favourite part about this map are all these wonderful comments like that, because I honestly had no idea that there was such a Pop/soda divide and so I feel like I'm learning something a bit strange but also very fascinating. I like it!

[mnemo-syne.livejournal.com]

I just wish I knew why it was that way! I have no idea why it's called different things in different places. Maybe it stems from different advertising campaigns from way back, I don't know.

[lage-nom-ai.livejournal.com]

Oooh, share more Norwegian Royalty Stories with us! Do, do!

I can't think of an equivalent in Norwegian except for different regional slang for moonshine, and they are not the safest indicator to begin with.
Hahahahahahaha!!

It's odd, because the US doesn't really have dialects, just accents. So for the most part it just comes out in some words like this, or, like, the great Krispy Kreme-Dunkin Donuts divide. :D And I'd say that "pop" v "soda" transcends social/class barriers. It really is just inculcated where you grow up or live... As someone who grew up in a "soda" region and now lives in a "pop" region, I'm trying hard to resist assimilating. :D

[sunnyskywalker]

Ah, I can see how that would lead to some tension. Sounds like that "end of the world" flash video, actually...

[sunnyskywalker]

Wait, two written languages? How do they differ?