Irregardless of what others think...

I find some words intriguing whether or not they are used correctly or are even real words. Perhaps it's part of what inspired me to start my Master's work in sociolinguistics (which I never finished, but instead changed over to secondary educ.) Take the first word of this discussion title.

When I was a little kid, my family commonly referred to green peppers as "mangos." I've heard other people (mostly older folks including my grandparents) in Indiana use this term to describe green peppers as well. It wasn't until I was about 20 or so that I saw a real mango for the first time, and realized that a green pepper is certainly no mango. While this example is not grammar per se, it does deal with word usage. Anybody else ever heard of this? I'd love to know its origin.