This is apparently a case of a genericized trademark
I thought aspirin was the general name for the painkilling medicine, like acetaminophen of ibuprofen
Heroin is also the trademark named for a drug owned by Bayer.
Yep, so named because it was a heroisch (heroic; strong) painkiller.
If you dig a little deeper you‘ll learn they lost a lot of trademarks because of uuh… events.
Like how in the UK everyone says they will run the Hoover over the carpet, even though the vacuum cleaner might be another brand
Even more than that, it’s a verb. “Have you done the hoovering yet?” or “Don’t make a mess, I just hoovered” are both perfectly normal sentences here. 😃
Atlanta Georgia:
“How ya’ll fine folks doing tonight? Can I get ya started with some’in to drink?”
“I’ll have a Coke”
“Sure, sug. What kind?”
“Sprite”
“Aw, I’m sorry. We only carry Pepsi products!”
“…how do you sleep at night?”
Considering the outsized presence of Coca-Cola there, understandable reaction.
Atlanta Georgia
Can confirm Austin, Texas, as well. I bet it’s all through the south.
Apparently it was related to some marketing campaign that Hoover had, way back. Where, if you bought a product you either got a discount off a return plane ticket to America or you got them outright.
As a result, there was a huge uptick in the number of people buying Hoovers in the UK, to the point that they actually became synonymous.
And in US cities, people often take their trash to the Dumpster. Originally, it was a model name of a bin called Dempsey’s Dumpster.
Apparently acetylsalicylic acid is the chemical name, I think I’ll stick with Aspirin
It’s often called ASA in medical usage.
AAS in common Brazilian street parlance.
Or ASS in German 😁
