Snowmageddon

Snowmageddon, Snowpocalypse and Snowzilla[1] are portmanteaus of the word "snow" with either "Armageddon", "Apocalypse" and "Godzilla" respectively. Snowmageddon and Snowpocalypse seem to have first been published in the popular press in Canada during January 2009,[2] and was also used in January 2010 by The Guardian reporter Charlie Brooker on January 16, 2010 in order to describe heavy snowfall across the United Kingdom during the preceding days.[3] The Washington Post, out of Washington, DC, ran an online poll asking for reader feedback prior to the First North American blizzard of 2010 on February 4, 2010,[4] and several blogs, including the Washington Post's own blog, followed that up by using either "Snowmageddon" and or "Snowpocalypse" during the following days, before, during, and after the storm hit.[5]

The Washington Post also popularized the terms "snOMG" (see OMG) and "kaisersnoze" (see Keyser Soze) in response to the February snowstorms.[6]

During the evening preceding the first blizzard hitting Washington, DC, most of the United States federal government closed, and press coverage continued to characterize the storm using either "Snowmageddon", "Snowpocalypse", or both.[7] The phrase was later popularized by the President of the United States, Barack Obama, on February 8, 2010, who used the term while speaking at the Democratic National Committee's meeting.[8]

The 2008 children's book Winter Blast, by Chris Wright, uses the term "snowmageddon" in the storyline of the book.[9]

See also

Snowmageddon, Snowpocalypse and Snowzilla can refer specifically to:

Similar terms

References

  1. ^ Hanley, Kipp (February 5, 2010). "Snowzilla set to break records". InsideNoVA (Media General). http://www2.insidenova.com/isn/news/local/article/snowzilla_set_to_break_records/51804/. Retrieved February 11, 2010. 
  2. ^ Ibbotson, Heather (January 26, 2010). "Mild winter easy on city budget". Brantford Expositor (Sun Media). http://www.brantfordexpositor.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2276849. Retrieved February 11, 2010. ""At this time last year, we were referring to it as snowmageddon," Madden said." 
  3. ^ Brooker, Charlie (January 16, 2010). "Charlie Brooker's Screen burn". The Guardian (Guardian News and Media Limited). http://www.guardian.co.uk/tv-and-radio/2010/jan/16/charlie-brooker-screen-burn. Retrieved February 11, 2010. "As far as the 24-hour rolling networks were concerned, this wasn't a freak weather condition. This was war. Death from the skies. Earth versus the Ice Warriors. Snowmageddon." 
  4. ^ "Vote for storm name, Twitter hashtag & snow total". Washington Post (The Washington Post Company). February 4, 2010. http://voices.washingtonpost.com/capitalweathergang/2010/02/poll_storm_nametwitter_hashtag.html. Retrieved February 11, 2010. 
  5. ^ Broder, John M.; Healy, Jack (February 5, 2010). "East Coast Is Hit by ‘Potentially Epic Snowstorm’". The New York Times (Washington, D.C.: The New York Times Company). http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/06/us/06storm.html. Retrieved February 11, 2010. "bracing for what newspapers and bloggers have been calling the “snowpocalypse,” or “snowmageddon,”" 
  6. ^ Gainor, Dan M. (February 10, 2010). "Washington's New Four-Letter Word: Snow". Fox News. Reuters (News Corporation). http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2010/02/10/dan-gainor-snow-washington-shutdown-federal-government-snowpocalypse/. Retrieved February 12, 2010. "D.C. residents have turned to social media like Twitter and FaceBook to vent their frustration with terms like “snOMG,” “snowmageddon,” “snowpocalypse,” and “kaisersnoze.”" 
  7. ^ "Powerful blizzard shuts down US capital". Google news. AFP (Google). February 5, 2010. http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5j3HVBhfkkHN4c9TlIAxNkxjbwR0A. Retrieved February 11, 2010. "The storm, dubbed "Snowpocalypse" and "Snowmageddon" by many locals," 
  8. ^ "Obama calls capital's blizzard `Snowmageddon'". Google news. Associated Press (Google). February 6, 2010. http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hlBwiGnqz8r5Oef6ql5jHsm3npWQD9DMOS582. Retrieved February 11, 2010. 
  9. ^ Wright, Chris (2008). Winter Blast. Mountain Valley Publishing. ISBN 9781934940105. http://www.mountainvalleypublishing.com/winterblast.asp. Retrieved February 11, 2010. 
  10. ^ a b Capital Weather Gang