Jif peanut butter stirs debate over how to pronounce ‘GIF’

By

Gif and Jif on the same peanut butter
Choose GIF
Photo: Jif

Jif peanut butter is sharing its label with the word Gif, a brilliant branding move that attempts to settle one of the most important questions of our time: Hard G or soft?

The “answer” is on the label of the limited-edition 40-ounce jars now listed on eBay for $9.99. Jif teamed up with GIF platform Giphy (sort of sounds like Skippy), to create the label in observance of National Peanut Butter Lover’s Day on March 1.

GIF stands for Graphics Interchange Format. It’s easy to think the “Gr” in “Graphics” provides the answer. But the inventor of the animated file format, Steve Wilhite, said he intended it to be pronounced with a straight-up J sound.

The Jif label, of course, is a conversation-starter and will likely add gas to an already fiery debate on the actual pronunciation.

The Jif side of the label with its custom red-blue-green background reads “Creamy Peanut Butter” under the three-letter brand. Next to it is a stamp reading, “Soft g pronunciation.” On the other side is “Gif” positioned above the words “Animated Looping Images.” On this side, the stamp declares a hard g is required.

You can order a 40-ounce jar here.

Source: DP Review

Newsletters

Daily round-ups or a weekly refresher, straight from Cult of Mac to your inbox.

  • The Weekender

    The week's best Apple news, reviews and how-tos from Cult of Mac, every Saturday morning. Our readers say: "Thank you guys for always posting cool stuff" -- Vaughn Nevins. "Very informative" -- Kenly Xavier.