Category Archives: FA21-Grp-03

Topic: Dartmouth Slang

FFB (Dylan Bienstock)

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General Information:

  • Type: Verbal Lore
  • Language: English
  • Country of Origin: United States
  • Informant: C.K. ’23
  • Date Collected: 11/07/2021
  • Location Collected: Dartmouth

Informant Data:

C.K. is a 20-year-old male from North West United States. He was born and raised in Oregon and moved across the country to pursue an engineering degree at Dartmouth College. At Dartmouth, C. enjoys spending time outdoors with friends and playing water polo for the club team.

Contextual Data

  • Cultural Context: Dartmouth is a diffuclt school where students are often required to spend large amount of time working and studying. How people study varies, and FFB gives students the opprtunity to study in a more social and engaging enviroment. This is in contast to rooms in upper levels of the library which are typically much quieter.
  • Social Context: Baker/Berry library is considering the main study location at Dartmouth college. As would make sense, the first floor, which is most accessible, is one of the most popular spaces for people to meet and do work. The location is filled with larger desks and round tables that students can work at with their friend.

Item:

FFB stands for “First First Berry.” This refers the the first floor study space of the Baker-Berry Library where Dartmouth College students go to, but is not limited to, work on problem sets, papers group-projects, and socialize with friends.

Associate File:

Transcript: “FFB stands for First Floor Berry. It is the main study area in the Dartmouth Library. I first heard it when I was a Freshman. It was one of my first days on campus and I overheard an upperclassmen ask their friend if they wanted to meet at FFB. At first I had no idea what it meant and later on, when I was on trips, my trip leader told me about its meaning. The term seems universal among Dartmouth students, with all grade years using the term, and no grade seems to use it more than the other. We also have a kind of mini community on FFB. There are certain frequenters of this space who spend most, if not all, of their study time there.”

Informants Comments:

FFB has a very positive connotation. It makes me think of talking and spending time with friends. A “coming together” type of word

Collector’s Name: Dylan Bienstock

Tags/Keywords

  • Verbal Folklore
  • Slang
  • Students
  • Dartmouth
  • Studying

The Ledyard Bridge Challenge (Annabel Revers)

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Title: The Ledyard Bridge Challenge

General Information:

  • Type: Verbal Folklore
  • Language: English
  • Country of Origin: United States
  • Informant: KC ’18
  • Date Collected: 11/5/2021
  • Location Collected: Phone Call

Informant Data:

  • KC ’18 is a twenty-five-year-old female and a Dartmouth alumni. She is a member of the Class of 2018 and studied Economics and Environmental studies during her time at Dartmouth. She is from Vancouver, Canada, but is now living in New York City where she works as a consultant. During her time at Dartmouth, she was a member of a sorority and enjoyed spending time with her friends when she was not busy with work.

Contextual Data

  • Cultural Context: Dartmouth has various traditions that can be classified as “challenges.” While their origins are often unknown, these challenges provide students with both entertainment during their time at Dartmouth and the opportunity to participate in and perpetuate Dartmouth traditions. They also provide Dartmouth students with the opportunity to prove that they can do something challenging outside of academics and sports. Furthermore, they create a bond among the friends that attempt them together. These traditions are passed down among generations of students, and the “Ledyard Bridge Challenge” is just one of many such challenges.
  • Social Context: The Ledyard Challenge is typically attempted in warmer months when the water temperature is bearable to swim in. Many students aim to complete this challenge at least once during their time at Dartmouth. Sophomore Summer, or the summer during which the entire sophomore class takes summer courses, is a fairly typical time to complete the challenge because of the warm weather. The Ledyard Challenge is one of the riskier challenges in Dartmouth culture because of the possibility of being caught by campus security or Hanover police. Because of this, it is also a challenge that is quite effective in bonding students through common experience.

Item:

  • The “Ledyard Bridge Challenge,” also called “Ledyard,” refers to the challenge of a person, or more commonly a group, removing their clothing and swimming across the Connecticut River. The participants then run back across the Ledyard Bridge and dress themselves before they get caught by campus security or the police. For example, a student will ask their friend, “Want to do Ledyard later tonight?”.

