Some new viewers of Max’s hit show The Pitt are wondering why it’s called “The Pitt” in the first place and what the meaning behind the name might be. There’s actually more than one reason why the showrunners settled on this short but sweet title. The medical drama has received both commercial and critical acclaim for its uncannily realistic portrayal of what emergency doctors actually go through on a daily basis. In fact, that’s actually part of how The Pitt got its name.
Why is the show named “The Pitt” in the first place?
The Pitt is named after both the city the show takes place in, Pittsburgh, and as a play on words on what the ER is colloquially called by doctors in many hospitals.
Some Pittsburgh natives might be slightly confused over the name of the show, because Pittsburgh isn’t usually nicknamed “The Pitt.” The city is sometimes called “Steel City,” “The City of Bridges,” or just “The ‘Burgh” for short. On top of that, “The Pitt” is a common reference to the University of Pittsburgh, which was founded in 1787 as the Pittsburgh Academy.
But given the success of the show, which will be getting a second season, the meaning of the nickname has certainly expanded. Within the show itself, “The Pitt” is a shortened form of its fictional Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Hospital, which is certainly a mouthful.
The name of the drama is also a reference to the hospital emergency room being called “the pit” for its tense and chaotic atmosphere. According to a TIME article back in 1973 (yep, it’s been that long), the nickname has both positive and negative connotations. Many doctors see the overwhelming workload of the ER as “a form of cruel and unusual punishment” or a trial of fire that needs to be conquered before they are able to move to a less stressful practice in medicine. But other doctors see it as a more exciting place where they can make life-and-death decisions on an hour-by-hour basis.
