I'm from Florida, but my mother was from Ohio originally, and I can hear my mother in the echos of my mind saying "Come to supper!"...and if we didn't get there pretty quick we'd get another call, and if we still dawdled, I'd hear, "Pamela Anne Mursch, get in here right now!" And then I'd drop whatever I was doing and run as fast as I could to get to the table before she had to call me again...Not sure what would have happened if I didn't do as I was told...because I knew better than to do that...(well, maybe I did know what would happen, and that is why I learned to obey...)
Okay, when you call your family to come and eat the evening meal, what do you say?
"Come to supper!" or do you say "Come to dinner!"...or maybe you just say, "Come and get it!"
However, if you are having a big meal at noontime, say on Sunday after church, do you call it "lunch", or do you call it "Sunday dinner"? Well, what if your big meal at noontime is on Saturday, or any other day of the week? Is it a dinner, or lunch?
What do you say when you are going out to a restaurant for your evening meal? Do you say, "We are going out to dinner", or do you say "Let's go out to supper!" Or maybe you just say, "Let's go out to eat"...
I asked Google this question, and here is a link to what I discovered:
https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/22446/lunch-vs-dinner-vs-supper-times-and-meanings You might find that interesting.
Looks like pretty much whatever you want to call it is just fine! A lot depends on where you came from, or where your folks came from...but the most important thing is to spend time together as a family around the table...whether it be lunch, dinner, supper, (or breakfast, brunch...)...whether it be a sandwich or a seven course dinner (banquet?, buffet?)...or even a tea party... (oh, that's another whole discussion if you happen to be English or British or Scottish...Tea Time is kind of a supper...or is it a dessert...or a snack followed by a real supper later?...Oh this is getting too complicated!)
Here's an old favorite song for those of us who have been around long enough to appreciate Johnny Cash: "Come Home, Come Home, It's Suppertime"
And here is the most important "SUPPER" you will ever be invited to attend. Be sure that you have your invitation already, as the time is drawing near...and we need to be ready to go when we are called to "Come Home, It's Supper Time!"
Supper, I have a hard time calling it dinner! I suppose it doesn't matter as long as you get to eat!
ReplyDeleteThat's what I say! Just don't call me late to supper!!!
DeletePam: The accepted term for evening meal is 'dinner.' Unless you eat extremely late, i.e. a midnight supper. Most people in the mid west have transitioned to calling that evening meal, dinner. Noon meal is called,'lunch.'
ReplyDeleteHmmm, Okay, I really thought "dinner" at "suppertime" was more a city thing, and dinner at lunch time is a southern thing, but I guess it really depends on where you are sitting. I'm sitting down at the table and eating...and everyone can call it whatever they want...let's just eat! LOL!!! This was fun.
DeleteWell, you certainly jumped on that one and came up with some good infromation. I will continue to call our evening meal supper, unless we go out to eat and then I will call it dinner (or if Jack is with us and I have to call supper dinner.) And on Sundays, lunch will be dinner, unless it's before noon and then it will be brunch. If we eat an early supper during the week, sometimes we call it "lupper"! Loved that old song and my mom called for us to come to supper. I'm looking forward to being called to the wedding supper of the Lamb.
ReplyDeleteGood job, Red ... er, I mean Pamela! I like the family photo.
DeleteThanks, Blondie! LOL. Yes, you spurred me to get busy and figure this thing out...I've had "lupper" before too...and Jack is how old? And he's got this thing all figured out in his head? All I can say is, "Come and get it!" regardless of what time it is. Sometimes we even ring a dinner bell...or is it a supper bell? Ding a ling...Avon calling...no wait! Ha Ha such fun. Only a few people were brave enough to call me "Red". I'll excuse you since you live so far away...LOL. This was fun. Thanks for a good laugh today. Great way to start the week. And thank you for liking the family photo. One of the few in color!! That's because my grandfather used to take a lot of slide photos, and later we had some made into prints.
DeleteI was just going to post that same song, but with the Cathedrals (George Younce) singing It! Come home, it"s suppertime!
ReplyDeleteY'all come!!! Yes, I like the Cathedrals singing it too...and Jim Reeves... Oh to be called back home to supper...but we have that great supper in heaven to look forward to.
DeleteGreat post. Well, my granny and mama always called noon time-lunch and evening time supper. But on Sunday it was always called Sunday dinner. I still call it the same. Love the photo. How precious. Hugs and blessings, Cindy
ReplyDeleteThat sounds right to me too. You must come from good upbringing like I did. LOL. Thanks for stopping by. If you hurry, you can have "supper" with us!! Have a blessed and happy day.
DeleteInteresting post, Pam, I tend to use lunch/supper just to avoid any confusion about which meal I'm talking about. Around here, people tend to say dinner for lunch or supper--depending on the situation. Ahh...the wedding supper of the Lamb!
ReplyDeleteBlessings!
