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I have seen かたつむり and でんでんむし and ででむし listed as "snail." What are the
differences between these words?
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question
word-choice words nuances dialects
words for snail
They are dialectal forms, but it could be said that three synonymous forms
かたつむり, でんでんむし, and まいまい have gained more or less nation-wide recognition
today. The situation is somehow similar to that
"[soda/pop/coke](https://english.stackexchange.com/q/6926/157006)"
tripartition in USA.

The name of snail has been a signature of Japanese dialectology since the
pioneering work [『蝸牛考』](http://dl.ndl.go.jp/info:ndljp/pid/1823865) written in
1930 by [Kunio Yanagida](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kunio_Yanagita). The
summary of this book is that dialectal forms distribute in concentric circles
from Kyoto, so that the remotest place maintains the oldest form.

> (newer/nearer to Kyoto → older/farther)  
>  デデムシ > マイマイ > カタツムリ > ツブリ > ナメクジ
> ([source](http://dl.ndl.go.jp/info:ndljp/pid/1823865/103))

A very detailed survey on word forms of "snail" conducted by 国立国語研究所 was
compiled into three atlas (No.
[1](https://www.ninjal.ac.jp/s_data/drep/laj_map/LAJ_236.pdf),
[2](https://www.ninjal.ac.jp/s_data/drep/laj_map/LAJ_237.pdf),
[3](https://www.ninjal.ac.jp/s_data/drep/laj_map/LAJ_238.pdf)) if you seek
further understanding. (Tons of local forms recorded.)

I (and most people living in Tokyo) would use かたつむり most often.
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answer