Why is New York called the Big Apple?

New York City has many names, such as "the city that never sleeps," "the capital of the world," and "the center of the universe." But its most important title is "The Big Apple."

Most tourists and immigrants continue to use this term to describe New York City, but few know its origins. Let's find out!

So, there's no definitive answer to this question! But there are a number of theories about how it might have originated.

The first mentions of this nickname are known to have appeared in the 1920s, meaning it has been around for over a century.

The article contains the most popular versions of the origin of this name.

Apples were sold on the streets of New York.

Some believe the name comes from the apple trade by wealthy people during the Great Depression of 1929, which began after the stock market crash in the United States.

This went on for 10 years.

Apples became the city's first fruits

Historians claim that the first settlers, upon arriving in the city, planted the seeds of several trees, and the apple tree was the first tree to bear fruit.

The Big Apple came from the jazz music genre.

One theory is that the term originated from a famous jazz song. It included the following lines: "There are many apples on the tree of success, but if you win New York, you get the big apple." The song was released in the 1920s. This is a logical source for the famous nickname.

After some time, a dance of the same name was created to this composition, after which the song became a real hit and made the city famous throughout the world!

Historical origin

A renowned scientist from Missouri took this question seriously. Together with his colleague, Barry Popik, they conducted a study. The research revealed that the name originated with correspondent John Fitzgerald. He mentioned it in a 1921 sports article in the New York Morning Telegraph.

The nickname caught the public's attention, so several years later, in 1924, John Fitzgerald shared how he came up with the name. It turned out the journalist first heard it mentioned while he was in New Orleans. Local jockeys had nicknamed New York this, citing the fact that horses adored the fruit, and the most important equestrian competitions were held in the "Capital of the World."

At that time, winning big money in horse racing, known as the "Big Apple," was a significant goal for many jockeys and trainers. Races were held in and around New York City.

The latest version of the origin of this term

New York City is visited by a large number of tourists, and tours are regularly offered there. Modern tour guides often suggest that the name "Big Apple" comes from the Apple store located in Manhattan.

This version cannot be authentic in terms of time, since the nickname originated long before the emergence of the Apple company.

Representatives of the ancient profession were nicknamed "apples"

There's a theory that the nickname originated with the Frenchwoman Evelyn Claudine de Saint-Émeraude, who emigrated to New York and ran her own brothel, "Eve's Apple." The girls who worked there were nicknamed "little apples."

It's known that the phrase gained popularity in the 1970s thanks to the city administration's use of it in advertising to attract tourists. The name later firmly stuck with the city, making it a brand in the international tourism market.