Dyke (slang)

This article is about the slang term. For other uses, see Dyke.

Dyke or dike is a slang term for lesbian. The term is generally used by non-lesbians as a slur to refer to a woman who is aggressive or "butch" or who is hostile toward men.

Use in LGBT culture

Originally an insulting term applied to lesbians by non-lesbians, the term has been reclaiming among most lesbians and the LGBT community as a whole, and is usually used in a non-pejorative sense as simple alternative to 'lesbian' or 'gay woman'.

It is often used to generally refer to lesbians; it may also be used to indicate a political overtone, or to specifically refer to a more masculine or butch woman. The term is also more rarely (and very informally) used to refer to gay men who display both butch and femme personality traits.

In the late 20th and early 21st century, the term was reclaimed by many lesbians (to a far greater extent than, for example, "fag" for gay men). Matters came to a head when the United States Patent and Trademark Office denied lesbian motorcycle group Dykes on Bikes a trademark for its name, on the grounds that "dyke" was an offensive word. After a prolonged court battle involving testimony on the word's changing role in the lesbian community, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board permitted the group to register its name. (365gay.com)

The term will sometimes have an adjective added to it, as in:

• Bulldyke or Bull dyke or Bulldiker – more likely to present as butch
• Diesel dyke – more likely to present as butch or drive a truck
• Baby dyke – a young or recently out lesbian. Sometimes used in a pejorative sense within the LGBT community to refer to a lesbian who attempts to appear butch unsuccessfully.

Although the term is not used exclusively by butch lesbians, the effective opposite term is lipstick lesbian.

Dyke bars

A dyke bar is a term used to describe any bar or club which tends to cater to lesbians, but can also indicate a "tougher" establishment (in terms of the patrons or environment). As with the stand-alone word "dyke," the term is considered not only slang, but a potential slur when used by non-LGBT persons.

Origins

The word may have originated from the Celtic language (the name, Boudicca, was that of a powerful queen). The use of the term bulldyke would seem to support this theory.

Other theories involve the word "morphadike," which is a variant of "hermaphrodite" used in the early 20th century. (This is potentially related to Sigmund Freud's insistence that homosexuality was the result of proposed fetal hermaphroditity in both women and men. See Innate bisexuality.)

In the 1920s the terms "bulldyker" and "bulldyking" were popular in the sub-culture of Harlem Renaissance. In his 1928 novel, "Home to Harlem", Claude McKay wrote:

"[Lesbians are] what we calls bulldyker in Harlem. ... I don't understan' ... a bulldyking woman."

From the context of the novel, the word was considered crude and pejorative at the time.

See also

• queer
• lesbian

References

• Knadler, Stephen P. (1963), "Sweetback Style: Wallace Thurman and a Queer Harlem Renaissance" MFS Modern Fiction Studies - Volume 48, Number 4, Winter 2002, pp. 899-936

External links

• Etymology of dyke on the Online Etymology Dictionary