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Yankee

Yankee

The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. | 2011 | Copyright

Yankee term used by Americans generally in reference to a native of New England and by non-Americans, especially the British, in reference to an American of any section. The word is most likely from the Dutch and may have been derived from Janke, diminutive of Jan [John]; from Jan and Kees, diminutive of Cornelis [Cornelius]; or from Jankaas, a combination of Jan and kaas [cheese], thus signifying John Cheese. Another hypothesized derivation is a Native American mispronunciation of English.

As early as 1683, Yankey was a common nickname among the pirates of the Spanish Main; always, however, it was borne by Dutch sailors. There is no satisfactory explanation of how it came to be applied to the English settlers of colonial America and particularly to New Englanders. By 1765 it was in use as a term of contempt or derision, but by the opening of the American Revolution, New Englanders were proud to be called Yankees. The popularity of the marching song Yankee Doodle probably had much to do with the term's subsequent wide usage.

In the Civil War the word was applied disparagingly by the Confederates to Union soldiers and Northerners generally, and with Southern hatred for the North rekindled by the Reconstruction period it survived long after the war was over. In World War I, the English began calling American soldiers, both Southerners and Northerners, Yankees. At that time too the shortened form Yank became popular in the United States, with George M. Cohan 's war song "Over There" contributing largely to its increased usage. However, Yank, too, was known in the 18th cent., as early as 1778, and the Confederates also used that form in the Civil War. Yankee and Yank were again popular designations for the American soldier in World War II. In Latin America the term Yanqui is applied to U.S. citizens, often—especially after the Cuba revolution—with a note of hostility.

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Yankee

The Oxford Companion to American Literature | 1995 | | Copyright

Yankee, term of unknown origin, applied during the 18th century to New Englanders. One hypothetical origin is an attempt by the Indians to pronounce either English or Anglais. This seems unlikely, since the word was first applied to the Dutch in the 17th century and may have been derived from Janke, diminutive of the common Dutch name Jan, or from Jankees, a blend of Jan and Cornelis. At some time in the 18th century the name began to be applied to the English colonists rather than the Dutch. The song “Yankee Doodle” did much to establish the name, which was adopted by the Americans after it had been contemptuously applied by the British in the Revolution. During the Civil War it was invidiously applied to Northerners, usually as “damn Yankee.” During World War I it had mainly a kindly, facetious connotation, and long before that it was applied to Americans generally, although it is more properly restricted to the typical New England native and associated with the Down East character. The Yankee has long been a stock comic figure, and some of the notable characters of this type are Royall Tyler's Jonathan in The Contrast, Seba Smith's Major Jack Downing, T.C. Haliburton's Sam Slick, and Lowell's Hosea Biglow. Irving's Ichabod Crane, although he has some of the usual characteristics, lacks the conventional acuteness. The figure is usually marked by shrewd, homespun wit, caution, ability in trading, and taciturnity. When he speaks, it is frequently to ask a dry but astute question, or to make a striking understatement in his famous nasal twang. Later examples of the type include the title characters of Mark Twain's Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court and E.N. Westcott's David Harum.
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James D. Hart and and Phillip W. Leininger. "Yankee." The Oxford Companion to American Literature. 1995. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

James D. Hart and and Phillip W. Leininger. "Yankee." The Oxford Companion to American Literature. 1995. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O123-Yankee.html

James D. Hart and and Phillip W. Leininger. "Yankee." The Oxford Companion to American Literature. 1995. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O123-Yankee.html

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Yankee

Dictionary of American History | 2003 | Copyright

YANKEE

YANKEE, derived from the disparaging Dutch name Jan Kees (John Cheese) for New England Puritans in the 1660s, became a colloquial name for all New Englanders. Popularized by the British army march, "Yankee Doodle" (1750), it was adopted proudly by the Connecticut militia, and appeared in Royal Tyler's play The Contrast (1787), Seba Smith's Major Jack Dowling satires (1829), and James Russell Lowell's Biglow Papers (1848).

Southerners referred to Union soldiers as Yankees during the Civil War, but in World War I all American soldiers were dubbed Yankees. As an ethnic group, the Yankee descends from the Congregational British settlers of colonial New England, noted for their ingenuity and flinty character.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Haywood, Charles Fry. Yankee Dictionary: A Compendium of Useful and Entertaining Expressions Indigenous to New England. Lynn, Mass.: Jackson and Phillips, 1963.

