Indiana and Delaware Can’t Spell ‘Hallelujah,’ Leonard Cohen Turns Over In His Grave
Image by Getty Images, Michael Loccisano
By Gabriel Lehrman May 31, 2017
Google Trends just released “American’s Most Misspelled Words” of 2017, and it’s a sight to behold. While some states can be forgiven for struggling with certain words (I get it, West Virginia and Connecticut, supercalifragilisticexpialidocious is confusing), some of these mistakes are just plain embarrassing.
But Leonard Cohen may be surprised to see ‘Hallelujah’ as the most misspelled word in Indiana and Delaware. Though Leonard Cohen seemingly has no close connection to either state, he has toured there and his famous ballad has touched the hearts of people in all 50 states.
Judging by Google Trends’ methods, which takes the top searched “how to spell [word]” from each state for a given year, it also could imply that Indiana and Delaware may consider the song to be truly special.
Another notable misspelling was Pennsylvania, which struggled over the word ‘sauerkraut.’ While the condiment is not explicitly a Jewish food, the Kitchen Project alleges that it was brought to the United States by Ashkenazi Jews from Eastern Europe. Who am I to disagree? Either way, Pennsylvania seems baffled by sauerkraut – or at least by its complicated spelling.
There are a lot of things our nation could use right now and it’s getting at least one of them. The National Spelling Bee premiered today and runs through tomorrow night.
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover. All donations are being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