Associated File:

  • Transcript: “I first heard about Ledyard my freshman year. Pretty much everyone on campus at least knows what it is by then. The thought of it terrified me at first, but I finally had the guts to try it my sophomore summer. Luckily my friends and I successfully completed the challenge without getting caught. I was so relieved! I think most people try the challenge at least once during their time at Dartmouth. As far as I can tell, it’s a tradition that’s been passed down for decades now, usually just through upperclassmen talking about it to younger students. I think most people wanna try it just for a thrill and to spice up their time here. Life gets a little monotonous on campus sometimes and you have to find ways to keep yourself entertained. It also makes you feel like you’re really a part of Dartmouth once you complete the challenge, like you really belong.”

Informant’s Comments:

  • Even though I found the Ledyard Challenge very stressful, I would still recommend students try it with their friends just because of what a bonding experience it is.

Collector’s Comments:

  • The Ledyard Challenge is something I only heard about later in my freshman year at Dartmouth. Unlike slang that refers to locations on campus, slang surrounding challenges seems to be learned a little bit later on in students’ time at Dartmouth, perhaps because it is less immediately necessary for integrating into Dartmouth culture and is typically not attempted until students are further into their time at Dartmouth. It should also be noted that the challenge itself can be considered Customary Folklore–it is the phrase itself as slang and its meaning that we are documenting here.

Collector’s Name: Annabel Revers

Tags/Keywords: Verbal Folklore, Students, English, Dartmouth, Slang, Challenges, Ledyard, Ledyard Bridge Challenge

Lou’s Challenge (Annabel Revers)

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Title: Lou’s Challenge

General Information:

  • Type: Verbal Lore
  • Language: English
  • Country of Origin: United States
  • Informant: MR ’18
  • Date Collected: 11/7/2021
  • Location Collected: Phone Call

Informant Data:

  • MR ’18 is a twenty-six-year-old male who was born in Boston and grew up in Weston, Massachusetts, a suburb of Boston. He is a Dartmouth Alumni and graduated in 2018. He majored in Computer Science and currently works as a software engineer in New York City, where he lives, for a financial technology company. While at Dartmouth, he was heavily involved in the Computer Science Department as a teaching assistant and tutor. He also worked at the technology support desk. He is of German and Polish heritage and does not prescribe to any religion, although he grew up with two Catholic parents.

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural Context: Dartmouth has various traditions that can be classified as “challenges.” While their origins are often unknown, these challenges provide students with both entertainment during their time at Dartmouth and the opportunity to participate in and perpetuate Dartmouth traditions. They also provide Dartmouth students with the opportunity to prove that they can do something challenging outside of academics or sports and, as they are frequently attempted with friends, provide a bonding experience among classmates. The “Lou’s Challenge” is just one of many such challenges.
  • Social Context: Lou’s is a restaurant in Hanover, New Hampshire, located on the main street of the town and a brief minute walk from the green, which marks the center of campus. Lou’s serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and is by far the most popular brunch place in town. It typically has long wait times on the weekends as it is popular among student as well as other residents of Hanover. The phrase “Lou’s Challenge” is typically used exclusively by students rather than the general Dartmouth population. Although professors and likely other Hanover residents know about the challenge, it is students alone who attempt this feat. This slang is used around campus and is not limited to a particular season, though people more frequently attempt the Lou’s Challenge when weather is warmer. The term is typically used on “on-nights” when students go out to parties, which would be Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday, as students are typically out late anyways. The term is also frequently used during busy academic weeks when students are staying up late studying for exams and decide to attempt the challenge. Most students strive to attempt the challenge at least once in their Dartmouth careers, but there are lots of failed attempts where students cannot manage to stay up for so many hours and instead fall asleep. Students typically hear of this challenge early on in their Dartmouth Career, perhaps their freshman fall, but will attempt the challenge at any point in their Dartmouth Career. It is almost always attempted in pairs or groups, never alone.

Item:

  • The phrase “Lou’s Challenge” refers to the challenge of staying up all night and going to Lou’s Restaurant when it opens at 6am. For example, a student will ask their friend, “Want to do Lou’s after going out tonight?”.

Associated File:

  • Transcript: “I first heard about the Lou’s Challenge early on in my freshman year from a friend who said we should do it. I’m guessing he learned about it from an upper classman. I did the Lou’s Challenge once while I was at Dartmouth. It was a terrible experience, it was not fun at all and I just slept the whole day afterward. I would define the challenge as staying up all night and then going to Lou’s at 6am. Either you’re pulling an all nighter studying for an exam or you are out partying and trying to find things to do to keep you busy and help you not fall asleep.  I would use it, like, “Wanna do the Lou’s Challenge tonight after going out?”. I think it probably came about a long time ago since Lou’s has been around for like ever, but also probably because people here are bored and have nothing better to do with their time.”

