Up Top
Hyperlocal Jane-and-Finch geography β not just "the neighbourhood" but specifically the cluster of blocks north of Finch, as distinct from "Down Bottom" to the south. Carried real weight during 1990s tensions between the two areas and still gets used to place exactly where someone's from within Jane-Finch.
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How it's used
Words like this are about place β the specific streets, boundaries and nicknames that tell you exactly which part of the GTA someone means.
βHe's not just Jane and Finch, he's Up Top β different crowd over there.β
Where it comes from
Origin: 1990s Jane and Finch geography, marking the housing blocks north of Finch Ave. West. It's tied to Toronto's music and sports culture more than to a specific immigrant-language root β see our "from the block to global" section for how that side of Toronto slang spread.
Sources
Specific source for this entry: Rap Dictionary β "Driftwood Crips". General research sources for the whole dictionary are listed in SOURCES.md.