Culture
Duuuval
doo-VAAAL
The county's name, drawn out into a chant. It is the city's identity marker, shouted at Jaguars games and used in ordinary conversation as shorthand for 'here'.
The Bold City
—
Jacksonville's civic nickname, shortened from the 'Bold New City of the South' slogan that accompanied the 1968 consolidation. You will see it on beer taps, murals and city letterhead.
Daily life
Consolidation
kon-sol-ih-DAY-shun
The 1968 merger of the City of Jacksonville with Duval County. It is why the city covers ~875 square miles and why 'city' and 'county' mean the same thing in almost every sentence here.
The Beaches
thuh BEE-chez
Atlantic Beach, Neptune Beach and Jacksonville Beach — three separate small cities twenty miles east that opted out of consolidation. Locals treat them as a distinct place, and legally they are.
Northbank / Southbank
NORTH-bank / SOUTH-bank
Downtown is split by the St. Johns River. Northbank has the offices and the stadium; Southbank has the Riverwalk, the Museum of Science and History and better views back across.
The 904
thuh nine-oh-four
Jacksonville by its area code, used as an identity marker the way the 305 is in Miami.
Homesteading
HOHM-sted-ing
Filing for Florida's homestead exemption on your primary residence. Used as a verb — 'did you homestead yet?' — because the deadline is 1 March and missing it costs a year.
Snowbird
SNOH-burd
A part-year resident who arrives from the north in autumn and leaves in spring. Affects traffic, restaurant queues and short-term rental prices from roughly November to April.
No-see-ums
noh-SEE-umz
Biting midges near the marshes and the river, worst at dawn and dusk. Too small for standard window screens, which is why 'no-see-um screening' is a thing you can buy here.
Transport
The Intracoastal
IN-truh-koh-stul
The Intracoastal Waterway, which runs between the mainland and the beaches. 'East of the Intracoastal' is a price bracket as much as a location.
Emergency
Cone of uncertainty
kohn uv un-SUR-tun-tee
The National Hurricane Center's forecast track graphic. From June to November it is on every screen in the city, and locals argue about how to read it correctly — it shows the centre's likely path, not the storm's size.
Food
Pub sub
pub sub
A sandwich from the Publix supermarket deli. Genuinely a cultural institution in Florida, with a weekly discount schedule people plan around.
Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.