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| {{Short description|American pejorative}} | |||
| {{Refimprove|date=December 2007}} | |||
| {{about|the expression|the music by 1910 Fruitgum Company|Indian Giver (song)|and|Indian Giver (album){{!}}''Indian Giver'' (album)|the book|Indian Givers: How the Indians of the Americas Transformed the World{{!}}''Indian Givers: How the Indians of the Americas Transformed the World''}} | |||
| {{Wiktionary|Indian giving}} | {{Wiktionary|Indian giving}} | ||
| "'''Indian giver'''" is a ] expression used to describe a person who gives a "gift" and later wants it back or who expects something of equivalent worth in return for the item.<ref name=Keene>{{cite web |last=Keene |first=Adrienne |title=Kris Jenner uses the term "Indian Giver"|url=https://nativeappropriations.com/2011/11/kris-jenner-uses-the-term-indian-giver.html |publisher=]|access-date=17 September 2016}}</ref> It is based on ] that took place between the early European colonists and the ] with whom they traded.<ref name="npr.org">{{cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2013/09/02/217295339/the-history-behind-the-phrase-dont-be-an-indian-giver |title=The History Behind The Phrase 'Don't Be An Indian Giver' |first=Lakshmi |last=Gandhi |date=September 2, 2013 |website=Code Switch |publisher=npr |access-date=April 12, 2015}}</ref> Often, the Europeans viewed an exchange of items as ] and believed that they owed nothing in return to the Indigenous people. On the other hand, the Indigenous people saw the exchange as a form of ] or equal exchange and so they had differing expectations of their guests.<ref name="npr.org"/> | |||
| '''Indian giver''' is a ] expression used to describe a person who gives a gift (literal or figurative) and later wants it back, or something equivalent in return. | |||
| The phrase is used to describe a negative act or shady business dealings, and is considered offensive to many Indigenous American people.<ref>{{Cite Merriam-Webster|Indian giver|accessdate=2023-02-23}}</ref> | |||
| ⚫ | The |
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| The phrase is sometimes offensive<ref>{{cite web |url=http://mw1.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/indian%20giver |title=indian giver - Definition from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary |format= |work= |accessdate=}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries |title=The American Heritage dictionary of the English language |publisher=Houghton Mifflin |location=Boston |year=2006 |pages= |isbn=0-618-70172-9 |oclc= |doi= |quote='''Indian giver''' n. ''Offensive'': One who gives something to another and then takes or demands the gift back.}}</ref>, particularly to ].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.reconnectingthecircle.com/node/205 |title=Watch Your Mouth | Reconnecting the Circle |format= |work= |accessdate=}}</ref> | |||
| ==Etymology== | ==Etymology== | ||
| The phrase originated, according to the researcher David Wilton, in a cultural misunderstanding that arose when European settlers first encountered ] after the former had arrived in ] in the 15th century. The Europeans thought that they were receiving gifts from Native Americans, but the Native Americans believed that they were engaging in what was known to Europeans as ]. That resulted in the Native Americans finding European behaviour ungenerous and insulting.<ref>{{cite book|last=Brunetti|first=David Wilton; illustrated by Ivan|title=Word Myths: debunking linguistic urban legends|year=2009|publisher=]|location=New York|isbn=978-0195375572}}</ref> | |||
| It is unclear exactly how this expression came to be, but the consensus is that it is based on Native Americans having a distinctly different sense of property ownership as opposed to those of European ancestry. One theory holds that early European settlers in North America misinterpreted aid and goods they received from Native Americans as "gifts," when in fact they were intended to be offered in trade, as many tribes operated economically by some form of ] system, or a ] where reciprocal giving was practiced.<ref name=phrases>.{{cite web |url=http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/202850.html |title=Indian giver |work= |accessdate=}}</ref> It is also theorized that this stereotype may have been coined or exaggerated by the conquering European groups to denigrate the native people as dishonest and thereby justify their conquest.<ref name=phrases/> A popular myth started by Europeans tells of early settlers trading ] to a group of Native Americans for ], who then promptly turned the guns on the Europeans and reclaimed their crop{{Citation needed|date=September 2009}}. | |||
| ==Usage== | |||
| ⚫ | The phrase was first noted in 1765 by ], who characterized an Indian gift as "a present for which an equivalent return is expected",<ref name="npr.org"/><ref name="hutchinson">{{cite web|url=https://www.etymonline.com/word/Indian|title=Indian (adj., n.)|quote=An Indian gift is a proverbial expression, signifying a present for which an equivalent return is expected}}</ref> which suggests that the phrase originally referred to a simple exchange of gifts. In 1860, however, in ]'s ''Dictionary of Americanisms'', Bartlett said that the phrase was being used by children in New York to mean "one who gives a present and then takes it back".<ref name="grammarphobia">{{cite web|url=https://www.grammarphobia.com/blog/2007/05/whos-the-indian-giver.html|title=Who's the 'Indian giver'?|quote=The OED's earliest citation for 'Indian giver' is John Russell Bartlett’s Dictionary of Americanisms (1860): 'Indian giver. When an Indian gives any thing, he expects to receive an equivalent, or to have his gift returned.'}}</ref> | ||
| In 1969, American ] band ] published the album '']''. ] peaked at #5 on the Billboard Hot 100, and #1 in Canada. | |||
