"Trailer Sailer" Versus "Trailer Sailor"

[Tedd]

I got sidetracked by Google Ngram this morning and made the following discovery.

This is a plot of the ratio of "trailer sailer"/"trailer sailor" compared to the ratio of "sailer"/"sailor" (in english-language publications). Note that almost nobody spells it "sailer" on its own, but "sailer" is actually more common than "sailor" when combined with the word "trailer." I'm advised by a linguist (my wife) that this is an example of linguistic analogy. We tend to change the spelling of the word when it's associated with the word "trailer" because the "er" ending of "trailer" is more familiar than the "or" ending of "sailor."

What are your speculations about the peak in "trailer sailer" around 2006, and the subsequent decline?

For the Brits: My suspicion is that this is more common in American English than in British English, but the Google results I got are unclear so I can't say for sure.

 

[justsomeguy]

What are your speculations about the peak in "trailer sailer" around 2006, and the subsequent decline?

That period coincides with the US housing bubble...
Meh, I got nothing.

 

[dlochner]

It would be interesting to graph that on to a graph of economic indicators. The Great Recession began about the same time as trailer sailor collapsed. I would suspect the interest declined as did the economy.

 

[Tedd]

That period coincides with the US housing bubble...

As in, "Gee, my house is worth a fortune! I think I'll take out a loan against it and buy a trailer sailer!"

 

[Justin_NSA]

In '06 Pluto was downgraded from a planet to a dwarf planet. Saddam Hussein is executed. 'Bird flu' discovered in Scotland.
Maybe folks were distracted

 

[Tedd]

It would be interesting to graph that on to a graph of economic indicators.

Before we go too far down that road, here's a plot of the combined popularity of the terms "trailer sailer" and "trailer sailor."

 

[Benny17441]

I got sidetracked by Google Ngram this morning and made the following discovery.
View attachment 200834
This is a plot of the ratio of "trailer sailer"/"trailer sailor" compared to the ratio of "sailer"/"sailor" (in english-language publications). Note that almost nobody spells it "sailer" on its own, but "sailer" is actually more common than "sailor" when combined with the word "trailer." I'm advised by a linguist (my wife) that this is an example of linguistic analogy. We tend to change the spelling of the word when it's associated with the word "trailer" because the "er" ending of "trailer" is more familiar than the "or" ending of "sailor."

What are your speculations about the peak in "trailer sailer" around 2006, and the subsequent decline?

For the Brits: My suspicion is that this is more common in American English than in British English, but the Google results I got are unclear so I can't say for sure.

What?

 

[dlochner]

Before we go too far down that road, here's a plot of the combined popularity of the terms "trailer sailer" and "trailer sailor."
View attachment 200835

Actually that graph reinforces the economic connection.

1965: Fiberglass trailer sailors were just coming on the market. A more affordable option than a wood sailboat
1970-75: Rising gas prices, stagflation, and a weak economy moved interest toward sailboats from powerboats. By 1978 inflation surged to 9%.
1982-85: Interesting time, The America's Cup was a big deal with Dennis Connor winning back the America's Cup. Inflation had dropped into the 3-4% range.
1990-2000: Economy grew, the tech bubble, and a balanced Federal Budget. Then the tech bubble crashed.

US Inflation Rate by Year: 1929-2023

The U.S. inflation rate by year is the percentage of change in prices from one year to the next. It responds to business cycle phases and interest rates.

www.thebalance.com

 

[Tedd]

@dlochner ,

I brought up the second plot because the first plot says nothing about the popularity of the two terms, per se, but only about the popularity of one term relative to the other. Your comment about economic factors seemed to have more to do with absolute popularity, hence the second plot.

 

[jssailem]

@Tedd

1. I find this a fascinating exploration.
2. I changed avatar name from sailor to sailem on purpose.
3. I think this road you have taken could be diverted if you would find a boat.

That shared, I suspect the association of Inflation and the use of Sailor vs Sailer is coincidental not causal.

 

[Tedd]

@Tedd
I think this road you have taken could be diverted if you would find a boat.

Guilty as charged! I'm out of my mind with boredom. (Obviously.)

 

[rgranger]

In '06 Pluto was downgraded from a planet to a dwarf planet. Saddam Hussein is executed. 'Bird flu' discovered in Scotland.
Maybe folks were distracted

I was going to go with solar flair activity (or is that soler) but I think Bird flu makes much more sense.

 

[Calif. Ted]

Sailor is a person, while sailer is a boat, isn't it ? Principal/Principle ??
It's raining here finally.

 

[Justin_NSA]

Sailor is a person, while sailer is a small boat, isn't it ?
It's raining here finally.

correct. And a trailer sailer is a trailerable boat, and a trailer sailor is someone who sails that boat (not the trailer)

 

[Tedd]

Sailor is a person, while sailer is a boat, isn't it ? Principal/Principle ??

That's a good generalization, but not a rule.

In this case, I expect the phrase "trailer sailor" (or "trailer sailer") to refer to a person is not very common. No doubt some of the data is that case, but there's no way to tell how many from the Google output.

 

[Tedd]

In this case, I expect the phrase "trailer sailor" (or "trailer sailer") to refer to a person is not very common. No doubt some of the data is that case, but there's no way to tell how many from the Google output.

I decided to see if I could tease that information from Google. Here is a plot of the relative incidence of "trailer" modifying "sailor" comparted to the incidence of "trailer" modifying "sailer."

Prior to the late 80s, the two were approximately equally common. Since then, "trailer" modifying "sailer" has become much more common than "trailer" modifying "sailor." I'm not sure what to make of that. One explanation would be that we now talk about "trailer sailers/sailors" as people more than we used to (as opposed to as boats). But it's not obvious why that would be. Another possible explanation is that "trailer sailor" referring to a boat has declined in popularity, compared to "trailer sailer" referring to a boat. But it's equally not obvious why that would be.

If I had to put money on it I'd go with simple linguistic change: "trailer sailer" referring to a boat becoming more common, due to linguistic analogy to the "er" in trailer.

 

[danooxnard]

A sailor is someone who sails a boat. A sailer is a guy from Georgia who just sold his boat. No offense to folks from Georgia.

 

[Tally Ho]

Guilty as charged! I'm out of my mind with boredom. (Obviously.)

I was hoping someone would say it….

Get a life or get a boat

You have WAY too much time on your hands !

Greg