Where does the word "flapper" come from and What does flapper mean?

It is perhaps just as well that the slang term “flapper” for an adolescent young woman, the equivalent of the later “bobbysoxer,” has just about disappeared.

It was never complimentary, even if, as some think, the name was borrowed from the hunters’ term for a young wild duck in ungainly flight.

But there was an earlier slang use of flapper which preceded the twentieth-century use by only a few decades, and which was more probably the direct antecedent, somewhat altered in meaning.

where does the word flapper come from and what does flapper mean

The late nineteenth-century slang meant an immoral young woman. Immorality was not implied in the later slang.

Where Did the Term “Flapper” For Young Women in the 1920s Come From and What Does the Word Mean? The 1920s was a breakout decade for young women in America who had just won the right to vote. The era evokes images of young flappers like the cartoon character Betty Boop, who…
What does the word “gauntlet” mean and Where does the word gauntlet come from? During the Thirty Years' War, which lasted from 1618 to 1648, the English forces observed a form of disciplinary punishment used among their German allies. It looked highly effective, so it was not…
What does the word incubus (succubus) mean and Where does the word “incubus” come from? In the Middle Ages any woman who gave birth to a witch or sorceress was supposed to have been visited, in her sleep, by a male demon or evil spirit. The name given…
Where does the word “Toilet” come from and What does the word Toilet mean in French? The word "toilet" has had a rather curious development in the little more than four hundred years it has been in the language. Its origin was the French toilette, the diminutive of wile,…
What Does the Word Scapegoat Mean and Where Did the Word Scapegoat Come From? A Scapegoat is a member of a group singled out for undeserved blame or negative treatment. The word "scapegoat" is a mistranslation of the word Azazel. An early Greek translation of the Old…
What Does the Word “Clock” Mean in French and Where Did the Word For a Large Timepiece Come From? Like cloche in French, the word clock literally means bell. When the large mechanical clock was invented in the fourteenth century it didn't tell time with a face and hands, but rather by…

Where does the word “flapper” come from and What does flapper mean?

Related Posts

About Karen Hill