Where does “hippie” come from?
Hippie derives from English hip, which derives from English hep, tracing back through alternating forms to an uncertain origin in mid-20th-century American slang.
hippie (English): A teenager who imitated the beatniks; One who...
Definitions
- A teenager who imitated the beatniks; One who...
Ancestry of “hippie”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | hipster | A person who is keenly interested in the latest... |
| 2 | English | hip | The outward-projecting parts of the pelvis and... |
| 3 | Middle English | hipe | hip anatomical region of a human or quadruped |
| 4 | Old English | hype | hip |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | hupi | hip |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | hupiz | hip, haunch, upper part of the thigh |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱeu̯bh₂- | — |