Indianapolis, Indiana has many nicknames: Indy, the Circle City, the Crossroads of America. One of the least common (and the most puzzling) is “Naptown” or “The Nap.” This name was coined in the mid 1920’s by a then-influential Indianapolis blues musician, Leroy Carr. He wrote and recorded a song called “Naptown Blues”. Another Indianapolis music player, jazz artist Wes Montgomery, created his own version of “Naptown Blues” in the mid 60’s.
Naptown was originally used to refer to the city’s thriving African-American music scene, namely blues and jazz. It’s coming back into popular usage today among hip-hop artists as slang for the Indianapolis community. This unique nickname comes from the “nap” in IndiaNAPolis. Some people may think that it refers to the only activity available to residents of Indianapolis, but obviously those people have never been to the city. There are hundreds of things to do in Indianapolis, and though napping may be one of them, it certainly isn’t the most exciting.
Check out the video below and have a look around our website for some examples of Indianapolis attractions.
Naptown? This video might change your mind about Indianapolis, Indiana.
