Where does “monkey boy” come from?

monkey boy (English) comes from English boy, from Middle English boye, from Old English bōia, from Proto-Germanic bōjô, from Proto-Germanic bō-, from Proto-Indo-European bʰā- — to say.

monkey boy (English): Term of offense directed at a man who assumes perceived traits of a monkey, e.g. excessive hairiness or impish behaviour

Definitions

  1. Term of offense directed at a man who assumes perceived traits of a monkey, e.g. excessive hairiness or impish behaviour

Ancestry of “monkey boy”, step by step

monkey boy traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English boy

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishboyA young male; A male child: a son of any age; A...
2Middle Englishboyeservant, commoner, knave, boy
3Old Englishbōiaboy
4Proto-Germanicbōjôyounger brother, young male relation
5Proto-Germanicbō-A stem meaning "father, brother, close male...
6Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰā-to say

via English monkey

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishmonkeyAny member of the clade Simiiformes not also of...
2GermanMoneke
Every word from Proto-Indo-European bʰā-Every word from Proto-Germanic bō-Every word from Proto-Germanic bōjô