redskin

English

Etymology 1

From red +‎ skin. References to indigenous Americans' skin being red can be found from the 1580s,[1] and ambiguous (disputed) instances of the term redskin or red skin exist from the 1690s,[1][2] perhaps as straightforward references to that, or perhaps in reference to tribes such as the Beothuk painting themselves with red paint.[2] However, the earliest unambiguous instances of the term are from the 1760s, apparently translating (via French peau rouge) a native term from a tribe of the Mississippi Valley.[3][4]

Alternative forms

  • Redskin

Noun

redskin (plural redskins)

  1. (now sometimes considered an ethnic slur and offensive) An American Indian, a Native American.
    • 1699?, Henry Smith or Samuel Smith or a relative, possibly quoting another colonist, in a letter quoted by a descendant (which, however, Ives Goddard argues is fake):
      Ye first Meeting House was solid mayde to withstande ye wicked onsaults of the Red Skins.
Usage notes

Previously used neutrally, the word began to be used as a term of contempt in the late 1800s; it is now often considered offensive.

Synonyms
  • red man
  • see Thesaurus:Native American
Derived terms
Translations

See also

References

  1. 1 2 “redskin” in Douglas Harper, Online Etymology Dictionary, 2001–2018.
  2. 1 2 “redskin” in the Collins English Dictionary, Glasgow: HarperCollins Publishers.
  3. ↑ “redskin” in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
  4. ↑ “redskin” (US) / “redskin” (UK) in Oxford Dictionaries, Oxford University Press.

Further reading

  • redskin at OneLook Dictionary Search

Etymology 2

red +‎ skin, from skinhead.

Noun

redskin (plural redskins)

  1. (anarchism, communism) An anticapitalist skinhead.
    • The above is the coat of arms of the Red & Anarchist Skinheads, a left‐wing splinter of the SHARP group, formed in 1993. It grew out of influences from the redskin culture in England.

Anagrams

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