Informant’s Comments:

  • I would not recommend doing the Lou’s Challenge as it’s not a fun experience, but it’s a Dartmouth tradition so I guess we have to keep it going.

Collector’s Comments:

  • The motivation for completing the Lou’s Challenge varies from person to person, but many students, including MR ’18, feel like they have to complete it just for the sake of keeping the tradition going and passing it down to future generations. The Lou’s Challenge, though impossible to say how far back it dates, has been going on for likely decades at the very least. I think this says a lot about human nature and our desire for tradition in order to feel more a part of our community. By completing the Lou’s Challenge, students feel more immersed in campus culture and feel united with each other by the common experience of staying up all night and going to the same place afterward for breakfast. It should also be noted that the challenge itself may be considered Customary Folklore–in this entry it is the phrase itself and its meaning as slang that we are documenting.

Collector’s Name: Annabel Revers

Tags/Keywords: Verbal Folklore, Students, English, Dartmouth, Slang, Challenges, Food, Lou’s, Lou’s Challenge

Foco (Annabel Revers)

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For in-house use to Engelberth Construction Inc in media produced by them such as brochures, presentations, ads, web sites and competitions where all rights are not required. Photo credit as Gary Hall Photography or Gary R. Hall.

Title: Foco

General Information:

  • Type: Verbal Lore
  • Language: English
  • Country of Origin: United States
  • Informant: ES ’23
  • Date Collected: 11/1/2021
  • Location Collected: Baker/Berry Library at Dartmouth College

Informant Data:

  • ES ’23 is a twenty-year-old female from Orange County, California. She is a member of the Class of 2023 at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire where she studies Economics and Government. On campus, she is involved in the Women in Student Businesses organization, is a teaching assistant for an engineering course, and is a member of a sorority. ES is also vegan, but this does not restrict her from dining at the various dining centers around campus–she is able to find options at all of them that fit her dietary needs. She plans on going into consulting after graduation.

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural Context: Students at Dartmouth generally use the dining halls quite a lot. Though there are options for eating out and getting takeout food in town, they are somewhat limited given the relatively remote location of the campus. Most students thus opt to stay on a meal plan for all four years that they go to Dartmouth for the sake of convenience and also cost effectiveness. “Foco” is the largest dining hall on campus and one of the more frequently used by students of various backgrounds, involvements, and class years. The atmosphere at Foco varies depending on the meal time. While breakfast is somewhat quiet given many students do not eat breakfast due to sleeping in too late, at peak hours, Foco is typically quite lively and crowded. Peak hours for lunch are between noon and 1pm, while peak hours for dinner are between 6 and 7pm. During these times, it can be difficult for a student to get a table. There are various food options, ranging in terms of health and nutritional value. Typically, one can always find something at Foco that appeals to them and fits with their diet and nutritional needs.
  • Social Context: “Foco” is typically used exclusively by students rather than the general Dartmouth population, as it is generally students alone who dine at the Class of 1953 Commons. This slang word is used around campus at any time of the day when one would typically be up and looking for something to eat. Foco serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner, so this piece of lore applies to all three meals and is used throughout the day. It would generally be used under the following circumstances: a student is going there for a meal, a student is asking someone else to go there for a meal with them, a sports team is all going there to eat after practice, someone is going to study there (sometimes people go to both eat and study), or a club is meeting there. It is often the case that girls eat at Foco more early on in their college career at Dartmouth, rarely going there by the time they are seniors. Guys, however eat at Foco for all four years they are at Dartmouth. The reasons for this are unknown.

Item:

  • “Foco” stands for “food court.” It is colloquial slang that refers to the Class of 1953 Commons, a dining hall at Dartmouth College. For example, a student will ask another student, “Want to get dinner at Foco?”.

Associated File:

  • Transcript: “Foco stands for food court, which is kinda weird because there’s an actual name for it too, the class of fifty-something commons. I think I first heard the term on trips when my trip leaders were talking about the different places to eat on campus. They said it in passing though, so I didn’t realize that Foco wasn’t the actual name of the dining center until a friend told me when I got back to campus and went there to eat for the first time. Almost everyone on campus uses this slang term even if they don’t eat there–Foco just comes up. It’s mostly underclassmen and guys that eat there though; a lot of girls stop eating there after freshman year. It’s a social thing, can’t explain it. But I still eat there sometimes when I’m running out of DBA. It’s also a good place to go if you want to run into people.”

Informant’s Comments:

  • I would recommend Foco, though the food varies a lot in quality day to day.

