Blah blah blah blah GINGER

[osprey_archer]

Our router, possibly irritated that we abandoned it over break, has stopped working again, so I’m going to be slow with the whole posting/commenting thing until we get that worked out. Other than that, however, my new term is going well (my school is on a quarter system, so we start a new term after spring break); I like all my classes.

Cleverly, I managed to schedule Russian History and History of the Book back to back, thus making a four hour bloc of solid class time. *headdesk* I remember back in high school, when that used to be normal. I can’t figure out how I survived all those years of it.

On a completely unrelated topic: I have a question. Has anyone ever heard the word ginger used as a pejorative for redheads? We had a long discussion about this at dinner, and were evenly divided between yes, no, and “Ginger is a word for redhead?”

I’ve never quite understood why “ginger” is used to describe redheads, anyway. Ginger isn’t red at all – the outside is a sort of dusty colorless brown and the inside whitish or yellowish or, if pickled, pink. Not anything close to red except the taste, and while that would be an interestingly synesthetic explanation I doubt it’s accurate.

Comments

[goldjadeocean.livejournal.com]

"Ginger" is a British term. I suppose it is used a little pejoratively, yeah.

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

That would explain things. It was generally the international students who originally learned British English that thought it was a problematic term.

[visualthinker11.livejournal.com]

well, i know they use it on doctor who, mostly because i was looking at quotes yesterday and it was in one of them. i don't get the color association, though... maybe it's an associated personality thing? because there's the stereotype that redheads get easily angered?
(...i don't believe that, of course. the red-headed people i know are all pretty calm.) : P

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

Well, it can't be too insulting if they use it on Doctor Who.

Most of the redheads I know are pretty chill too (although in their occasional un-chill moods they'll blame it on their red hair).

[girl-called-sun.livejournal.com]

I think of ginger biscuits, which are red-gold in colour, when the word is used to describe hair - but I've never thought of it before - just one of those things. It's not always used in the most complimentary fashion, though, I admit.

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

Is it a bit like calling someone blondie? It's not that the word is precisely pejorative as that being reduced to your hair color is annoying. Or is it more insulting than that?

[anactoria.livejournal.com]

Yeah, all the time. I'm in the UK, and people from strawberry-blonde through to dark red get teased for their gingerness. That's generally something you'll get with schoolkids, but I've got adult friends who'll still lightheartedly call each other 'ginge', etc.

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

Okay, thanks.

And the look on Donna's face in that icon - priceless.

[entwashian.livejournal.com]

::ponders:: The only time I have ever heard ginger as being insulting was in the Flight of the Conchords series, in which a character has the nickname 'Gingerballs'. (The actor who plays him, Rhys Darby (http://www.imdb.com/media/rm2641594880/nm1055302) actually kind of does have ginger-colored hair.)

Of course, that's about the only time I recall anyone ever using the word ginger in that way. Other than Hugh Laurie singing the song Forty Seven Ginger-Headed Sailors (http://www.mediafire.com/?gdnzjwjazmg).

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

Flight of the Conchords! <3 I didn't know they had an actual series, though, I've only seen their Youtube videos...clearly I ought to look into this. *trundles off to Netflix*

[entwashian.livejournal.com]

I haven't seen any of season 2 yet, but there's an awesome episode in season 1 in which Jemaine does a killer David Bowie impersonation.

[ochre54.livejournal.com]

I would imagine that Ginger is used as an insult in the UK as it denotes people of visibly Scottish descent. Scottish redheads tend to be the lighter colour of red that is closer to orangey gold (the dark red is more of an Irish thing).

This is also conjecture, but ginger is not native to the UK, so they would have picked it up from trading (maybe with India). As the roots rot after about two to three weeks, they probably would have shipped it as a dried powder - which is an orangey yellow.

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

Oooooh. I think you're probably right about the dried powder thing; that didn't occur to me at all.