The word geek is a slang term, with different meanings ranging from "a computer expert or enthusiast" to "a carnival performer who performs sensationally morbid or disgusting acts", with a general pejorative meaning of "a peculiar or otherwise dislikable person, esp[ecially] one who is perceived to be overly intellectual".
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.
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.
Other definitions include:
There has been criticism over the widespread appropriation of the terms "geek" and "nerd" as self descriptors, especially by individuals who would have most likely not been described as such under the traditional stereotype. Along with efforts to de-emphasize the negative social aspects, in recent years there have been arguments for de-emphasizing the necessity for having noticeably exceptional levels of intelligence or technical aptitude. This has resulted in the desire to redefine the term geek rather as any person who pursues a passionate interest in anything regardless of genre, is creative, and individualistic. Arguments against the revisionist definitions, however, state that it is not only unnecessary, but it completely contradicts the traditional accepted definition of the terms which distinctly refer to persons who are noticeably above average intelligence, usually more adept in technically demanding fields, and socially awkward or alienated to some degree.
There are multiple interpretations of the term "geek chic", with heavy black-rimmed glasses being the sole defining trait as far as the press is concerned. Wearing them is sufficiently notable to have celebrities like David Beckham, Justin Timberlake and Myleene Klass being reported as "trying geek chic". David Tennant, the Tenth Doctor in Doctor Who, has also described the look of his bespectacled character as having "a bit of geek chic".
To geeks themselves, the term is used for "reclaiming the geek identity as something not only meaningful, but also stylish." - for this usage, more than mere spectacle frames are required, and so the term has a wider remit, being applied to home furnishings and objects as well as oufits. In this usage, the term "geek chic" can even be used as a positive contrast to the somewhat more negative term "geeky".
Geek chic is not to be confused with preppie fashion, which is more widely associated with a conservative image rather than geek culture. Instead, much of the geek chic image borrows from various alternative youth fashions such as goth, hippie, and bohemian among others, but t-shirts with geeky in-jokes seem to originate from the geeks themselves, with shirt designers who tailor to geeks offering rewards for the best ideas.
Category:2000s fashion Category:Computing culture Category:Fashion aesthetics Category:History of subcultures Category:Internet culture Category:Pejorative terms for people Category:Reclaimed words Category:Slang expressions Category:Stereotypes
ar:غيك br:Geek ca:Geek de:Geek es:Geek eo:Giko eu:Geek fa:گیک fr:Geek gl:Geek ko:긱 hr:Geek it:Geek kk:Компьютерлік фанат hu:Geek nl:Geek ja:ギーク no:Geek pl:Geek pt:Geek ro:Geek ru:Гик (сленг) simple:Geek sh:Geek sv:Geek uk:Geek zh:极客This text is licensed under the Creative Commons CC-BY-SA License. This text was originally published on Wikipedia and was developed by the Wikipedia community.
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