Minnewisowa
n.— Note: Similar to FLOHPA from the 2004 election. «The visits, the 11th and 12th to Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa in just over a month by Obama, John McCain and their running mates, were the latest evidence of just how crucial these states have become to both campaigns. “Minnewisowa” is a fanciful name coined for a battleground region rich in electoral votes that has been relentlessly targeted by strategists for both presidential campaigns.» —“Obama tells La Crosse crowd action needed on crisis” by Bob Von Sternberg in La Crosse, Wisconsin Star Tribune (Minneapolis, Minnesota) Oct. 2, 2008. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
After our conversation about towns with extremely short names, many listeners wrote to tell us about Why, Arizona. Others pointed out that there are towns called Ely in Iowa, Minnesota, and Nevada. Other super-short appellations include Rye, New...
Michelle in Williamsburg, Virginia, wonders about the origin of alley-oop!, which she says when hoisting her toddler. It’s from French allez, the imperative of aller meaning “to go” and houp or hop, an onomatopoeic utterance made...