# Derogitory terms that became the actual names for things **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 28, 2015, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136 "2015-08-28T03:59:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![TheSeaOtter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ed655f/32.png) [@TheSeaOtter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheSeaOtter)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2015, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136/21 "2015-08-28T14:55:25Z")
> [@buddha\_david](#): > > [Thagomizer](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thagomizer) Ok, that’s amazing. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2015, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136/22 "2015-08-28T14:57:13Z")
There is some evidence that “Christian” was originally derogatory: > **[What does the name 'Christian' mean?](https://ichthys.com/mail-the-name-Christian.htm)** > > What does the name 'Christian' really mean? ---
**Author:** ![Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellis_Aponte_Jr)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2015, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136/23 "2015-08-28T15:10:39Z")
soap operas ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2015, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136/24 "2015-08-28T15:16:16Z")
> [@buddha\_david](#): > > [Thagomizer](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thagomizer) Except I don’t think it was derogatory. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2015, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136/25 "2015-08-28T15:21:33Z")
> [@Urbanredneck](#): > > I never knew the term “squaw” was a derogatory term. That’s rather the reverse, in that the original meaning was probably not derogatory. It’s just the word for “woman” in Algonquin languages. Claims that it meant “female genitals” are recent and probably incorrect. It is frequently considered derogatory today, however. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2015, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136/26 "2015-08-28T15:51:36Z")
“Sooners” for those who live in Oklahoma. It was originally a derogatory term for those who took land before they were legally allowed to. ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2015, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136/27 "2015-08-28T16:08:51Z")
Continuing the religious groups who were called something derogatory and later adopted it: Lutheran ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2015, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136/28 "2015-08-28T16:59:06Z")
Some state nicknames, too, like _tarheel_ and _cracker_. > [@MrDibble](#): > > Quakers I know don’t call themselves that. They just call themselves Friends. > [@Alan\_Smithee](#): > > I grew up Quaker and all the Quakers I knew called themselves that. _Friends_ was used more formally, and some preferred it, but _Quaker_ was very widespread, and I don’t think anyone avoided it completely. The subtext of the OP I think is “labels that are no longer pejorative.” _Quaker_ hasn’t been for two centuries. ---
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2015, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136/29 "2015-08-28T17:07:47Z")
I never gave any thought to the origin of _Quaker_ and had no idea it was originally derogatory. Was the (insulting) idea that the peace-loving Friends quaked in fear or something? Or was it a reference to some practice of theirs? ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2015, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136/30 "2015-08-28T17:22:33Z")
> [@Bayard](#): > > I never gave any thought to the origin of _Quaker_ and had no idea it was originally derogatory. Was the (insulting) idea that the peace-loving Friends quaked in fear or something? Or was it a reference to some practice of theirs? No, but because they would tell people to “tremble at the word of the Lord,” at least, according to George Fox’s biography–as reference on Wikipedia. [In 1650, Fox was brought before the magistrates Gervase Bennet and Nathaniel Barton, on a charge of religious blasphemy. According to George Fox’s autobiography, Bennet “was the first person that called us Quakers, because I bade them tremble at the word of the Lord”](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quakers#cite_ref-GeorgeFoxsJournal_14-2) ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2015, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136/31 "2015-08-28T17:23:37Z")
Nevermind. Ninja’d by BigT. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2015, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136/32 "2015-08-28T17:53:37Z")
Wales or Welsh. Allegedly, originally meant something like “foreigner / slave”. > **[welsh | Etymology, origin and meaning of the name welsh by etymonline](https://www.etymonline.com/word/welsh)** > > WELSH Meaning: "foreign; British (not Anglo-Saxon), Welsh; not free, servile," from Wealh, Walh "Celt, Briton,… See origin and meaning of welsh. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2015, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136/33 "2015-08-28T17:58:22Z")