Peter C.Holloran

See alsoNew England Colonies ; Puritans and Puritanism ; Theocracy in New England .
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Yankee

Dictionary of American History | 2003 | Copyright

YANKEE

YANKEE. The Yankee was a famous privateer brig from Bristol, Rhode Island, with eighteen guns and 120 officers and men. During the War of 1812, it cruised off Halifax, Nova Scotia, and in the South Atlantic and took eighteen prizes worth nearly $1 million. In two later voyages, under Elisha Snow, the Yankee cruised off Ireland and in the Atlantic with success, one prize (the San Jose Indiano) netting $500,000. In six voyages it captured British ships worth $5 million, $1 million of which actually reached Bristol.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Jones, Noah. Journals of Two Cruises Aboard the American Privateer "Yankee." New York: Macmillan, 1967.

Maclay, Edgar S. A History of American Privateers. New York: D. Appleton, 1899. Reprint, New York: B. Franklin, 1968.

Walter B.Norris/a. r.

See alsoInternational Law ; Privateers and Privateering ; War of 1812 .
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Yankee

The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable | 2006 | | Copyright

Yankee an often derogatory term for a person who lives in, or is from, the US, especially, an inhabitant of New England or one of the northern states, or a Federal soldier in the Civil War. The term is recorded from the mid 18th century but the origin is uncertain; it may come (as a nickname) from Dutch Janke, diminutive of Jan ‘John’.
Yankee Doodle Dandy a song popular during the War of American Independence, now regarded as a national song; the tune is said to have been composed in 1755 by Dr Richard Shuckburgh, a British surgeon in Lord Amherst's army, in derision of provincial troops.
Yankee State an informal name for Ohio.
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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Yankee." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Yankee." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-Yankee.html

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Yankee

The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English | 2009 | Copyright

Yan·kee / ˈyangkē/ • n. inf. 1. often derog. a person who lives in, or is from, the U.S. 2. an inhabitant of New England or one of the northern states. ∎ hist. a Union soldier in the Civil War. 3. a code word representing the letter Y, used in radio communication. ORIGIN: mid 18th cent.: origin uncertain; recorded in the late 17th cent. as a nickname; perhaps from Dutch Janke, diminutive of Jan ‘John.’
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yankee

The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea | 2006 | Copyright

yankee, a light-weather foresail used in yachts, set on the topmast stay with its luff extending almost the whole length of the stay. It was similar to a genoa but cut narrower, with its leech not overlapping the mainsail as a genoa does, and with its clew higher than is normally the case with genoas. A yankee was used in winds of up to about force 4 on the Beaufort Scale, but has now been superseded by new foresails like the ghoster.
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Yankee

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology | 1996 | | Copyright

Yankee native of New England (hence of the U.S.A.). XVIII. None of the proposed etyms. is convincing; most plausibly on formal grounds, spec. application of Yankee, Yank(e)y (XVII–XVIII) as a surname or nickname, perh. based on Du. Jan John and intended as a dim. form (= Jantje).
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T. F. HOAD. "Yankee." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

T. F. HOAD. "Yankee." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-Yankee.html

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Yankee

The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military | 2001 | Copyright

Yankee n.
1. an inhabitant of New England or one of the northern states.

2. a Union soldier in the Civil War.

3. also Yankee jib a large jib set forward of a staysail in light winds.
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Yankee

Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes | 2007 | Copyright

Yankee •ackee, Bacchae, baccy, cracky, Jackie, lackey, tacky, wacky •latchkey • talcy •cranky, Frankie, hanky, hanky-panky, lanky, manky, swanky, wanky, Yankee •Askey, Pulaski •Polanski • Blavatsky • Stanislavsky •ticky-tacky •Iraqi, Kawasaki, khaki, larky, malarkey, menarche, Nagasaki, narky, parky, raki, saké, saki, sarky, souvlaki, sparky, sukiyaki, teriyaki •passkey •matriarchy, patriarchy •diarchy • oligarchy • synarchy •hierarchy •Becky, recce, techie •Elkie • Palenque •Esky, pesky •Dostoevsky, Paderewski •achy, Blakey, flaky, quaky, shaky, snaky, wakey-wakey •headachy •beaky, cheeky, cliquey, cock-a-leekie, creaky, freaky, Geikie, Kon-Tiki, Leakey, leaky, peaky, reeky, sleeky, sneaky, squeaky, streaky, Thessaloníki, tiki, tzatziki

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