Thank you for stopping by Kim. If you stay long enough you can have "supper" with us, or if you come early you could have breakfast and stay for lunch! Or all of the above! And yes...the Wedding Supper of the Lamb will be the feast of feasts...what a marvelous day that will be!!
DeleteI think you were ok with it, but I do apologize for calling you Red. It was all in good humor in response to your statement about it. The thought ran through my head of Anne of Green Gables whacking Gilbert Blythe over the head when he called her carrots!
ReplyDeleteNo apology needed. I was laughing above when I called you "Blondie". And I don't know if you know that my middle name ANNE, with an "e", was given to me after Anne of Green Gables because my mother loved those stories and when I was born a redhead, she had to give me that name! True story!!!
DeleteAnd we do call Communion The Lord's Supper . . .
ReplyDeleteI think I use the terms interchangeably, Pamela, but I'm partial to supper. Dinner is more common when we refer to Sunday lunch as Sunday dinner. But when you're being called by your Mama, you best not be late!
Blessings!
Amen, sister!! My mama didn't put up with lazy bones and latecomers...Ha ha. So thankful she taught me right!
DeleteAlthough I tend to use the terms "supper" and "dinner" interchangeably, I usually refer to the evening meal as "supper."
ReplyDeleteBut most importantly, I am looking forward to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, and I expect I'll see you there, too!
Good blog post!
Praise God!! We have that wonderful "SUPPER" to look forward to. I expect we will see so many there who have gone on before us to help set the table...perhaps Billy Graham is helping to get the chairs up to the table...I believe there is a lot of activity going on in heaven in preparation for that grand banquet...I also have a feeling it may be sooner than we think! I wonder if we'll wear "name tags" so we can identify each other...or maybe that won't be necessary since we will be seeing things through God's eyes at that time...What a glorious day that will be!!! I hope that we might get to meet before that time, but if not...I'll see you there!! Thank you for stopping by for a visit!!
DeleteI know in my grandmothers day dinner meant lunch and supper was the evening meal. Supper gave the impression of a larger meal as well while dinner was smaller.
ReplyDeleteI googled it and yes, dinner in most of the USA and Britain is around noon time and supper is later in the evening.
Interesting post to be sure and I love old photos :)
I suppose that in your grandmother's day they had a hot meal at "lunch" time, thus calling it "dinner"? Many people went home at noon from school and work for "dinner", especially in the south. But times have changed and people don't have that "luxury" anymore...sadly so, but who would be there to cook it? Everyone works...and most of us don't have "cooks" at home to take care of those details. Anyway, I don't care what we call it...let's just eat! :) Thank you for your thoughts today! This was fun wasn't it?
DeleteA fun post! I was born and raised in Ohio and we always had supper. We went out to dinner but had supper at home. I still use them that way. I will go look at your link...
ReplyDeleteThank you, Terri! I knew a good "ole" Ohioan would agree with me! And I am always up to "go out to dinner", whether it be lunch time or supper time! Ha Ha!
DeleteSupper! I came from a rural farming community and it was always supper. The way I called our family to supper when the kids were home...and sometimes now just for fun when it is just the two of us was/is, "Come get it or I'll eat it!" Hahaha That's my story and I'm sticking to it! :) xx
ReplyDeleteYay for Supper! But did your family have a big "dinner" at noontime in the rural farming community back in the "olden days", or was it always lunch except on Sunday? I love your way of calling everyone to supper! I wonder if you ever had to "eat it" by yourself! I'm sure not...kids are generally hungry even if they don't want to come to supper! LOL. Love it!
DeleteWe had dinner at noontime. And when the farmers would start going from farm to farm to help put in certain crops it was a really big dinner. My mother and grandmother (I was raised in the same house with my grandparents) would work together to put it on the table and to keep the bowls and platters full. :) And no, I never had to "eat it" by myself. lol
DeleteOh, I love the picture in my mind of your family living together and sharing meals and feeding all the farmers when they came to help.(and keeping those bowls and platters full!!) Sounds much like the Amish families. I love it. I was born on a farm in PA, but we sold the farm and moved to Florida when I was 5, so I missed out on all that excitement.
DeleteHi Pamela!
ReplyDeleteHere in Portugal we only have one word for dinner/supper: JANTAR.
But if I was to choose, I think the word supper is more homey and I like it better.
Have a blessed week!
:)
Thank you Paula! I am surprised to hear from you all the way from Portugal! Thank you for writing! JANTAR sounds interesting! Now I am curious as to what wonderful foods you have for JANTAR/supper in Portugal? Have a blessed day, and come again!!!
DeleteFun question/discussion. We have lunch at noon and dinner in the evening here in our WI home. However, when I lived in PA on the farm we had dinner at noon and supper at night. xo Diana
ReplyDeleteI guess you have run the gambit on this topic...the most important thing is you had food to eat not matter WHAT you called it!!! Where in PA did you live on a farm? I was born on a farm in Clarion, PA, but we moved to FL when I was 5.
DeleteWe've had big discussions here about supper vs. dinner. No one stops eating or anything... we just don't know what to call it! :)
ReplyDelete