Where did the term "Yankee" come from?

Factual Questions
1

?

2

There are different theories. The most common one is that it’s from Janke, the Dutch version of Johnny. A lot of early settlers of the Northeast were Dutch.

3

Search is your friend. Remember to search both the archive for Cecil’s original column and then search the SDMB for follow-up threads.

What is the Origin of the Word “Yankee?”

4

If you’re outside of the US, a Yankee is from the States.
If you’re inside the US, A Yankee is from north of the M-D line.
If you’re north of the M-D line, a Yankee is from New England.
If you’re from New England, a Yankee is from Maine.
If you’re from Maine, a Yankee is someone who eats pie for breakfast.

5

Unless you’re playing baseball; then a Yankee is from New York City.

6

The link omits the point that OED says that “The most plausible explanation is that it comes from the Dutch ‘Janke,’ diminutive of ‘Jan.’” That is, a common name used to apply to all of “them,” in this case the Dutch.

7

Why is “yankee” always a derrogatory term though??? I’m from western NY, but I go to college in Louisiana, so I’m ALWAYS being called a yankee as if it’s a bad thing. And as TELEMARK mentioned, it seems everyone wants to “place the blame” elsewhere!

8

One word…Steinbrenner!!

9

In 1949, my family moved from Dayton, Ohio to Atlanta, Georgia. I was called a “damn yankee” and after a number of fights my dad said I’d better become a southerner or put up with it. In Georgia it was a bad thing and in Louisana it is a bad thing. Accept it and smile, because as long as it gets your goat, they will continue using it.

10

Hey, Yankee’s no big deal. I’m a Texan who relocated up north. I’m called a hick, a “Suthna,” or a cowboy.

11

On the contrary, round these parts it’s a great honor to be a true Yankee. We don’t take to flatlanders moving up north and calling their children real Yankees. If your cat had kittens in the oven, you wouldn’t call them bisquits.

I guess there’s always someone in Maine or NH or VT whose family has been here more generations than you, can say fewer words in a day, or can work harder and for less reward. Yankee might be an insult elsewhere, but here it’s a compliment.

'Cept for that baseball team down NY. Go Sox!