Okie

¹

[ oh-kee ]

noun

, Slang: Usually Disparaging and Offensive.

1. a term used to refer to a migrant farm worker from Oklahoma or nearby states, especially one who moved westward during the Great Depression.
2. a term used to refer to a native or inhabitant of Oklahoma.

Okie

²

[ oh-kee ]

noun

1. a contemptuous term used to refer to a native of Okinawa.

adjective

1. belonging to the Okinawan people.

Okie

/ ˈəʊkɪ /

noun

1. an inhabitant of Oklahoma
2. an impoverished migrant farm worker, esp one who left Oklahoma during the Depression of the 1930s to work elsewhere in the US

Sensitive Note

In historical contexts, Okie is usually used with disparaging intent and perceived as insulting, implying that the migrant worker is poor, transient, ignorant, or uneducated. But as a general nickname for an Oklahoman, Okie is sometimes appropriated as a positive term of self-reference.

Word History and Origins

Origin of Okie¹

First recorded in 1915–20; Ok(lahoma) + -ie

Origin of Okie²

First recorded in 1935–40; Ok(inawa) + -ie

Example Sentences

He compares “the detailed description of nature that begins chapter 38 of 'Whose Names Are Unknown' with that of chapter 1 of 'The Grapes of Wrath,' along with the way both authors depict “the generosity and compassion of some humans, the disdain of the Okies for charity,” and in addition, how both texts show the horrendous effect being called an “Okie” had on the characters.

From Salon

In the Vietnam War era, Merle Haggard sang “Okie from Muskogee” — an anti-progressive number in which he sings, “We don’t burn our draft cards down on Main Street.”

From Seattle Times

The Okie generation is fading in California, but migrant stories will never end.

From Los Angeles Times

"It happened at a moment when the South was in search of a new identity," says Okie.

From Salon

For Okie, who grew up in Georgia and whose father worked as a peach breeder for the USDA, the looming loss of the state's symbolic fruit evokes a sort of weariness.

From Salon