B, d, f, h, p and s — these are the first letters of some of the most frequently-used swear words in Georgia, according to one data analysis.

Jack Grieve, a lecturer in forensic linguistics at Aston University in England, mapped the frequency of common swear words across the nation, using 8.9 billion words from geo-coded tweets in 2013 and 2014, according to the curse word-centric blog Strong Language.

Grieve's findings have two caveats: They do not account for context, so the popularity of "hell" in the Southeast, including Georgia, doesn't exclude its use in religious contexts.

And because Grieve is pulling from tweets, his data is necessarily narrow. The group of people who are likely to use swear words on Twitter in Georgia is not automatically representative of all Georgians.

About the Author

Keep Reading

Georgia Power's Plant Bowen in Cartersville is shown. The utility wants to add about 10,000 megawatts of power supplies in just five years, mainly to serve data centers. (Hyosyb Shin/AJC 2015)

Credit: Hyosub Shin/AJC

Featured

Yemaya Lyles (right) wipes away tears during a news conference in front of the Rockdale County Public Schools administration building on Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2023. Lyles' son, Antonio, was assaulted by a paraprofessional, who has since been fired and charged with battery. Lyles says her case against the school district has dragged on since then. (Miguel Martinez/AJC 2023)

Credit: Miguel Martinez