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Adventurer
Mystery Man said:The term "redneck" originated in England a couple centuries ago did it not?
From http://www.wordorigins.org/wordorr.htm
Redneck
Redneck dates to 1830, when it was first used to denote the Presbyterians of Fayetteville, Georgia. But it wasn't until 1893 that the term was used in the modern sense of a poor, white farmer or laborer. The significance of the name is somewhat obscure. Three explanations are commonly offered. First, it could be a reference to a ruddy neck caused by anger. Second, it could be a reference to sunburned necks caused by working in the fields all day. Finally, it could be a reference to pellagra which turns the neck red. The original reference to Presbyterians may be to poor, Scotch-Irish farmers that was later expanded to a larger economic class.
There is also a tale in which it referred to striking coal miners who wore red bandannas as a means of group identification. This is unlikely due to what we know of its origin. The sunburn or pellagra explanation seems more likely than the anger one.
Interestingly, the Afrikaans Rooinek, which literally means redneck, is a disparaging term the Boers used to apply to the British and later became associated with any European immigrant to South Africa.
(Sources: Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd Edition; American Speech, Vol. 76, No. 4, Winter 2001)