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Tar Heel

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Tar Heel

Where it comes from

North Carolina was associated with tar (of which it was a major producer) from the 1700s onwards, and residents were (at first derisively) called "Tarboilers" since at least the 1840s; "Tar Heel" is first attested in 1863 in comments by Confederate soldiers which suggest it was already in common use at that time. One popular theory suggests it refers to North Carolinians having tar on their heels to make them "stick", referring either to their reluctance to join the Confederacy, or to their holding ground during battles when other states' troops retreated.

noun Tar Heels · Tar heel · Tarheel · tarheel

  1. US, slang Synonym of North Carolinian. I'm a Tar Heel born I'm a Tar Heel bred And when I die I'm a Tar Heel dead.

    Similar: North Carolinian

  2. US, slang A person associated with or supportive of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Michael Jordan is one of many Tar Heel basketball standouts.

proper noun Tar heel · Tarheel · tarheel

  1. A small town in Bladen County, North Carolina.
  2. An unincorporated community in Hickman County, Kentucky.

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MLA

"Tar Heel." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/tar%20heel. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

Tar Heel. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/tar%20heel

Chicago

"Tar Heel." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/tar%20heel.

BibTeX
@misc{tar_heel_2026,
  title = {Tar Heel},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/tar%20heel},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}