Midget: Difference between revisions
rv |
No edit summary |
||
| Line 2: | Line 2: | ||
{{pp-move-indef}} |
{{pp-move-indef}} |
||
'''Midget''' is a term used to describe an exceptionally short person. It generally refers to a person with the medical condition of [[dwarfism]]. The terms "midget" and "dwarf" are often used synonymously, as both terms mean someone who has been short in stature since birth, but those terms were not originally synonyms. |
'''IM A MIDGET HATERER ''''''Midget''' is a term used to describe an exceptionally short person. It generally refers to a person with the medical condition of [[dwarfism]]. The terms "midget" and "dwarf" are often used synonymously, as both terms mean someone who has been short in stature since birth, but those terms were not originally synonyms. |
||
Midget is a term that was originally coined in 1865, referring to an extremely short person with limbs similarly proportioned to his body as an average-size person's.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.pbs.org/pov/pov2005/bigenough/special_dwarfism_ety.html|title=What is Dwarfism?|last=Kennedy|first=Dan|date=2005-05-23|publisher=American Documentary|accessdate=2008-10-11}}</ref> [[P. T. Barnum]] indirectly helped popularize "midget" when he began featuring [[General Tom Thumb]] in his circus. [[Dwarfism|Dwarf]] was originally used to denote those with short limbs as compared to those who had proportioned limbs. Like many other older terms, "midget" has become part of popular language, although it was often used in a [[pejorative]] sense.{{Citation needed|date=July 2009}} When applied to a person who is very short, ''midget'' is an example of the [[Euphemism#The_.22euphemism_treadmill.22|euphemism treadmill]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.arturogil.com/m_word.htm|title=The "M" word|publisher=Arturo Gil and GilArt Designs|accessdate=2007-08-07}}</ref> Actor [[Hervé Villechaize]] insisted on being called a "midget" as opposed to a "little person", which irritated dwarf activists of the time. |
Midget is a term that was originally coined in 1865, referring to an extremely short person with limbs similarly proportioned to his body as an average-size person's.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.pbs.org/pov/pov2005/bigenough/special_dwarfism_ety.html|title=What is Dwarfism?|last=Kennedy|first=Dan|date=2005-05-23|publisher=American Documentary|accessdate=2008-10-11}}</ref> [[P. T. Barnum]] indirectly helped popularize "midget" when he began featuring [[General Tom Thumb]] in his circus. [[Dwarfism|Dwarf]] was originally used to denote those with short limbs as compared to those who had proportioned limbs. Like many other older terms, "midget" has become part of popular language, although it was often used in a [[pejorative]] sense.{{Citation needed|date=July 2009}} When applied to a person who is very short, ''midget'' is an example of the [[Euphemism#The_.22euphemism_treadmill.22|euphemism treadmill]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.arturogil.com/m_word.htm|title=The "M" word|publisher=Arturo Gil and GilArt Designs|accessdate=2007-08-07}}</ref> Actor [[Hervé Villechaize]] insisted on being called a "midget" as opposed to a "little person", which irritated dwarf activists of the time. |
||
Revision as of 18:00, 18 December 2009
'IM A MIDGET HATERER 'Midget is a term used to describe an exceptionally short person. It generally refers to a person with the medical condition of dwarfism. The terms "midget" and "dwarf" are often used synonymously, as both terms mean someone who has been short in stature since birth, but those terms were not originally synonyms.
Midget is a term that was originally coined in 1865, referring to an extremely short person with limbs similarly proportioned to his body as an average-size person's.[1] P. T. Barnum indirectly helped popularize "midget" when he began featuring General Tom Thumb in his circus. Dwarf was originally used to denote those with short limbs as compared to those who had proportioned limbs. Like many other older terms, "midget" has become part of popular language, although it was often used in a pejorative sense.[citation needed] When applied to a person who is very short, midget is an example of the euphemism treadmill.[2] Actor Hervé Villechaize insisted on being called a "midget" as opposed to a "little person", which irritated dwarf activists of the time.
Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary (Merriam-Webster, 1961) defines "midget" in the noun form as "a very diminutive person", and in the adjective form as "like a midget in size; very diminutive", hence its usage as a synonym for "miniature", as with cars.
According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, the term "midget" comes from "midge", meaning a sand fly, and the suffix "-et", meaning little or small.[3]
References
- ^ Kennedy, Dan (2005-05-23). "What is Dwarfism?". American Documentary. Retrieved 2008-10-11.
- ^ "The "M" word". Arturo Gil and GilArt Designs. Retrieved 2007-08-07.
- ^ Harper, Douglas. "midget". Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved 2008-04-03.
 | This vocabulary-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |