This partial list of city nicknames in Maryland compiles the aliases, sobriquets and slogans that cities in Maryland are known by (or have been known by historically), officially and unofficially, to municipal governments, local people, outsiders or their tourism boards or chambers of commerce. City nicknames can help in establishing a civic identity, helping outsiders recognize a community or attracting people to a community because of its nickname; promote civic pride; and build community unity.Muench, David "Wisconsin Community Slogans: Their Use and Local Impacts" , December 1993, accessed April 10, 2007. Nicknames and slogans that successfully create a new community "ideology or myth" are also believed to have economic value. Their economic value is difficult to measure, but there are anecdotal reports of cities that have achieved substantial economic benefits by "branding" themselves by adopting new slogans.Alfredo Andia, Branding the Generic City :) , MU.DOT magazine, September 10, 2007
Some unofficial nicknames are positive, while others are derisive. The unofficial nicknames listed here have been in use for a long time or have gained wide currency.
List of nicknames Annapolis Crabtown, Irvine World News, February 22, 2004 NaptownArin Shortz, Know All About Naptown , Charms of the Chesapeake website, accessed April 18, 2012. Baltimore America's Comeback CityU.S. City Monikers, Tagline Guru website, accessed January 5, 2008 Bodymore, MurdalandVan Smith and Fred Siegel, Can Mayor O’Malley Save Ailing Baltimore?, City Journal, Winter 2001 Charm CityPopik, Barry."Charm City (summary)". The Big Apple. Nicknames of Other Places. March 25, 2005. URL retrieved on May 5, 2007. The City of Firsts The City That Reads Crab Cake Capital of the World The Greatest City in AmericaO'Mara, Richard. "Backstory: Baltimore - 'Home of 1,000 Slogans'". The Christian Science Monitor. January 5, 2006. URL retrieved on January 27, 2007. Harm CityEntry from July 18, 2008: Harm City, Barry Popik's blog, accessed August 10, 2009 MobtownConnery, William. "Maryland’s Mob Town Supplied Links Through Rail and Fort". May 2002. URL retrieved on January 27, 2007.Smith, Van. "Mob Rules" . Baltimore City Paper. October 6, 2004. URL retrieved on January 27, 2007. Monument City Columbia – The Next AmericaThe Next America Revisited , Levinson D. (2003) "The Next America Revisited". Journal of Planning Education and Research. Summer 2003, Volume 22, Number 4, pp. 329-345. Crisfield – Seafood Capital of the World Cumberland – Queen City of the Alleghenies Ellicott City – Little Sneedville Frederick Key City Hagerstown Hub CityHagerstown, Maryland, mdoe.org Maryland Online Encyclopedia. Retrieved September 15, 2008. Maryland's Gateway to the West Takoma Park Azalea CityClaims to Fame - Plants , Epodunk, accessed April 16, 2007. The People's Republic of Takoma ParkAmit R. Paley, Takoma Park Council Backs Same-Sex Unions, Washington Post, July 15, 2004, page B01.
See also List of city nicknames in the United States
References