Kike

For other uses, see Kike (disambiguation).

Kike (/ˈkaɪk/) is a derogatory slur used to refer to a Jewish person.

Etymology

The etymology of the term is uncertain. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, it may be an alteration of the endings –ki or –ky common in the personal names of Eastern European Jews who immigrated to the United States in the early 20th century. The first recorded usage of the term is in 1904.

According to Our Crowd, by Stephen Birmingham, the term "kike" was coined as a derogatory putdown by the assimilated American German Jews to identify Eastern-European Jews: "Because many Russian [Jewish] names ended in 'ki', they were called 'kikes'—a German Jewish contribution to the American vernacular. The name then proceeded to be co-opted by non-Jews as it gained prominence in its usage in society, and was later used as a demeaning Anti-Semitic slur."

According to Leo Rosten,

The word kike was born on Ellis Island when Jewish immigrants who were there were also illiterate (or could not use Latin alphabet letters), when asked to sign the entry-forms with the customary 'X,'* refused, because they associated an X with the cross of Christianity, and instead made a circle. The Yiddish word for 'circle' is kikel (pronounced KY-kul), and for 'little circle,' kikeleh (pronounced ky-kul-uh). Before long the immigration inspectors were calling anyone who signed with an 'O' instead of an 'X' a kikel or kikeleh or kikee or, finally and succinctly, kike.

According to Rosten, Jewish American merchants continued to sign with an 'O' instead of an 'X' for several decades, spreading the nickname kike wherever they went as a result. At that time kike was more of an affectionate term, used by Jews to describe other Jews, and only developed into an ethnic slur later on.

See also

• List of ethnic group names used as insults (distinct from the below)
• List of ethnic slurs
• Profanity
• Yid

References

[[Category:zog]