''Spic'' (also spelled ''spick'') is an

ethnic slur The following is a list of ethnic slurs or ethnophaulisms or ethnic epithets that are, or have been, used as insinuations or allegations about members of a given ethnicity or racial group or to refer to them in a derogatory, pejorative, or ot ...

used in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

for people from Latin American countries and states.

Etymology

Some sources from the United States believe that the word ''spic'' is a play on a Spanish-accented pronunciation of the English word ''speak''. Interactive Dictionary of Language. Accessed April 12, 2007. The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language. Accessed April 12, 2007.Santiago, Esmeralda. When I Was Puerto Rican. New York: Vintage Books, 1993. The ''

Oxford English Dictionary The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED'') is the first and foundational historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP). It traces the historical development of the English language, providing a co ...

'' takes ''spic'' to be a contraction of the earlier form ''spiggoty''. The oldest known use of ''spiggoty'' is in 1910 by Wilbur Lawton in ''Boy Aviators in Nicaragua, or, In League with the Insurgents''. Stuart Berg Flexner, in ''I Hear America Talking'' (1976), favored the explanation that it derives from "no spik Ingles" (or "no spika de Ingles").Take Our Word for It
June 21, 1999, Issue 45 of etymology webzine. However, in an earlier publication, the 1960 ''Dictionary of American Slang'', written by Dr. Harold Wentworth, with Flexner as second author, ''spic'' is first identified as a noun for an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

or " American of Italian ancestry", along with the words spic'', ''spig'', and ''spiggoty'', and confirms that it is shortened from the word ''

spaghetti Spaghetti () is a long, thin, solid, cylindrical pasta.spaghetti
Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com Unabridg ...

''. The authors refer to the word's usage in James M. Cain's ''Mildred Pierce'', referring to a "wop or spig", and note that this term was never preferred over ''

wop ''Wop'' is a pejorative slur for Italians or people of Italian descent. Etymology The Merriam-Webster dictionary states wop's first known use was in the United States in 1908, and that it originates from the Southern Italian dialectal term ''gu ...

'', and has been rarely used since 1915. However, the etymology remains.Wentworth, Harold, and Flexner, Stuart Berg. The Dictionary of American Slang. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell, 1960, pp. 507.

References

External links

{{Ethnic slurs Ethnic and religious slurs Hispanic and Latino American people Italian-American history Hispanophobia English profanity

Etymology

See also

References

External links