Before the milwaukee braves baseball team moved to atlanta, georgia, the atlanta minor league baseball team was known as the atlanta crackers. These stories are not about the nword and cracker the. Apr 06, 2020 a racial slur music a set of notes that are played legato, without separate articulation. We traced the origin of honky back to an early 20thcentury slur used by blacks and whites, bohunk or hunky, referring to whites of eastern european descent.
These stories are not about the nword and cracker the atlantic. What does the racial term cracker mean and how did the term. The true origin of the word spic, the racist insult. I was wondering what some equivalent terms were that other cultures use, to refer to caucasians in the same way. In this folk etymology the white foremen who cracked these whips were thus known as crackers. Information and translations of racial slur in the most comprehensive dictionary definitions resource on the web. The team existed under this name from 1901 until 1965. To stave off any more comments to the contrary, this article answers a question about the origin of the word picnic.
Newest pejorativelanguage questions english language. As nouns the difference between flatbread and cracker is that flatbread is crispbread while cracker is a dry, thin, crispy, and usually salty or savoury biscuit or cracker can be uspejorativeracial slur an impoverished white person from the southeastern united states, originally associated with georgia and parts of florida. White trash as a racial slur offtopic wowhead forums. Where did the term come from though, and is it actually as offensive as. According to wikipedia, honky is a racial slur for white people, predominantly heard in the united states and great britain real quick, say honky with a british accent. Is the term white trash acceptable to use in a pejorative fashion. Another possible etymon is wolof honq red, pink, a term frequently used in african languages to describe white men.
It is only in the past century that the expression began to acquire a negative. Yours is the second letter ive gotten recently on the subject of racial insults. Cracker isnt a racial slur for white people, honey. Crossed ethnicities africaneuropean mulatto origin americas mulatto is a term used to refer to a person who is born from one white parent. As nouns the difference between flatbread and cracker is that flatbread is crispbread while cracker is a dry, thin, crispy, and usually salty or savoury biscuit or cracker can be uspejorative racial slur an impoverished white person from the southeastern united states, originally associated with georgia and parts of florida. The true origin of the word spic, the racist insult aimed.
The term is generally considered archaic by some and inadvertently derogatory, especially in the africanamerican community. How is cracker not a racial slur, yet the nword is. The etymology of the word indicates it was never intended as a racial slur, and that it was applied derogatorily to lawyers in general and not to any single ethnic group. Jul 01, 20 with a single phrase, rachel jeantel, that friend of trayvon martins, may have lit a fuse in the trial of his accused killer. In mtvs explainer web series decoded above, franchesca ramsey explains that cracker is a classist insult invented by a richer white upper class to describe lower class white people. Crackerbarrel 1861 barrel full of sodacrackers for sale was such a common feature of old country stores that the phrase came to be used by 1905 as an adjective, emblematic of downhome ways and views. Hard breadbiscuit sense first attested 1739, though hard wafer sense attested 1440. Feces eating is a fetish that originated in germany, otherwise known as scat sex or shit sex eg.
Cracker, sometimes white cracker, is a usually pejorative term for a white person, mainly used in the southern united states, but in recent decades it has entered common usage throughout north america. The term gypsy evolved from the habit of calling the people egyptians, because they sort of looked egyptian and the locals were apparently too shy to ask the people where. Jun 06, 2015 nigger is a noun in the english language. This tag is for questions about pejorative language. The word cracker is commonly understood as a racist slur for whites. Trayvon martins friend said he described george zimmerman as a creepyass cracker. Folk etymology claims the term originated either from their cracking, or pounding, of corn rather than taking it to mill, or from their use of whips to drive cattle. Its a racial slur nowadays because word meanings and usages change and evolve over time. The term white trash is arguably more socially acceptable than most other racial slurs. This word became the noun, negro black person in english, and simply the color black in spanish and portuguese. Cracker, sometimes white cracker or cracka, is a racial epithet for white people, used especially for poor rural whites in the southern united states. As it turns out, in the area in which rachel jeantel was raised, the word cracker isnt a racial slur at all, but rather, a proud nod to the regions history, and ones own ancestry. Coal cracker is from 1853 of persons, 1857 of machinery that breaks up mined coal. Broader ethnic categories aboriginal australian aboabbo aus australian aboriginal person.
Cracker barrel 1861 barrel full of sodacrackers for sale was such a common feature of old country stores that the phrase came to be used by 1905 as an adjective, emblematic of downhome ways and views. That much, at least, should have been clear from my original post. The epithet cracker has been applied in a derogatory way, like redneck, to rural, nonelite white southerners, more specifically to those of south georgia and north florida. With a single phrase, rachel jeantel, that friend of trayvon martins, may have lit a fuse in the trial of his accused killer. The meaning of the word has changed a lot over the last four. What derogatory names do other races use for white people. Sense of computer cracker, crack, cracking, were promoted in the 1980s as an alternative to hacker, by programmers concerned about negative public associations of hack.
A term in southeastern united states english to describe poor white trash, derived from the scottish meaning of the verb to crack, which, in this sense denotes ostentation. But it turns out cracker s roots go back even further than the 17th century. Redskin definition, a contemptuous term used to refer to a north american indian. All the way back to the age of shakespeare, at least. This database was created entirely from data gleaned off the net and via submissions from people like you and your parents. It is reference to the scotch an irish who were prominent in s. Cracker has also been used as a proud or jocular selfdescription. The latter derivation is essentially the same as your grandmothers, except that the staple food of poor farmers was cracked corn, not crackers. It is sometimes used in a neutral context in reference to a native of florida, georgia or texas see florida cracker, georgia cracker or texas cracker.
