Jaywalking

In 1917, cars had only recently become common, and stepping out into traffic was dangerous. Back then, the term "jay" was slang for a hick, a country bumpkin. Bostonians with little tolerance for rural folk coined the term "jaywalker" to describe someone green to the ways of the city and modern traffic signals, someone impudent - or imprudent - enough to step in front of traffic. This impudent Blue Jay looks as if it might do whatever it wants.
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Jaywalking

Written by Frances Wood

This is BirdNote!

[Call of Blue Jay]

You’ve heard the term “JAY-walking”. Any idea where it comes from? Traffic signals and jay-birds wouldn’t seem to have much in common. [More Blue Jay calling.]

Well, the term “jaywalking” originated back in 1917. Cars had recently become common on the streets of Boston and, for the first time, the act of stepping out into traffic posed a problem. [Model-T horn, ah-OO-gah] In those days, jaywalkers would encounter Model-Ts tooling along at the break-neck speed of 20 miles per hour.

The term “jay” was then slang for a hick, a rube, or a country bumpkin. Sophisticated city dwellers with little tolerance for rural folk coined the term “jaywalker” to describe someone green to the ways of the city – and to modern traffic signals.

[Model-T horn, ah-OO-gah]

But why “jay”? Anyone who has observed the eastern Blue Jay [Call of Blue Jay] or the Steller’s Jay of the West [Call of Steller’s Jay] would describe them as noisy, bold, brash…and impudent.

So those sophisticated Bostonians might have combined the foolish country bumpkin term and the sometimes obnoxious nature of jay behavior when they coined the term “jaywalking.” Who knows for sure? If you do, come join the conversation on our Facebook page or our website, birdnote.org.

[Model-T horn, ah-OO-gah followed by call of the Steller’s Jay]

I’m Mary McCann.

[Call of the Steller’s Jay]

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Bird audio provided by The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Blue Jay recorded by G.A. Keller. Steller’s Jay recorded by L.J. Peyton.

Ambient sounds by Kessler Productions.

Producer: John Kessler

Executive Producer: Chris Peterson

ID# 010507jaywalk jaywalk-01c