The difference between American English and British English is particularly difficult to spot to non-native speakers, but to us native tongued creatures these differences can be glaringly obvious. Apart from the spelling: ‘color’ for ‘colour’, ‘favorite’ for ‘favourite’ there exists certain different semantic forms that refer to similar meanings.

‘Hey, I like your bangs, there so cool!’ Such statement may provoke stifled responses from your typical British English speaker. A certain difficulty in attempting to discern what exactly is being referred to may be the first point of contestation, swiftly followed for mistaking such innocence for emboldened crassness. What are bangs you say? Is this some kind of secret term you have for ‘certain’ body parts that belong to me? Well, such rationale is not so far from the truth.

For an American to refer to your ‘bangs’ is for them to comment upon your hair. However the term is limited, it cannot extend simply to a shaven head, but must be in reference to a fringe. Why they don’t simply use the word ‘fringe’ is largely mysterious, it succeeds as being one of the many words in British English that can have multiple meanings, which depends largely on context in order for us to discern its correct usage. ‘Fringe’ can refer to the margin, or the ripples being made on the edge of a community, it can also refer to festivals: ‘Edinburgh Fringe’. Examining this word and its American substitute leads us to wonder what the motivations are for coining such terms into language when sufficient terms exist in reference to the object.

Is this replacement an act of creating a unique form of language independent from that of the old colonial foe? Is it a process of assimilation from the colloquial to the standard in the sense of diction? Maybe it is because of the complications that arise from the words multiple usage in varying contexts, this may have lead to the need to use one identifiable term in which to refer to an individuals ‘hair bits’. I might just simply say: ‘Hey, look at my hair that falls sweepingly over my eyes’ but I sense this would not be such an effective topic of conversation. Especially amongst male peers. Down the pub. Whilst watching sport.

The author’s bangs, (on the right)