| As recently as 1979, the phrase was used in mainstream media publications,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DaQm_hqLCBQC&q=indian+giver&pg=PA25|title=IBM President Warns: Despite Growth, Trouble Looms for Computer Industry|last=Rosenberg|first=Marcy|date=11 June 1979|newspaper=Computerworld|access-date=6 September 2012}}</ref> but in the 1997 book ''The Color of Words: An Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Ethnic Bias in the United States'', the writer and editor Philip H. Herbst says that although the phrase is often used innocently by children, it may be interpreted as offensive,<ref name=herbst>{{cite book|last=Herbst|first=Philip H.|title=The Color of Words: an encyclopaedic dictionary of ethnic bias in the United States|year=1997|publisher=Intercultural Press|location=Yarmouth, Maine|isbn=1877864978|pages=119–20}}</ref> and ''The Copyeditor's Handbook'' (1999) describes it as objectionable.<ref>{{cite book|last=Einsohn|first=Amy|title=The Copyeditor's Handbook: a guide for book publishing and corporate communications, with exercises and answer keys|url=https://archive.org/details/copyeditorshandb00eins|url-access=registration|year=1999|publisher=University of California Press|location=Berkeley|isbn=0520218345|page=450}}</ref> | |||
| Author David Wilton argues in his 2004 book ''Word Myths: Debunking Linguistic Urban Legends'' that the concept of an "Indian gift" arose when white settlers misinterpreted the Native American concept of bartering: | |||
| {{quote|To an Indian, the giving of gifts was an extension of this system of trade and a gift was expected to be reciprocated with something of equal value. Europeans, upon encountering this practice, misunderstood it, considering it uncouth and impolite. To them, trade was conducted with money and gifts were freely given with nothing expected in return. So this native practice got a bad reputation among the white colonists of North America and the term eventually became a playground insult.}} | |||
| ==See also== | ==See also== | ||
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| ==References== | |||
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Latest revision as of 21:47, 20 October 2024
American pejorative This article is about the expression. For the music by 1910 Fruitgum Company, see Indian Giver (song) and Indian Giver (album). For the book, see Indian Givers: How the Indians of the Americas Transformed the World."Indian giver" is a pejorative expression used to describe a person who gives a "gift" and later wants it back or who expects something of equivalent worth in return for the item. It is based on cultural misunderstandings that took place between the early European colonists and the Indigenous people with whom they traded. Often, the Europeans viewed an exchange of items as gifts and believed that they owed nothing in return to the Indigenous people. On the other hand, the Indigenous people saw the exchange as a form of trade or equal exchange and so they had differing expectations of their guests.
The phrase is used to describe a negative act or shady business dealings, and is considered offensive to many Indigenous American people.
Etymology
The phrase originated, according to the researcher David Wilton, in a cultural misunderstanding that arose when European settlers first encountered Native Americans after the former had arrived in North America in the 15th century. The Europeans thought that they were receiving gifts from Native Americans, but the Native Americans believed that they were engaging in what was known to Europeans as bartering. That resulted in the Native Americans finding European behaviour ungenerous and insulting.
Usage
The phrase was first noted in 1765 by Thomas Hutchinson, who characterized an Indian gift as "a present for which an equivalent return is expected", which suggests that the phrase originally referred to a simple exchange of gifts. In 1860, however, in John Russell Bartlett's Dictionary of Americanisms, Bartlett said that the phrase was being used by children in New York to mean "one who gives a present and then takes it back".
In 1969, American bubblegum pop band 1910 Fruitgum Company published the album Indian Giver. The titular song peaked at #5 on the Billboard Hot 100, and #1 in Canada.
As recently as 1979, the phrase was used in mainstream media publications, but in the 1997 book The Color of Words: An Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Ethnic Bias in the United States, the writer and editor Philip H. Herbst says that although the phrase is often used innocently by children, it may be interpreted as offensive, and The Copyeditor's Handbook (1999) describes it as objectionable.
Author David Wilton argues in his 2004 book Word Myths: Debunking Linguistic Urban Legends that the concept of an "Indian gift" arose when white settlers misinterpreted the Native American concept of bartering:
To an Indian, the giving of gifts was an extension of this system of trade and a gift was expected to be reciprocated with something of equal value. Europeans, upon encountering this practice, misunderstood it, considering it uncouth and impolite. To them, trade was conducted with money and gifts were freely given with nothing expected in return. So this native practice got a bad reputation among the white colonists of North America and the term eventually became a playground insult.
See also
References
- Keene, Adrienne. "Kris Jenner uses the term "Indian Giver"". Native Appropriations. Retrieved 17 September 2016.
- ^ Gandhi, Lakshmi (September 2, 2013). "The History Behind The Phrase 'Don't Be An Indian Giver'". Code Switch. npr. Retrieved April 12, 2015.
- "Indian giver". Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary. Merriam-Webster.
- Brunetti, David Wilton; illustrated by Ivan (2009). Word Myths: debunking linguistic urban legends. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0195375572.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - "Indian (adj., n.)".
An Indian gift is a proverbial expression, signifying a present for which an equivalent return is expected
- "Who's the 'Indian giver'?".
The OED's earliest citation for 'Indian giver' is John Russell Bartlett's Dictionary of Americanisms (1860): 'Indian giver. When an Indian gives any thing, he expects to receive an equivalent, or to have his gift returned.'
- Rosenberg, Marcy (11 June 1979). "IBM President Warns: Despite Growth, Trouble Looms for Computer Industry". Computerworld. Retrieved 6 September 2012.
- Herbst, Philip H. (1997). The Color of Words: an encyclopaedic dictionary of ethnic bias in the United States. Yarmouth, Maine: Intercultural Press. pp. 119–20. ISBN 1877864978.
- Einsohn, Amy (1999). The Copyeditor's Handbook: a guide for book publishing and corporate communications, with exercises and answer keys. Berkeley: University of California Press. p. 450. ISBN 0520218345.