Speech pattern and typographical variations across Canada

[GlassCity]

I've only ever heard of porridge in Goldilocks. This is the first I'm hearing of it being used frequently in modern times. I always assumed it was just an old word that wasn't used anymore. I've only heard it called oatmeal exclusively, cooked in water or not. That's actually fascinating.

[ciudad_del_norte]

Originally Posted by Nathan

Basically everyone calls it oatmeal out here (oats/rolled oats/oatmeal for the grain and oatmeal for the prepared "porridge" made of ...oatmeal/oats/rolled oats). The only time I've really heard porridge is in a telling of Goldilocks and the 3 Bears. Maybe its a prairie or Western Canadian thing?

For me, porridge would almost mean any time of wet cooked grain dish and saying oatmeal instead just skips ahead to be more specific.

Yup.

[Acajack]

It's been my (totally unscientific) observation that many of the British-originated Canadianisms (or all-out Britishisms) are much less common or even non-existent when you pass the Manitoba-Ontario border going west. And that from there on, American usages for many things tend to predominate. It's not 100%, and many Canadian-British things are still in use in the West, but it's not as pervasive as in points more to the east.

Another example I noticed in a job I had and also travelling is it's extremely rare to see the numeric date as DDMMYY in Western Canada. It's almost always the American MMDDYY that you see.

You also see MMDDYY from Ontario eastwards (though very rare in Quebec unless programmed by an American-made machine of some sort) but it's more of a mix and DDMMYY is also very commonly seen in the anglophone provinces IMO.

Aside from that MMDDYY is almost exclusively American usage. The rest of the world uses DDMMYY or YYMMDD/YYYYMMDD.

[1overcosc]

Judging by the regional distribution of responses, I'd say 'porridge' is an eastern term.

[1overcosc]

Originally Posted by Acajack

It's been my (totally unscientific) observation that many of the British-originated Canadianisms (or all-out Britishisms) are much less common or even non-existent when you pass the Manitoba-Ontario border going west. And that from there on, American usages for many things tend to predominate. It's not 100%, and many Canadian-British things are still in use in the West, but it's not as pervasive as in points more to the east.

Another example I noticed in a job I had and also travelling is it's extremely rare to see the numeric date as DDMMYY in Western Canada. It's almost always the American MMDDYY that you see.

You also see MMDDYY from Ontario eastwards (though very rare in Quebec unless programmed by an American-made machine of some sort) but it's more of a mix and DDMMYY is also very commonly seen in the anglophone provinces IMO.

Aside from that MMDDYY is almost exclusively American usage. The rest of the world uses DDMMYY or YYMMDD/YYYYMMDD.

I typically see DDMMYY, but both are certainly around. It's quite frustrating to see a date like 03/02/2015 and not know whether its February 3rd or March 2nd.

In under-the-hood computer systems, the near-universal standard is YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS, specified in 24-hour time in the GMT time zone.

[rousseau]

Originally Posted by Acajack

It's been my (totally unscientific) observation that many of the British-originated Canadianisms (or all-out Britishisms) are much less common or even non-existent when you pass the Manitoba-Ontario border going west. And that from there on, American usages for many things tend to predominate. It's not 100%, and many Canadian-British things are still in use in the West, but it's not as pervasive as in points more to the east.

Hmmm. I lived in Winnipeg for six years, but never had any occasion to eat any porridge, so it never came up.

The distinction between oatmeal (the ground oats) and porridge (said ground oats boiled for breakfast) is in the same category as what the Chinese have for rice. If it's not cooked, i.e. you're going out to the supermarket to get some, it's mi (米), but if it has been cooked it's fan or bai fan ("rice" or "white rice"; 飯 or 白飯).

If you ask for some mi at a Chinese restaurant you'll get confusion. Which is exactly what I experience when porridge is referred to as "oatmeal." It doesn't seem to make logical sense, because while rice is only ever boiled to make it soft (therefore just the one name for both cooked and pre-coaked rice in English), oatmeal can be both boiled into porridge and used in other foods.

So if you were to ask me if I want "oatmeal" for breakfast I'd wonder if you meant you were going to sprinkle it on top of something. Like muesli. Or toast. Or something.

Seems like southern Ontario isn't quite so pseudo-American after all.

[rousseau]

Originally Posted by 1overcosc

I typically see DDMMYY, but both are certainly around. It's quite frustrating to see a date like 03/02/2015 and not know whether its February 3rd or March 2nd.

In under-the-hood computer systems, the near-universal standard is YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS, specified in 24-hour time in the GMT time zone.

This probably explains why the terrorist attacks of November 9th happened earlier than planned.

[rousseau]

Just did a Google search, and discovered that that unquestionable bastion of all things Canadian, Tim Horton's, calls porridge..."oatmeal."

This is just wrong. Tim Horton's is Hamilton's most famous export. What is going on here? Have I been living a lie all my life?

