Hottentot

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a dated and derogatory colonial name for a Khoikhoi or Khoekhoe person of southern Africa

   Darwin used Hottentot in a nineteenth-century passage where modern writing would refer more precisely and respectfully to Khoikhoi people.

2. 2
   adj

   dated and offensive: relating to the Khoikhoi or to things historically associated with them

   The archive replaced Hottentot labels with current community names while preserving the original wording in catalog notes.

Borrowed in the seventeenth century from Dutch Hottentot, a colonial name imposed on Khoikhoi people. Its Dutch origin is disputed; a frequently repeated connection with a word for "stammerer" is not certain. The term is now regarded as derogatory and is retained chiefly in quotations, historical names, and discussion of older texts.

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