Anachronisms: tin foil
Self-tutoring about language and pop culture: the tutor mentions the notion of “tin foil.”
The following is by my understanding.
I seem to recall hearing “tin foil” being mentioned when I was a kid, in kitchen environments. Nowadays, everyone seems to refer to metal food wrap as aluminum foil, which is correct.
Apparently, aluminum foil replaced tin foil during the 1940s; tin foil hasn’t been used in the consumer market since then. There were several reasons for the switch, including the cheaper price of aluminum as well as the potential of tin to leave a bitter taste in the food wrapped with it.
Yet, into the 70s, people still said “tin foil.” My grandparents, for instance, were born in the 19-teens, so spent decades around tin foil. They, and many others of their cohort, likely continued to think of metal food wrap as tin foil long after its replacement by aluminum.
As I imply in my post from Jan 29, 2022, calling new things by what they replaced can be thought of as anachronism. To my mind, it’s a graceful aging process that keeps people connected, subconsciously, with history.
Source:
Jack of Oracle Tutoring by Jack and Diane, Campbell River, BC.