Indian giver
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (December 2007) |
Indian giver is an English expression used in North America, used to describe a person who gives a gift (literal or figurative) and later wants it back, or something equivalent in return. The term "Indian gift" was first noted in 1765 by Thomas Hutchinson,[1] and "Indian giver" was first cited in John Russell Bartlett's Dictionary of Americanisms (1860)[2] as "Indian giver. When an Indian gives any thing, he expects to receive an equivalent, or to have his gift returned."
The phrase can be offensive,[3][4] particularly to American Indians.[5]
Etymology
It is unclear exactly how this expression came to be, but the consensus is that it is based on American Indians having a distinctly different sense of property ownership as opposed to those of European ancestry. One theory holds that early European settlers in North America misinterpreted aid and goods they received from local Indians as gifts, when in fact they were intended to be offered in trade, as many tribes operated economically by some form of barter system, or a gift economy where reciprocal giving was practiced.[6]
See also
Sources
- ^ [1], "An Indian gift is a proverbial expression, signifying a present for which an equivalent return is expected." (Thomas Hutchinson, "History of Massachusetts Bay," 1765).
- ^ [2], The OED's earliest citation for "Indian giver" is John Russell Bartlett's Dictionary of Americanisms (1860)
- ^ "indian giver - Definition from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary".
- ^ Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries (2006). The American Heritage dictionary of the English language. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 0-618-70172-9.
Indian giver n. Offensive: One who gives something to another and then takes or demands it back.
{{cite book}}:|author=has generic name (help) - ^ "Watch Your Mouth | Reconnecting the Circle".
- ^ "Indian giver".