Have you ever wondered why flavored carbonated beverages are called soft drinks? I mean, how did they get their weird name? Well, wonder no more, because here at I’m A Useless Info Junkie we have the answer for you.
Let’s find out.
The term soft drinks is being used to describe nearly all beverages that do not contain alcohol (hard drinks). Therefore, it’s not just the carbonated drinks that we should refer to soft drinks but, strictly speaking, except from chocolate, tea, coffee, milk, milkshakes, water and of course, alcohol all other drinks fall into the soft drinks classification. (the article continues after the ad)
But do we use it mainly for carbonated beverages?
Well, for once more, it’s because of advertising (remember when we talked about Why Do We Eat Bacon And Eggs For Breakfast?). Because the way we call carbonated beverages varies from place from place, manufacturers had a hard time creating national advertisements. For example, some Americans call them ‘pop’, others ‘soda’, others ‘coke’. If you go international, you’ll find even more names: ‘fizzy drinks’ in England or ‘minerals’ in Ireland. In order for their products to be recognized universally, advertisers chose the term ‘soft drinks’ for carbonated beverages and that’s why we call them by that name even today.
If you like what you read, then you will definitely love this one: Why Do We Say “A Pair Of Pants” When It’s Only One Garment?
Main Article Photos: Creative Commons
Photoshop: I’m A Useless Info Junkie
Source: A Short History of Soft Drinks | Origin of the Term “Soda Pop”
Widget not in any sidebars
