squinny
Dialect
- Meaning
- Des Moines word for a thirteen-lined ground squirrel or chipmunk.
- Type
- Dialect Word
- Used in
- Des Moines, Iowa
What does “squinny” mean
A Des Moines-area name for the small striped ground squirrel that pops out of yards and golf courses across central Iowa; researchers documenting Midwestern terms for the animal in 1970 found 'squinny' used in Des Moines and essentially nowhere else. Earliest print citation is a 1939 Des Moines Register photo caption, and the etymology is still a mystery.
Where it's used
More from this region
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