Collector’s Comments:

  • I think it is interesting how ES mentioned Foco is not just a place to eat but also a place to socialize and a place of community gathering where you run into various people you know. Such must add to its appeal for some people and deter others who may want to grab a meal without having to socialize. Furthermore, I think it is important to note that Foco is one of the more frequently used slang words on Dartmouth Campus. It makes sense that an acronym would arise for a dining center so frequently used by students, especially considering its actual name is quite lengthy and would be difficult to say throughout the day in the casual contexts in which it is typically referred to. Finally, I wanted to clarify the transcript’s reference to “trips”–these are the camping trips all first-year Dartmouth students participate in before matriculation.

Collector’s Name: Annabel Revers

Tags/Keywords: Verbal Folklore, Students, English, Dartmouth, Slang, Dining Halls, Food, Acronyms

3FB (Annabel Revers)

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Title: 3FB

General Information:

  • Type: Verbal Lore
  • Language: English
  • Country of Origin: United States
  • Informant: RR ’23
  • Date Collected: 11/5/2021
  • Location Collected: Baker/Berry Library at Dartmouth College

Informant Data:

  • RR ’23 is a twenty-one-year-old female born in London, England. She is a member of the Class of 2023 at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire. She is majoring in Economics modified with Psychology and consequently spends quite a lot of time in the library. RR is very involved on campus in both student organizations and athletics. She is a leader of Women in Student Businesses as well as a coxswain on the Men’s Lightweight Crew Team. She has also acted in many theatrical productions throughout her time at Dartmouth. She was recently accepted for an internship during the Summer of 2022 in consulting, which is the field she plans on having a career in.

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural Context: With ten week, fast-paced terms, Dartmouth students spend a lot of time studying and, consequently, a lot of time in the library. There is an attitude of “working hard and playing hard” embedded in campus culture, and with that comes the expectation that students are constantly running to the library to fit in work between their other commitments and social activities.
  • Social Context: This phrase is typically used exclusively by students rather than the general Dartmouth population. It is used around campus at any time of the day when one would typically be awake. It would also generally be used under the following circumstances: a student is telling another student of their plans to go study, asking another student to go with them to study, if they are going to class at one of the classrooms in the library, or if they are going to look for a book for a research project. The Baker/Berry Library is considered the main library on campus and 3FB is one of the more popular study locations on campus. This term (Fall 2021) in particular with many students returning to Dartmouth for the first time since the pandemic, the term “3FB” has been used in the context of complaints about how crowded it is given the large number of students on campus. It is also generally accepted to be a quiet study area, but has recently been louder than usual, much to the annoyance of other students who are trying to get work done there.

Item:

  • The acronym “3FB” stands for Third Floor Berry. This is a floor in the Baker/Berry library, the main library at Dartmouth College. For example, a student will say, “I’m going to 3FB to study.”

Associated File:

  • Transcript: “I spend a lot of time in the library and my favorite study spot is 3FB. It’s facetimey but also quiet enough that you can actually study there. I would use it like “Hey wanna go study on 3FB?”. It’s an acronym for Third Floor Berry, so it can’t really be defined beyond that. I first learned it freshman year, I’m not sure from who exactly, but I heard a friend say it my first day on campus and didn’t know what it meant. Eventually that same day I asked someone and they told me what it stood for. Everyone on campus uses the phrase 3FB, it’s just what it’s called now. It probably came about since its one of the more popular study spots on campus and Third Floor Berry was being used so frequently that people got tired of saying it.”

Informant’s Comments:

  • I would highly recommend 3FB whether you want to seriously study or casually work while quietly chatting with friends.

Collector’s Comments:

  • RR mentioned the word “facetimey,” which is also defined in this project by another member of our team. This slang word refers to in this context locations where one goes when they want to be seen by others and socialize. I think it is interesting to consider the atmosphere of different study spaces on campus and if they are considered more quiet or social. It is also interesting to consider how this evolves and changes throughout the years, as this affects the contexts in which this piece of slang is used.

Collector’s Name: Annabel Revers

Tags/Keywords: Verbal Folklore, English, Students, Dartmouth, Slang, Libraries, Acronyms

Good Sam

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General Information:

         Verbal Lore, Slang

         Language: English

         Country of Origin: United States

         Informant: LG

         Date Collected: 11/4/2021

         Location Collected: Dorm Room over a FaceTime Call

Informant Data: LG is a ’23 from Maui, Hawaii. She is 20 years old, and a Government and Geography double major. She is a member of the equestrian team.

