Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2002/01/20
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Uh, Marc and RP I know that many people believe that sun-burnt necks was the root of the phrase, but my sources disagree with that, and also with the idea I presented, though I have heard the Scottish Mercenary story before, I was unable to unearth it, since the Cammie Henry Research Center (where I work) is closed for the long weekend. My own recollection of my hard-scrabble farmer grandfathers is they protected themselves from sunburn in the fields. SCOTTISH HILLBILLIES AND REDNECKS? By Todd J. Wilkinson Vice-President, Celtic Society of the Ozarks REDNECK The origins of this term are Scottish and refer to supporters of the National Covenant and The Solemn League and Covenant, or "Covenanters", largely Lowland Presbyterians, many of whom would flee Scotland for Ulster (Northern Ireland) during persecutions by the British Crown. The Covenanters of 1638 and 1641 signed the documents that stated that Scotland desired the Presbyterian form of church government and would not accept the Church of England as its official state church. The signing of the National Covenant, Greyfriar's Kirkyard, 1638 Many Covenanters signed in their own blood and wore red pieces of cloth around their necks as distinctive insignia; hence the term "Red neck", which became slang for a Scottish dissenter*. One Scottish immigrant, interviewed by the author, remembered a Presbyterian minister, one Dr. Coulter, in Glasgow in the 1940's wearing a red clerical collar -- is this symbolic of the "rednecks"? Since many Ulster-Scottish settlers in America (especially the South) were Presbyterian, the term was applied to them, and then, later, their Southern descendants. One of the earliest examples of its use comes from 1830, when an author noted that "red-neck" was a "name bestowed upon the Presbyterians." It makes you wonder if the originators of the ever-present "redneck" joke are aware of the term's origins? . - ----- Original Message ----- From: "Marc James Small" <msmall@roanoke.infi.net> To: <leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us> Sent: Sunday, January 20, 2002 10:08 AM Subject: Re: [Leica] Rules of the .... > At 07:39 AM 1/20/02 -0600, Sonny Carter wrote: > > > >I understand the term "redneck," btw, came from a description of the red > >scarves worn by Scots who fought on the side of the South in the War Between > >the States. > > Much more likely is that the term "red-neck" arose from the red necks of > hardscrabble farmers who eked out a meager existence by remaining long > hours in their fields. The term certainly is not restricted to the South: > the term is current on the US West Coast and in the northern Atlantic > States in rural areas. > > Marc > > msmall@roanoke.infi.net FAX: +276/343-7315 > Cha robh bąs fir gun ghrąs fir! > > -- > To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html - -- To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html