Geek
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Kata geek adalah istilah gaul untuk orang aneh atau non-mainstream, dengan konotasi yang berbeda mulai dari "seorang ahli komputer atau antusias" sampai dengan "orang yang sangat tertarik pada hobi", dengan makna peyoratif umum dari" orang aneh atau dislikable, terutama orang yang dianggap terlalu intelektual ".[1]
This word comes from English dialect geek, geck: fool, freak; from Low German geck, from Middle Low German. The root geck still survives in Dutch and Afrikaans gek: crazy, as well as some German dialects, and in the Alsatian word Gickeleshut: geek's hat, used in carnivals.[1]
The word appears in the modern sense of a science, math, or technology enthusiast in Robert Heinlein's 1952 short story "The Year of the Jackpot".
Formerly, in 18th century Austria-Hungary, Gecken were freaks shown by some circuses. In 19th century, in North-America, the term geek referred to a freak in circus side-shows (see also freak show). In some cases, its performance included biting the head off a live chicken. The 1976 edition of the American Heritage Dictionary included only the definition regarding geek shows.
Although often considered as a pejorative, the term is also often used self-referentially without malice or as a source of pride - an example is the 'Geek Squad' of the Best Buy company.
Referensi
- ^ a b "Dictionary: Geek". Dictionary.com-Merriam-Webster entry. Diakses tanggal 2007-10-12.