bumpkin English · revision 390

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈbʌmpkɪn/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is of uncertain origin.^(Barnhart 1995) It is perhaps [[bor|dum|bommekijn|t=little barrel]],^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) a diminutive of ''bomme'' “cask”;^(MW Collegiate) the American Heritage Dictionary also suggests Flemish ''boomken'' “little tree”.^(AHD) The first recorded use glosses it with Latin ''Batavus'' “Dutchman”, which suggests that it began as a jibe at the Dutch as short and dumpy.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ An awkward country fellow (1570).^(OED 1989)^(MW Collegiate)^(Barnhart 1995)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ If the word started as a joke about Dutchmen, it soon broadened to any clumsy, unsophisticated rustic.^(AHD)^(Etymonline) A separate nautical word, ''bumpkin'' or ''bumkin'' “a short spar projecting from a ship”, came from Dutch ''boomken'' “little tree” in the 1630s.^(MW Collegiate)^(Etymonline)^(AHD)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1570 – an awkward country fellow.^(OED 1989)^(MW Collegiate)^(Barnhart 1995)

+ * about 1632 – a short spar projecting from a ship (a separate word).^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)

+ * 1774 – the adjectives ''bumpkinish'' and ''bumpkinly''.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A clumsy, unsophisticated person from the country; a yokel.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(nautical)'' A short spar projecting from a ship's hull, used to extend a sail or secure rigging.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[bumpkinish]]

+ * [[bumpkinly]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[boom]]

+ * [[beam]]

+ * [[yokel]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ Random House lists ''clod'', ''boor'', ''hillbilly'', ''hayseed'', ''rube'' and ''hick'' as synonyms.^(RHWU)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}