Quezi

Sunset in Manhattan, New York City. Photo by Aturkus. CC-BY

New York City never has been known for its apple orchards, so why it is called the Big Apple? Although numerous explanations have been given over the years, the name appears to have come from the horse-racing days of the 1920s. But its widespread popularity as a term for the city didn’t occur until about four decades ago.

The term “Big Apple” has been researched extensively by etymologist Barry Popik, who traced its popularity back to New York Daily Telegraph sportswriter John J. Fitz Gerald (sometimes spelled FitzGerald). It’s not clear exactly how “big apple” became associated with horse racing, but it is common in English to attach meanings to phrases such “the big cheese” and “the big enchilada,” which have acquired meanings of their own, so why not “big apple”? In any case, according to Popik’s research, it wasn’t uncommon even in the 1800s to talk about betting a big apple, and since horses love apples, and horses provided a popular opportunity for betting early in the 19th century, it was only a natural that people would talk about going to the races to bet the big apple.

Fitz Gerald used the term frequently in his writing, often referring to a big race as a big apple. By around the beginning of the Depression, he was writing columns with the words in the title, first his “On the Big Apple” column and then one called “Around the Big Apple.” And thus the term became applied to the city itself.

But the term didn’t become widely known outside the city until starting in 1970, when the New York Convention and Visitors Bureau started a promotional campaign using the apple as a symbol for the city. Beginning in 1972, the bureau began handing out Big Apple stickers that people could wear, and many New York-based celebrities were seen wearing them. Since then, the city’s symbol has been known throughout the world.