Quote:
Originally posted by enlightenment06
Interesting. I too looked up the word through Merriam-Webster's and it said the origin is unknown.
What about "pickaninny"?
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This is actually a West Indian word that was used as an affectionate term for little children. Of course it came stateside & was meant as an offensive term for black children. So like picnic it's meaning became skewed. But picnic is really not as offensive as we would like it to be.
To give the states credit for the origin of picnic is cute, but it's an internationally known word used among those who speak english to mean an outdoor eating experience. As a matter of fact I had never even heard of the word picnic being racist & it's not that way any other place besides some places in the States (I'm an international student). Does anybody know when this legend started & why?
Also webster has the origin of the word and so does oxford, both giving the etymology(origin) as French as "piquenique" and German as "Picknick".
Webster Online-
http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary