When New York City was only a town, its growth was restricted by the shape of Manhattan Island.
The word uptown first appeared in about 1830 and was used to describe the residential area growing up the Island away from the southern business centre.
Within a few years, downtown appeared to describe the opposite of uptown, or the main commercial district.
Today, the suburbs are uptown, while downtown remains the heart of the business district.
Related Posts
-
What Do the Terms “Left-Wing” and “Right-Wing” Mean in Politics and How Did the Terms Originate?
Over two hundred years ago, King Louis XVI of France was forced to convene a form of parliament for the first time in more than a century. At the assembly, the more radical…
-
How Did the Tennis Terms “Seeded” and “Love” Originate and What Do the Words Mean?
Tennis was popularized by the French nobility, and because a zero looked like an egg that's what they called it. Egg in French is "l'oeuf", which became love in English. The seeding or…
-
What Do the Terms “One-Horse” and “Jerkwater” Mean and How Did the Words Originate?
In the early days of the railroad, huge tanks were built along the routes where the steam engines could stop and refill by pulling, or jerking, a spout into place, allowing the water…
-
What Do the Golf Terms “Par” and “Bogey” Mean and Where Did the Words Come From?
Until the introduction of the modern golf ball in 1898, an average score for any given hole was called a bogey. Bogey is the Scottish word for ghost, meaning that the challenge was…
-
Where Did the Words Right and Left Come From and What Do the Terms Mean?
The word right surfaced in English as riht and meant "straight." To put things right is to straighten them out. Right took the metaphorical meaning of "good" or "just," as in the Bill…
-
Where Did the Terms “Broke” and “Bankrupt” Come From and What Do the Words Mean?
The word "bank" comes from the Italian word "banca", meaning "bench," over which medieval moneylenders did business in the streets of Venice. If he became insolvent, the law intervened and broke the lender's…
