yankee

Where does the word "yankee" come from? It comes from Dutch Jan Kees, and was adopted directly into English (1700s).

Yankee’s story begins in Dutch: Jan Kees meant “a mocking nickname for Dutch settlers.” A common Dutch nickname ("John Cheese") mockingly applied to Dutch colonists. It reached English by 1700s as Yankee. The English then turned the nickname on New England colonists. Today, yankee means an American, especially one from the northern United States.

1. Stage 1 · Dutch · 1600s-1700s Jan Kees "a mocking nickname for Dutch settlers", a common Dutch nickname ("John Cheese") mockingly applied to Dutch colonists.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1700s Yankee "a New Englander", the English then turned the nickname on New England colonists.