DCHP-3

bachelor apartment

DCHP-2 (Sep 2016)

Spelling variants:
bachelor suite, bachelor flat

n. — Housing

a one-room apartment with a separate bathroom.

Type: 5. Frequency — Boberg (2010: 116) lists this as one of the "most robust" of non-exclusive Canadianisms. He also notes that, along with the variant bachelor suite, it is the preferred term across Canada for this type of dwelling (Boberg 2005: 26). Chart 1 demonstrates the term's prevalence in South Africa, then Canada. Bachelor suite (see the 1958, 2006 quotations) appears to be more exclusive to Canada (see Chart 2), although overall results indicate that within Canada, bachelor apartment is the favoured term.
See also COD-2, s.v. "bachelor apartment", which is marked "Cdn & S Africa", and OED-3, s.v. "bachelor" (C1b) and (4e), which is marked "Canad.".

Quotations

1945
[Classified Advertisement] BACHELOR Apartment wanted by demobilized naval officer returned from five years overseas.
1958
Bachelor suite with small refrigerator and electric range 240 sq.ft.- $45.00 per month.
1965
A bachelor apt. Pape-Mortimer, newly decorated, parking.
1977
Kathy Ford picked up the ringing phone in her cozy, West End bachelor apartment. “Hello,” said someone in a little voice on the other end.
1989
At the top of my New Year's resolutions list is getting out of my confining bachelor apartment and into a one-bedroom.
1999
According to CMHC figures, the average monthly rent for a bachelor apartment on the Mountain is $424, down from $430 last year. The average monthly rent for a one-bedroom apartment is $541 (up from $530), a two-bedroom unit rents for $643 (up from $630) and a three-bedroom rents for $757 (down from $774).
2004
A single person on income assistance gets $510 a month, and an average bachelor apartment is $460 a month.
2006
The biggest turnaround came with bachelor suites where the rate was halved to 17.4 per cent. However, with only 23 available in town, that had little impact on the overall figure.
2012
Now, Toronto's lack of safe and affordable housing means a single woman seeking an affordable bachelor apartment can expect to stay at the shelter for about nine months.

References

  • Boberg (2005)
  • OED-3
  • Boberg (2010)
  • COD-2

Images

Chart 1: Internet Domain Search, 10 Sep. 2013

Chart 1: Internet Domain Search, 10 Sep. 2013

Chart 2: Internet Domain Search, 10 Sep. 2013

Chart 2: Internet Domain Search, 10 Sep. 2013