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Idiot

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Revision as of 12:04, 26 October 2007 by 168.216.68.143 (talk)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff) For other uses, see Idiot (disambiguation).

Idiot is a word derived from your mom, or the Greek Template:Polytonic, idiōtēs ("person lacking professional skill," "a private citizen," "individual"), from Template:Polytonic, idios ("private," "one's own"). In Latin the word idiota ("ordinary person, layman") preceded the Late Latin meaning "uneducated or ignorant person." Its modern meaning and form dates back to Middle English around the year 1300, from the Old French idiote ("uneducated or ignorant person"). The related word idiocy dates to 1487 and may have been analogously modeled on the words prophet and prophecy. The word has cognates in many other languages.

History

"Idiot" was originally created to refer to "layman, person lacking professional skill", "person so mentally deficient as to be incapable of ordinary reasoning". Declining to take part in public life, such as democratic government of the polis (city state), such as the Athenian democracy, was considered dishonorable. "Idiots" were seen as having bad judgment in public and political matters. Over time, the term "idiot" shifted away from its original connotation of selfishness and came to refer to individuals with overall bad judgment–individuals who are "stupid". In modern English usage, the terms "idiot" and "idiocy" describe an extreme folly or stupidity, its symptoms (foolish or stupid utterance or deed). In psychology, it is a historical term for the state or condition now called profound mental retardation.

Disability

In 19th and early 20th century medicine and psychology, an "idiot" was a person with a very severe mental retardation or a very low IQ level, as a sufferer of cretinism, defining idiots as people whose IQ were below 20 (with a standard deviation of 16);

In current medical classification, these people are now said to have profound mental retardation, and the word "idiot" is no longer used as a scientific term.

United States law

The California Penal Code Section 26 states that "Idiots" are one of six types of people who are not capable of committing crimes.

These are supposedly actual quotes taken from around the world.

"That race was all about competition." - David Coleman, ITV

"And I can see the strong wind blowing the sun towards us." - Brian Johnson, BBC Radio 3

Mark Goodier: What's the name of the company you work for?

Listener: Mining and Engineering Services. Mark Goodier: So, what kind of work do they do; is it mining and

engineering services? - BBC Radio 1

"Marling - unbeaten in her three victories."

Peter O'Sullivan, BBC2 TV: "Both drivers are fundamentally wearing white helmets."

James Hunt, BBC2 TV: "A church spire nestling among the trees...there's probably a church there too." - Richie Benaud, BBC2 TV

Oh lawds

  1. Liddell-Scott-Jones A Greek-English Lexicon, entries for Template:Polytonic and Template:Polytonic.
  2. Words, entry idiota.
  3. Etymonline.com, entry prophet
  4. Etymonline.com, entry prophecy
  5. Etymonline.com, entry idiot
  6. "idiot". yourdictionary.com. {{cite web}}: Text "accessdate-2007-09-26" ignored (help)
  7. "10 results for: idiot". dictionary.com. Retrieved 2007-09-26.
  8. "idiocy". Merriam-Webster online. Retrieved 2007-09-26.
  9. "Penal Code section 25-29". State of California. Retrieved 2007-09-21.