Hillbilly
Hillbilly is a pejorative nickname for people
who dwell in remote, rural, mountainous areas. In particular
the term refers to residents of the Ozarks and Appalachia
in the United States.
History
It is believed that the term "hillbilly" originally
referred to Scots-Irish immigrants of mainly Presbyterian
origin, who brought their cultural traditions with them when
they moved to the United States. Many of their stories, songs
and ballads dealt with past history from their original homeland,
especially relating the tale of the Protestant King William
III, Prince of Orange, who defeated the Roman Catholic King
James II at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690.
Supporters of King William came to be known
as Orangemen and Billy Boys (Billy being an abbreviation of
William; the term "Billy Boy" is still used today,
mainly in Northern Ireland). When considerable numbers of these
Scots-Irish immigrants settled in hilly regions during the
early 18th Century, they were nicknamed "hillbillies" by
the occupying British soldiers.
Alternatively, it is also speculated that
the term emerged as a derogatory nickname for the hill-dwelling
settlers of eastern Tennessee, most of whom were staunchly
pro-Union during the American Civil War. Billy Yank was the
common term for Union soldiers, the nemesis of the Confederate
Johnny Reb.
The use of the word was probably most apt
(and relatively inoffensive) during the period between the
western expansion of the early-to-mid nineteenth century and
the post-war period of the 1940s. The advent of the interstate
highway system and television brought many previously isolated
communities into mainstream United States culture in the 1950s
and 1960s, but many communities with relatively traditional
lifestyles remain throughout the region.
Historically, there were conflicts between
'hillbillies' and the planters who lived on the plains. During
the American Civil War, many resident of western Virgina were
pro-Union in that they generally did not own slaves and resented
the political dominance of planters who did. This resentment
was a contributing factor to the creation of the state of West
Virginia. This affiliation may also be observed in the pro-Union
names of many rural Appalachian areas, e.g. Lincoln County
or Union County.
Country and Western music was originally called
hillbilly music, even by its fans, until the late 1950s. However
the older name is now deemed offensive (and silly) and is hardly
ever used. The first tune that contained the word 'hillbilly'
was “Hillbilly Boogie” by the Delmore Borthers
in 1946. However, in 1927, the Gennett studios marked a recording
of fiddler Jim Booker with other instrumentalists as “Made
for hillbilly” and marketed it to a white audience. By
the late forties, radio stations broadcast music described
as "hillbilly:" originally to describe fiddlers and
string bands but was then used to describe the traditional
music of the people of the Appalacians mountains. The people
who actually sang these songs and lived in the Appalachians
mountains never used this word to describe their own music.
When the Country Music Association was founded in 1958, the
term gradually fell out of use.
Modern usage
Today, "hillbilly" has increasingly insulting connotations
- especially as knowledge of the word's fairly harmless origins
are forgotten.
To the people of the Appalachian Mountains,
the term "hillbilly" carries a negative connotation
which has been greatly emphasized by how Hollywood movies and
films portray the "hillbilly" as impoverished, ill-educated,
toothless, shoeless, unstylish, inbred, etc. While such stereotyping
is generally offensive, socio-economic realities have left
much of the Appalachian region impoverished, although the economy
has been steadily improving since the 1990s. Top |
White trash
White trash (extended: poor white trash)
is a racial epithet usually used to describe certain low
income caucasians, especially those characterized by crude
manners or abnormally low moral standards. According to Oxford
English Dictionary, "white trash" first came into
common use in the 1830s as an American pejorative used by
the slaves of "gentlemen" (rich white Southerners,
often plantation aristocrats) against poor Caucasians who
worked in the field. The term involves both behavioral characteristics
(such as mannerisms, lifestyle) and overt racial characteristics
(whiteness). The term is probably used most frequently in
the Southeast region of the United States.
The nature of the term "white trash",
the people to whom it has been applied, and the motivation
of people applying the term are studied in connection to racism
and politics. In full historical context, the term is difficult
to define, and any definition must be considered with respect
to the context in which the epithet was applied. For example,
the racial meaning of "white" has changed; 150 years
ago immigrants from Mediterranean Europe would not have been
considered "white." At present, the U.S. census would
consider these same people, such as Italians and Italian Americans
to be "white."
Some people argue that "white trash" is
a racist term not because it includes the word "white",
but it implies that trashiness is the normal state for black
people and thus when a white person is trashy it must be specified
that the person is white. Along these lines, "white trash" people
are sometimes referred to as "white niggers", or "wiggers".
It has been debated why there is no comparable
term commonly used for other races, such as black trash or
Latino trash. The suggestion is that it is a form of "reverse
racism." In particular, the acceptance of the term white
trash in everyday media is questioned when offensive words
referring to another race, such as nigger, are shunned.
Today, The Jerry Springer Show is an example
often used to define white trash. This television show often
deals with lower-class white people and situations that are
generally considered to be common to the white trash stereotype
(e.g. incest, illegitimate children, racist beliefs). The mostly-white
audience of this show is also considered by some people to
consist of white trash. Redneck Descriptions |
