Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2020/10/28/an-etymologist-explains-how-halloween-candy-favorites-got-their-names.html
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I seem to remember Kit Kats being called some kind of wafer bar, and the first ads I recall for Starburst had them referred to as M&M’s Fruit Chewies. There was an ad with hip young people, putting the candies in their mouths with their eyes closed and guessing the color, as hip young people are known to do. I particularly liked the line “It tastes red.”
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Some of these were really interesting! And some were kind of vague to the point of uselessness. It’s not super enlightening that a candy was given a name “for marketing purposes” with no further elaboration…
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We get your Smarties as Rockets, but you don’t get our Smarties under a different name? Smarties in Canada are essentially sweeter M&M’s. Based on Halloween trading patterns among the kids, Smarties are far preferred.
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M&Ms are so culturally engrained that I think EU/Canada Smarties would be seen as a pale imitation rather than the clearly superior product they actually are.
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Yeah, and that one I thought most people knew. The Starburst name change was due to the popularity space race.
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In the US, Smarties are basically the last thing left in the bag a week after Halloween. Their trade value is approximately 2 per Mary Jane, 3 plus a Tootsie Roll for Skittles and have zero trade value for anything chocolate unless the kid has a nut allergy. But that’s some inside trading knowledge that would be frowned upon by competitors. And really, the only kids willing to trade anything for Smarties are the ones who are trying to amass the biggest pile; it is often accompanied by immediate regret once their Pyrrhic victory is achieved.
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Back in the day, Smarties had a higher trade value than Necco Wafers, but that’s not saying much.
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That’s just because Boommers don’t go trick or treating anymore.
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Did you know … that Snickers is called Marathon Bar in Britain to avoid confusion with the slang word knickers?
Not for a long time now. Keep up.
30 years in fact, but then I checked and as of 12 August it will again be Marathon for 3 months only and only in two outlets. So, no, it is still known as Snickers here.
After a year of bad news, nostalgic chocolate fans have something to celebrate – as the classic Marathon bar returns to supermarket shelves.
Marathon is the original name for a Snickers bar, made up of nougat, peanuts, caramel and chocolate. The name was changed in the UK 30 years ago.
From 10 August, Mars Wrigley has reintroduced the classic chocolate bar under its original name, at Morrison’s and McColls stores.
The retro chocolate will now be available as a Marathon bar for a three-month period.
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They pulled the same stunt with Twix in Germany (and I’m sure elsewhere) a few years ago. Called it Raider again for a few weeks to cash in on Gen X nostalgia.
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I don’t think you need an etymologist, a historical linguist, to put together this candy bar chart.
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In their defense, typical orange candy flavoring really doesn’t taste anything like orange the fruit. Same with grape, green apple, strawberry, cherry, etc*. You might as well identify it as a color instead.
*This rule doesn’t apply to Marakawa Fruit gum.
That’s why I always liked the line–it had a touch of reality to it. I remember when Life Savers introduced some flavors that tasted something akin to identifiable fruits. Seemed revolutionary to me.
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Has it really been 30 years? Holy shirtballs. 
But yeah, the etymologist needs some updated research i think.
And those are Smarties? No, no, these are Smarties…
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the slang word knickers
It’s not a slang word, it’s a perfectly cromulent word! It means pants (generally ladies underwear).
Honestly Rusty, between this and your ‘Marathon’ gaffe, were you just trying to make all us British readers spit out our tea? 
/s
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I spent the summer of 1985 in London through a work exchange program when I was in college (I’m American), and enjoyed a personal comparative candy nomenclature class of my own making. Snickers were called Marathon, Three Musketeers were called Milky Way, Marathons were called Curly Wurlys. The British versions were all superior. UK Smarties, as others have said above, were superior to M&Ms. Bounty bars were better than Mounds. The list goes on…
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They should put what they taste like/are composed of too. I’ve only seen 10 of these ever and 5 of those are in rare “international” shops. Along with a few that are called the names of familiar candies but obviously are completely different. So what the heck does a “Tootsie Roll” taste of anyway? 
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