[SignalHillHiker]

We have "Drive Thru"s and "Hot Cakes" in Canada now too via fast food joints.

[RWin]

Originally Posted by SignalHillHiker

That's a weird one. We use both - both oatmeal is what you use to make porridge, I think. Surely I'd never call the prepared, wet stuff "oatmeal".

Must be regional - I've always called oatmeal, prepared or otherwise, oatmeal.

[GlassCity]

I still don't know what hot cakes are, but I see them in McDonald's. Is it just another word for pancakes? Don't Americans say pancakes too?

[lio45]

FWIW... I wouldn't have been able to identify what porridge was, but it seems to me that to be able to eat oatmeal, you have to put hot water or milk in it anyway...?

The stuff is called oatmeal. I presume no one eats it dry...?

[SignalHillHiker]

It's porridge from a nursery rhyme - Goldilocks and the Three Bears.

[lio45]

Originally Posted by rousseau

The distinction between oatmeal (the ground oats) and porridge (said ground oats boiled for breakfast) is in the same category as what the Chinese have for rice. If it's not cooked, i.e. you're going out to the supermarket to get some, it's mi (米), but if it has been cooked it's fan or bai fan ("rice" or "white rice"; 飯 or 白飯).

If you ask for some mi at a Chinese restaurant you'll get confusion. Which is exactly what I experience when porridge is referred to as "oatmeal." It doesn't seem to make logical sense, because while rice is only ever boiled to make it soft (therefore just the one name for both cooked and pre-coaked rice in English), oatmeal can be both boiled into porridge and used in other foods.

So if you were to ask me if I want "oatmeal" for breakfast I'd wonder if you meant you were going to sprinkle it on top of something. Like muesli. Or toast. Or something.

Good example, and interesting... but I can't help but notice that rice in English is rice, regardless of the state of the grains. Logically, oatmeal should be treated the same by the language...

Plus, is oatmeal really as central to Anglo culture as rice is to Chinese culture? Inuit languages apparently have several words for snow... while more southern languages only have one.

Rice to Chinese and snow to Inuits are in a very special category of things -- I have my doubts that oatmeal really makes the cut to Anglo-Saxons.

[lio45]

Originally Posted by rousseau

Just did a Google search, and discovered that that unquestionable bastion of all things Canadian, Tim Horton's, calls porridge..."oatmeal."

This is just wrong. Tim Horton's is Hamilton's most famous export. What is going on here? Have I been living a lie all my life?

Maybe when Burger King announced the takeover one of the first things they did was to order the replacement of porridge by oatmeal? Unless that was already done in the Wendy's days?

[lio45]

Originally Posted by 1overcosc

I typically see DDMMYY, but both are certainly around. It's quite frustrating to see a date like 03/02/2015 and not know whether its February 3rd or March 2nd.

Yeah, and it was even worse in the early 2000s!

I was already self-employed and I recall having to go through credit card bills of old business expenses (from the last couple years)... you have bills where the date-time is something like 03/02/04, 09:12. You're in ~2005 and you're trying to get your accounting house in order for the last couple years. And to make things easier you also have American expenses in the bunch. Arg!

[kwoldtimer]

I grew up eating porridge but today would use "porridge" and "oatmeal" interchangeably, and think I sometimes even refer to "oatmeal porridge". Any porridge made from a grain other than oats, however, I would call by another name.

[rousseau]

Originally Posted by lio45

Good example, and interesting... but I can't help but notice that rice in English is rice, regardless of the state of the grains. Logically, oatmeal should be treated the same by the language...

Plus, is oatmeal really as central to Anglo culture as rice is to Chinese culture? Inuit languages apparently have several words for snow... while more southern languages only have one.

Rice to Chinese and snow to Inuits are in a very special category of things -- I have my doubts that oatmeal really makes the cut to Anglo-Saxons.

I wasn't really trying to claim that oatmeal is so central to English Canadians by way of the analogy. It was just a point of interest. But oatmeal is indeed eaten raw in muesli and other breakfast cereals. It gets used in dishes like apple crisp.

The porridge vs "oatmeal" thing is clearly a standard British vs. American English thing, with Canada's British English usages gradually falling by the wayside.

But I will fight "oatmeal" to the death. It's ungainly and illogical. I will never surrender.

[Electric Lady]

I've been lurking around for a while, but I needed to chime in on this Oatmeal vs. Porridge thing

Porridge is a general term for any crushed grains, Legumes etc that is boiled in water or milk and served hot, while oatmeal is a type of porridge made from ground oats.

Grits, cream of wheat, polenta are also types of porridges.

[RyLucky]

Canada has some regional differences, but right from the start of colonization, Canadians have been known to migrate between regions on large scales, today more than ever. We're highly urbanized, highly educated, highly mobile, and drowning in media. As time goes on, I expect regional speech anomalies will disappear more and more.