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Today I Learned (TIL) @lemmy.ca

realitista @lemm.ee

2d ago

TIL a Canadian town Tisdale used to have a motto "The land of rape and honey" which was changed to "Opportunity grows here" in 2016.

www.theguardian.com

Canadian town drops 'land of rape and honey' slogan

cross-posted from: https://lemmit.online/post/5748983

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.
The original was posted on /r/todayilearned by /u/Remiliera on 2025-04-26 11:15:07+00:00.

Today I Learned @lemmy.world

realitista @lemm.ee

2d ago

TIL a Canadian town Tisdale used to have a motto "The land of rape and honey" which was changed to "Opportunity grows here" in 2016.

www.theguardian.com /world/2016/aug/22/canadian-town-tisdale-land-of-rape-and-honey-slogan

Today I Learned (TIL) @lemmit.online

Lemmit.Online bot @lemmit.online

2d ago

TIL a Canadian town Tisdale used to have a motto "The land of rape and honey" which was changed to "Opportunity grows here" in 2016.

www.theguardian.com /world/2016/aug/22/canadian-town-tisdale-land-of-rape-and-honey-slogan

32 comments

The rape was refering to rape seed. Belive Canola is a modified form of it.
- The land of the rape seed...
  Thanks for clearing that up.

As others mentioned it was rape as "rapeseed". Unfortunate homophone of another word referring to non-consensual sex.
Middle English borrowed the word "rape" (for the seed) straight from Latin, rapum, rapa. The Latin word actually refers to turnips, but they're relatives and their flowers look really similar:

\
Top is turnip (Latin rapa), bottom is rape. Latin inherited it from Proto-Indo-European [s]rā́p- "wild cabbage, turnip"; it's a really weird word, that ā shows it was borrowed into Late PIE from some pre-IE language.
Then the word referring to non-consensual sex was from Norman French "rap" instead. It's ultimately from Latin "rapere" (to seize, capture, rape), in turn inherited from Proto-Indo-European h₁rep- "to snatch".
- Isnt that canola?
  
  Canola is rapeseed.
  Apparently it's etymology is from 70's from "Canada" +"oleum" (from latin).
  So I guess someone just thought to rebrand "rapeseed".
  
  As other users highlighted, canola is a specific cultivar of rapeseed. The name is for Canadian oil, low acidity. It was originally a brand.
  Wiktionary also lists "colza", ultimately from Dutch koolzaad (cabbage seed). I never saw it in English, only in Portuguese (and even then it was an "ackshyually" moment).

The land of Canola and honey just doesn't have the same ring to it.
- Canola wasn't around then. Canola is a lo acid version or whatever of rapeseed.
  
  Thatsthejoke.

The Land of Rape and Honey is a good album

So tired of the wokeness
(Am I doing it right?)

And we're all out of honey... https://9gag.com/gag/aQ3nRBw

What does "rape and honey" mean in this context? Is this a metaphor?
As a non native English speaker i would interpret "rape and honey" into the sexual abuse and the bee food.
- Rapeseed is a plant that is grown for its oil and is called "rape" for short.
  As a native English speaker, I'd assume most people have the same first thought as you and is why they changed it.
  
  That oil is more commonly called canola, by the way. Canadian Oil, Low Acid. Used for the same reason the motto was changed.
  
  It's more like it's called rapeseed for long. It used to just be called "rape", but people wanted to distinguish the name from the other meaning and it's mostly the seeds we grow it for
  
  Note that canola is a variety of rapeseed.
- The unfortunately named rapeseed
  
  Oddly enough it's a total coincidence that they are homonyms. The plant's name comes from the Latin name for turnip, rapum
  
  wait a fucking second, that's a Brassica
  
  Thanks this explains a lot.
- Rapeseed

32 comments