In reading a review of a couple of books about Istanbul, I noted that the citizens of that city were referred to as “Istanbullus”. That got me thinking about demonyms and also reminded me that I should be glad I don’t have to meet a deadline when jotting down a few words. Although grammatical resources can be grabbed from the Internet easily and instantly, the first one I looked at suggests that “Istanbulite” and “Istanbulites” can be used. One can imagine that the reviewer struggled to avoid any mention of residents from an earlier time (“Constantinopolites”?).
I learned of the word “demonym” just a few years ago and it is of relatively recent coinage. It appears now in the OED and is defined as the “proper name by which a native or resident of a specific place is known.” Since we reside in several places (countries/provinces,states/cities,towns) there are many demonyms, some of which are not obvious, and others which need to be determined cautiously - the more colloquial ones, in particular.
National Names
What to call a person from Canada or Australia does not seem too difficult and neither of the slang expressions, “Canuck” or “Aussie”, is likely to get you punched. Distinctions need to be made when you refer to those from the United Kingdom and the problem of what to call citizens of the United States is so problematic that everyone gave up years ago. It is obvious that a whole bunch of people on this side of the globe are “American” and many of them are not found in the United States. If you are asked at the Canadian border about your citizenship and answer “American”, the agent is likely to reply “So am I, what country are you from?” A number of demonyms have been suggested for those who live stateside, but “American” was settled upon and these rejected: “United-Statesian”, “Fredonian”, “Usonian”, “Columbian” and “Columbard”, among others. In these post-colonial times, the last two are especially troublesome and the imperialist annexation of “American” by the Americans is more acceptable.
Provincial Ones
Even at provincial or state levels the demonymic distinctions are not always easily determined. Heading west from here (Ontario) one feels comfortable in greeting Manitobans, but less so when trying to figure out what to call those in the next province. Officially they are known as “Saskatchewanians”, but one can see or hear “Saskatchewanite”, or “Saskatchewaner” and others have been mentioned (“Saskie”, “Sasky”, “Saskabrigian”, etc.). Going farther west, travel among the Albertans and British Columbians is easy and those in the laid-back latter province probably won’t mind being called “Lotus-Landers” or even “Cascadians”. Heading east from London (Ontario) one immediately encounters another language which does not make determining demonyms any easier (“Quebecer”, “Quebecker”, “Québécois”) and when one reaches Newfoundland it is probably best not to use the common colloquial term. If you are going to the far north, “Nunavummiut" will come in handy.
If you head to Michigan you will run into some “Michiganians”, but if you use the term “Michigander” you should also consider “Michigoose” for the females. “Wolverine” is widely acceptable. “Yoopers” should only be used for those in the northern part of the state (derived from the Upper Peninsula - U.P,-ers). If you continue on into Indiana, use “Hoosier”. If you are old enough to remember Fred Waring (you are probably dead), you will know what to call the Pennsylvanians and if you travel through New York you won’t have any problem until you get to Connecticut. (I suggest “Nutmeggers”.)
The Locals
From the name of the city it is not always easy to figure out what the residents within it should be called. Here are some unobvious demonyms for urban areas.
Torontonians and Buffalonians should not call those in Akron, Akronians since they are Acronites. Burqueños reside in Albuquerque. Haligonians are from Halifax and Moose Javians are from Moose Jaw.
Cantabrigians, Liverpudlians, Novocastrians, Mancunians and Sotonians reside respectively in Cambridge, Liverpool, Newcastle, Manchester and Southampton. I am not sure if those in the Southampton along the Lake Huron shore refer to themselves as “Sotonians”, but I imagine the demonyms followed along with the toponyms.
If this wasn’t complicated enough, one has to remember that some devious people will use demonyms in an opprobrious manner. Chicagorillas and Omahogs do not exist, nor do Baltimorons or Louisvillains. Only people from New Hampshire call those from Maine, "Maniacs".
Sources:
The entry for “Demonym” in Wikipedia and the links provided in it are all you need. It is also the case that the demonym is usually supplied in each country and city entry in Wikipedia although they are sometimes missing in the tougher cases, e.g. Passaic. I discovered the book by Paul Dickson pictured above, but could not locate it locally. The terms to describe those in Saskatchewan are found in “Saskie, Saskie, Bo-Baskie,” by Ron Petrie, Regina Leader Post, Dec.1, 2011. The review containing the demonym 'Istanbullus': "A City Where East Meets West and the Past Is Always Present,” by Lawrence Osborne, The New York Times, Jan. 4, 2018.
Although the word demonym does not appear, one will find a good discussion of them in Mencken’s The American Language; see the section on “Place Names” and the chapter on “Proper Names in America”. It is from that source that I learned of the Baltimorons; less kind words by him are often used for those who live farther south.
If you need a more serious source see the U.S. GPO Style Manual which is available for free over the internet. See: “Demonyms: Names of Nationalities” on p.337. It is followed conveniently by a currency table which will help you determine how many Pula you should tip a Botswanan for carrying your bags.
