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Geek is a slang term originally used to describe eccentric or non-mainstream people; in current use, the word typically connotes an expert or enthusiast or a person obsessed with a hobby or intellectual pursuit, usually technology, with a general pejorative meaning of a "peculiar person, especially one who is perceived to be overly intellectual, unfashionable, boring, or socially awkward".
Origins of Geek
The word 'Geek' comes from the English word 'geek' or 'geck', meaning a 'freak'; from Middle Low German 'Geck'. Geck is a standard term in modern German and it means 'fool'. The root also survives in the Dutch and Afrikaans adjective gek ('crazy' or 'bizarre'), as well as some German languages, like the Alsatian word Gickeleshut ('jester's hat'; used during carnival). In 18th century Austria, Gecken were freaks on display in some circuses. In 19th century North America, the term 'geek' referred to a performer in a geek show in a circus, traveling carnival or traveling funfair sideshows. The 1976 edition of the American Heritage Dictionary included only the definition regarding geek shows.
This variation of the term was used to comic effect in 1970s TV shows, such as Sanford & Son and Starsky and Hutch. In the Bounty Hunter episode of 1976 of Starsky and Hutch, stating that "a geek is a freak in a circus side show, who is kept in a pit and they throw snakes and chicken heads at, and he runs around crazy and gobbles them up", and "in 1932 the geeks formed their own union". In that episode, Starsky and Huggy Bear say they read this in an unreliable book. In it, there is a man shooting the head off a bumblebee in flight, and Big Foot, alluding to the apocryphal nature of who is a geek.
Professional wrestling manager "Classy" Freddie Blassie recorded a song in the 1970s called "Pencil-Necked Geek".
- Playing video games (ex. Pokémon, Splatoon, Halo, Final Fantasy)
- Surfing the internet
- Watching movies and T.V. shows
- Watching anime or cartoons
- Reading manga or comics
- Attending conventions
- Collecting action figures or video games
- Drawing fictional characters
- Reading Ebook on computers
- Action figures
- Plushy dolls
- Movie and TV show posters
- Shirts with corny sayings about science, math, technology
- Colors like green, orange, red, yellow, grey, black
- Shirts with cartoons, videogames, or movies (SpongeBob, Avengers, Pokémon)
Geek chic refers to a minor fashion trend that arose in the mid 2000s in which young people adopted "geeky" fashions, such as oversized black horn-rimmed glasses, suspenders/braces, and high-water trousers. The glasses—sometimes worn with non-prescription lenses or without lenses—quickly became the defining aspect of the trend, with the media identifying various celebrities as "trying geek" or "going geek" for wearing such glasses, such as David Beckham and Justin Timberlake. Meanwhile, in the sports world, many NBA players wore "geek glasses" during post-game interviews, drawing comparisons to Steve Urkel.
The term "geek chic" was appropriated by some self-identified "geeks" to refer to a new, socially acceptable role in a technologically advanced society.