Cracker conveys history of bigotry that still resonates cnn. Are you referring to the fact that its not censored by yahoo but the nword is. How did the slang term cracker come about to mean white people. In early modern french, niger became negre and, later, negress black woman was unmistakably a part of language history.
Whether or not you can find or imagine racist overtones in a word, its origins do not. Slur definition is an insulting or disparaging remark or innuendo. Although originally a classist term, meaning the same as poor white trash, it has evolved through usage to be a derogatory term for someone considered a w. Euphemizing cracker as the cword indexes cracker as a racist slur, and by extension discursively constructs the phenomenon of reverse racism. Nigger the word, a brief history african american registry.
The words cracker and white trash are the predominate slurs used against the caucasian race. A week before the season 10 premier, drag performer vicky vox issued a tweet offering her understanding of the cracker slur. The true origin of the word spic, the racist insult aimed at hispanics as hate incidents are on the rise and antiimmigrant rhetoric intensifies, the word spic has come into focus. The following is a list of ethnic slurs ethnophaulisms that are, or have been, used as insinuations or allegations about members of a given ethnicity, or to refer to them in a derogatory that is, critical or disrespectful, pejorative disapproving or contemptuous, or otherwise insulting manner. It is an internet myth that has become an urban myth. Youtube star pewdiepie has apologised for using a racial slur during a livestream, saying that he is disappointed in himself in a short video posted to his youtube account, the vlogger. But it turns out crackers roots go back even further than the 17th century. The racial background is an elephant in the room, and i would say yes of course the racial background of words used as an insult is clearly a slur. The online etymology dictionary traces the slur cracker poor, white trash either to crack to boast or to corncracker poor white farmer.
Where does the term cracker come from, and how disparaging. In harriet beecher stowes abolitionist 1852 novel, uncle toms cabin, uncle tom is a martyr, not a sellout. Pejorative language is any language that portrays someone or something in a negative light, no matter whether it is intended to be disparaging and derogatory, contemptuous or disapproving, belittling or offensive, or even abusive. However, to make racial insults the exclusive definition of what a slur is is a dangerous precedence as it states that cracker doesnt cause someone becoming uncomfortable when its used.
Jul, 2010 it is reference to the scotch an irish who were prominent in s. The history of the word nigger is often traced to the latin word niger, meaning black. A white, englishspeaking person wanting to use a racist slur against another culture might use words like nigger, coon, spic, kyke, etc. An alternate whiprelated theory is that the term is linked to early florida cattle herders florida crackers that traditionally used whips to herd wild spanish cattle. These cowboys were distinct from the spanish vaqueros of florida. Cracker as a pejorative term originated in the southern states for the poorest white whip crackers. Is the term cracker acceptable to use in a pejorative. What is the meaning of the word honky, as used by fred.
Back in the 1700s, cracker was a derogatory term used by american whites to describe poor southerners of their own race. What does the racial term cracker mean and how did the. Where does the term cracker come from, and how disparaging is it. For almost half a millennium, the phrase call a spade a spade has served as a demand to tell it like it is. The word originated as a neutral term referring to black people, as a variation of the spanishportuguese noun negro, a descendant of the latin adjective. So naturally, i looked into the etymology of the word honky. A term in southeastern united states english to describe poor white trash, derived from the scottish meaning of the verb to crack, which, in this sense. And long before that term meant a group of odd people who roam the countryside running scams, it was an ethnic slur for the romany people who immigrated from eastern europe. Cracker means something entirely different in florida. Wwii term for a german soldier, derived from a machine gun of the same make.
Term of racial abuse attested 1967, most likely from hunky, an africanamerican vernacular shortening of hungarian. In remoter areas, aboriginal people still often refer to themselves quite neutrally as blackfellas and whites as whitefellas. Cracker isnt a slur posted in the fragilewhiteredditor. Cnn had a remarkable discussion panel this weekend, thanks to the presence of george zimmerman and paula deen in the news, in which. I should explain to your lordship what is meant by crackers. In florida, christopher writes, the word cracker isnt a racial slur at all, but rather, a proud nod to the regions history, and ones own ancestry. There is absolutely nothing to the story that picnic has racist, and murderous, origins. It has been suggested that white slave foremen in the antebellum south were called crackers owing to their practice of cracking the. Coalcracker is from 1853 of persons, 1857 of machinery that breaks up mined coal. Compare latin crepare to rattle, crack, creak, with a secondary figurative sense of boast of, prattle, make ado about. The online etymology dictionary traces the slur cracker poor, white trash either to crack to boast or to corn cracker poor white farmer. Jul 02, 20 in florida, christopher writes, the word cracker isnt a racial slur at all, but rather, a proud nod to the regions history, and ones own ancestry.
Though it has since turned into a racial insult, ramsey says that upper class whites in the 1600s and 1700s used cracker to refer to dumb, lazy lower. Today nobody wants to be called an uncle tom, but 150 years ago, it was a compliment. Jul 01, 20 but it turns out cracker s roots go back even further than the 17th century. Comedian bill maher apologized saturday for using a racial slur during an interview the night before with republican sen. For example, theres this crunchy bread that people eat thats called by the same word. Cracker conveys history of bigotry that still resonates. Originally, this was simply an informal term for aborigine, and was in fact used by aboriginal people themselves until it started to be considered offensive in the 1950s.