Contextual Data:

Social Context: Good sam is used when someone is under the influence to the point that medical assistance is required. It is rarely used by people on campus, as people rarely drink to the point where they need to go to the hospital. All of campus knows this word.

Cultural Context: Good sam is a program used by Dartmouth to encourage safety. If you good sam someone you are exempt from getting into any trouble for underage drinking. Dartmouth students often use this in a joking manner, saying things such as “slow down we don’t want to have to good sam you”. Most students learn this early on during their freshman year, as it is a matter of safety stressed by the college. It has a negative connotation, and can often be a source of shame if you are “good sam’ed”.

Item: Good Sam: To call 911 and request medical assistance for someone who has had too much to drink or is otherwise incapacitated. Example: “John had too much to drink last night so we had to good sam him”.

Associated File: Notable quotes

“Good sam means to call the hospital for someone who has had too much to drink at a party or a night out”.

“Yeah the term is often used when someone is drinking a lot and we want to tell them to slow down, saying something like ‘don’t want to have to good sam you'”.

Informant’s Comments: LG said she has luckily never had to use this word herself on campus.

Collector’s Comments: I have never had any experience with using good sam directly, but friends of mine have. It is certainly a negative word, and people talk about others getting good sam’ed and spread rumors about it.

Collector’s Name: Ben Ryan

Dark Side/Light Side (Harry Grigorian)

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Title: Dark Side/ Light Side

General Information:

         Verbal Lore, Slang

         Language: English

         Country of Origin: United States

         Informant: JS

         Date Collected: 11/2/2021

         Location Collected: Dorm Room

Informant Data: JS is a member of the Class of 2023 at Dartmouth. He is from Providence, Rhode Island and rows on the Varsity Men’s Lightweight Crew Team. JS is a Government major and enjoys spending time with his dog and riding his bike.

Contextual Data:

Social Context: These are among the two most commonly used phrases at Dartmouth. Student can use them in person or over text, and they are ubiquitous in all class years and across campus. Its usage certainly spikes around meal times as student plan where to meet friends.

Cultural Context: As there is only one dining hall, students are very familiar with it. It does have two separate eating areas, and one is lighter with white paint and tables while one is darker with brown paint and tables. Students coordinate where they want to sit by texting their friends before a meal asking if they are going light or dark side. It has a neutral connotation.

Item: Dark and Light Side; the two eating areas at Foco, one of which is darker and one of which is lighter. Example: I was sitting at Dark Side, but it was too depressing today so I moved to Light Side.

Quotes from Informant: “In foco,” these two terms describe “two places you can at in Foco on opposite sides of the building.” In a phrase, he could say “I would prefer to eat on dark side over light side today.” He learned this phrase “freshman fall, right at the start of school from a person who had already been here.” “All of Dartmouth knows dark side vs light side.” This slang came to be “because it’s a description of a place and dark side is a lot darker. It’s much easier to describe.”

Informant’s Comments: Everyone on campus knows this word and uses it frequently. Sports teams eat on Dark Side usually, especially JS’s crew team. “It’s nice because whole teams can sit together at the longer tables and not have to split up,” JS said.

Collector’s Comments: This slang feels very unique to Dartmouth. As we are all so familiar with Foco, it is cool that we can create slang (Dark and Light Side) within other slang (Foco). That’s pretty cool!

Collector’s Name: Harry Grigorian

Need ___

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General Information:

         Verbal Lore, Slang

         Language: English

         Country of Origin: United States

         Informant: CR ’23

         Date Collected: 11/4/2021

         Location Collected: New Hamp Dorm Room

Informant Data: CR is a ’23 from Orinda, California. He is 20 years old, and a philosophy and environmental science double major. On campus he plays club soccer.

Contextual Data:

Social Context: The phrase “need ___” is used when asking people to do an activity with you. It is most frequently used in group chats, often in large group chats for clubs or greek organizations. Common uses of “need” are when people want to play pong, get a meal, or go somewhere off campus. It is often texted out, and then people will respond in a specific manner to indicate that they are interested.

Cultural Context: Dartmouth students have a unique way of talking, and like to shorten and simplify words. The phrase “need” is a simple, efficient way of asking people to do something and saying how many people are needed. This phrase is especially useful for pong, a game that is fairly unique to Dartmouth. It has a fairly neutral connotation.