> [@Alan\_Smithee](#): > > I grew up Quaker and all the Quakers I knew called themselves that. _Friends_ was used more formally, and some preferred it, but _Quaker_ was very widespread, and I don’t think anyone avoided it completely. English or American? The ones I know are East Anglian, I’m curious if there’s a regional difference. ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2015, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136/34 "2015-08-28T18:01:24Z")
Geek. Probably originally used to describe circus side-show acts in a derogitory way. Later as I remember in the 70s was a negative term for small scrawny nerdy types that got picked on a lot (as in the song “Pencil Neck Geek”). Then in the 90s with the boom in home computers it became associated with those with knowledge of them (computer geek, founding of the geek squad). Now days it’s used to describe anyone who is really into their hobby (car geek, history geek, sports geek). ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2015, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136/35 "2015-08-28T18:02:31Z")
Was Black (in the context of race), at one time, considered derogatory? I know the inverse was true - Negro used to be a respectable term, but isn’t now. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2015, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136/36 "2015-08-28T18:20:19Z")
Yankee Doodle. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2015, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136/37 "2015-08-28T18:24:48Z")
Black hole. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2015, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136/38 "2015-08-28T18:26:57Z")
Too late to add: Oh, and in UK Soccer, West Brom Albion’s nickname of The Baggies was originally derogatory. ---
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2015, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136/39 "2015-08-28T18:40:45Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > No, but because they would tell people to “tremble at the word of the Lord,” at least, according to George Fox’s biography–as reference on Wikipedia. > > [In 1650, Fox was brought before the magistrates Gervase Bennet and Nathaniel Barton, on a charge of religious blasphemy. According to George Fox’s autobiography, Bennet “was the first person that called us Quakers, because I bade them tremble at the word of the Lord”](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quakers#cite_ref-GeorgeFoxsJournal_14-2) Interesting! Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2015, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136/40 "2015-08-28T18:43:21Z")
The name isn’t exactly derogatory, but there’s a kinship there – **Poisson’s Spot** > [@](#): > > At the beginning of the 19th century, the idea that light does not simply propagate along straight lines gained traction. Thomas Young published his double-slit experiment in 1807.[6] The original Arago spot experiment was carried out a decade later, and was the deciding experiment on the question of whether light is a particle or a wave. It is thus an example of an experimentum crucis. > > At that time, many favored Isaac Newton’s corpuscular theory of light, among them the theoretician Siméon Denis Poisson.[7] In 1818 the French Academy of Sciences launched a competition to explain the properties of light, where Poisson was one of the members of the judging committee. The civil engineer Augustin-Jean Fresnel entered this competition by submitting a new wave theory of light.[8] > > Poisson studied Fresnel’s theory in detail, and, being a supporter of the particle-theory of light, looked for a way to prove it wrong. Poisson thought he had found a flaw when he argued that a consequence of Fresnel’s theory was that there would exist an on-axis bright spot in the shadow of a circular obstacle, where there should be complete darkness according to the particle-theory of light. Since the Arago spot is not easily observed in every-day situations, Poisson interpreted it as an absurd result and that it should disprove Fresnel’s theory. > > However, the head of the committee, Dominique-François-Jean Arago—who incidentally later became Prime Minister of France—decided to perform the experiment in more detail. He molded a 2 mm metallic disk to a glass plate with wax.[9] He succeeded in observing the predicted spot, which convinced most scientists of the wave-nature of light, and gave Fresnel the win. Since Arago actually observed the spot (which Poisson predicted, scornfully, and held irts non-existence to disprove the wave theory of light), it’s sometimes called _Arago’s Spot_, which is what Wikipedia calls it > **[Arago spot](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arago_spot)** > > In optics, the Arago spot, Poisson spot, or Fresnel spot is a bright point that appears at the center of a circular object's shadow due to Fresnel diffraction. This spot played an important role in the discovery of the wave nature of light and is a common way to demonstrate that light behaves as a wave. > The basic experimental setup requires a point source, such as an illuminated pinhole or a diverging laser beam. The dimensions of the setup must comply with the requirements for Fresnel diffracti... [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/derogitory-terms-that-became-the-actual-names-for-things/729136.md?page=3)