Item: “Need ___”: Need is a way to express that you want people to do something with you, so you say need followed by the number of people needed and the activity you want to do. Example: “Need 3 for pong”

Associated File: Notable quotes

“Need is an easy text to send when you need a certain number of people to do something with you.”

“I mostly use ‘need’ when I want to play pong, and I usually text out in our fraternity group chat, as that is where I usually get the quickest responses.”

Informant’s Comments:  CR said he uses this word mostly for pong, although he mentioned that his freshman floor group chat used it a lot for meals and other activities. He also started using it more frequently once joining a fraternity.

Collector’s Comments: I started using this word a lot more once I joined a greek organization. It is an easy way to communicate to a large group of people and helps me find people to do activities with.

Collector’s Name: Ben Ryan

Warm Cut (Harry Grigorian)

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General Information:

         Verbal Lore, Slang

         Language: English

         Country of Origin: United States

         Informant: AK

         Date Collected: 11/5/2021

         Location Collected: Dorm Room

Informant Data: AK is a member of the Class of 2023 at Dartmouth College. She is a Creative Writing major and Computer Science minor, and she rows for the Women’s Crew team. AK is from San Francisco, California, and enjoys running and hanging out with friends

Contextual Data:

Social Context: This slang is used typically when describing a route to get from one place to another. It is not usually used over text, but is said in person when two or more people are discussing. This phrase is used often among members of the women’s crew team, and is probably used more during cold weather.

Cultural Context: Hanover, especially in the winter, is extremely cold. Dartmouth also has many clusters of buildings that can impede travel. Therefore, in the cold, it makes sense for students to cut through buildings while moving around campus. Its connotation is neutral.

Item: Warm cut; an indoor travel route that avoids the cold weather outside. Example: Sorry I was a second late, I took a warm cut through Robinson Hall.

Quotes from Informant: The warm cut definition is “walking through a warm building you normally wouldn’t enter when it’s cold outside to stay warmer. An example is “I walk through the library on the way to class.” She learned it “Freshman year from a teammate who would beep us into her dorm as a warm cut.” She’s “not sure” who uses it, but “definitely [her] whole sports team.” She said it developed “Because it’s a spin on the word short cut but it’s warm.”

Informant’s Comments: AK said she likes this word because it is unique to Dartmouth students and fits the small campus nature. She learned this phrase freshman year.

Collector’s Comments: I know this word and also really like it. Hearing it now reminds me of the beautiful winter time. It is also a word that people outside of Dartmouth would not understand, so I enjoy the uniqueness. It is also definitely used by way more people than just her sports team. Probably the whole campus uses it.

Collector’s Name: Harry Grigorian

NARP

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General Information:

         Verbal Lore, Slang

         Language: English

         Country of Origin: United States

         Informant: JC ’24

         Date Collected: 11/2/2021

         Location Collected: First Floor Baker Library

Informant Data: JC is a ’24 at Dartmouth College, and is a 21 year old male from Singapore. He is a sophomore at Dartmouth college, and is not an athlete. He is a Economics major.

Contextual Data:

Social Context: I collected this information and word from Jihwan on the first floor of Baker library. NARP is used to delineate a social divide on campus between athletes and non-athletes. It is often a key piece of information used to describe someone. It can cause divides in social settings such as greek life, as athletes tend to belong to certain fraternities and sororities and narps belong mostly to others.It can be used with both a negative or positive connotation, depending on the situation. Some people are very proud to be narps, while occasionally athletes look down on narps and use the word in a mean way.

Cultural Context: Dartmouth students often shorten words or phrases to make them easier to remember and create a more unique culture. Non-athlete is an awkward way to refer to someone, so the word NARP was created to make things easier. Given the unusually high percentage of Dartmouth students that are athletes, this term is useful when talking about people on campus.

Item: NARP (Non-Athletic Regular Person): Example: “Joe used to play on the soccer team but he quit, so now he is a narp.”

Associated File:

“NARP stands for non-athletic regular person, so its like anyone who’s not an athlete.”

“I learned it freshman year because a couple guys on my floor were athletes, and some older guys referred to other people on our floor using this word”.

Informant’s Comments: JC said he was asked if he was a narp fairly frequently during his first few weeks at Dartmouth. He also noted that the word fosters a sense of division between athletes and non-athletes that can be seen in various social situations.

Collector’s Comments: This term was created as an easy way to refer to non-athletes. It is an abbreviation and thus is more efficient and easy to remember. I don’t frequently use this word, but when I do I use the word to describe individuals or friend groups.

Collector’s Name: Ben Ryan