Even now, in 2013, the dictionary definition of the phrase only deems it sometimes offensive. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines an "Indian giver" as "a person who gives something to another and then takes it back or expects an equivalent in return." The term, the dictionary notes in italics, is " sometimes offensive."
Ever heard of giveaways? or Potlatches?"Īlas, it isn't true that "we can all agree" that the phrase is inappropriate. ".I think we can all agree that it's probably not the best term to use to describe a negative act, considering it stereotypes Indians as deceitful and un-generous (not generous?), which, if you've ever been in a Native community, is about the farthest thing from the truth. it's a gift, you should keep your gift," while referring to her soon-to-be ex-son-in-law request that the $2 million engagement ring he presented Kim Kardashian be returned.
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The phrase made an unfortunate comeback of sorts in 2011, when reality TV star Kris Jenner told Good Morning America that she "hates an Indian giver. The term mostly faded from widespread use in the 80s and 90s and many millennials today may have heard it for the first time during the Kim Kardashian-Kris Humphries divorce, of all things. And perhaps the most memorable reference came in a 1993 episode of Seinfeld, in which the offensiveness of the term was central to the joke.
In 1969, the bubblegum pop group 1910 Fruitgum Company saw their undeniably catchy song "Indian Giver" climb the Billboard charts, peaking at number 5. "Indian Giver Defeated in "Dream House" Suit" read a headline in the Los Angeles Times describing the actress Iris Ashton Evens' 1930 victory against her former lover, the mine owner Walter J. The phrase seemed to frequently pop up in coverage of divorces and messy breakups. "Indian Giver, Says Ex-Wife, Of Hubby" declared a 1919 headline in the Detroit Free-Press article about a husband who demanded his wife return some gifts during a divorce proceeding. This definition stuck and the phrase "Indian giver" made its first appearance in linguist John Russell Barlett's Dictionary of Americanisms in 1848.īy the early 1900s, seeing the words "Indian giver" in a newspaper or magazine was commonplace. Slaughter writes that in one instance, a group of Indians offered Lewis and Clark some roots, which the explorers rejected because they felt that " expectation for those presents of a few roots is three or four times their real worth." Turning down the gift, however, insulted their hosts and led Lewis and Clark to label the Indians "forward and impertinent, and thievish," in their journals.Īuthor David Wilton argues in his 2004 book Word Myths: Debunking Linguistic Urban Legends that the concept of an "Indian gift" arose when white settlers misinterpreted the Native American concept of bartering: Slaughter points out in his book Exploring Lewis and Clark: Reflections on Men and Wilderness, frequently created problems for the explorers.
Lewis and Clark frequently suspected Indians of either stealing their belongings or plotting to do so. The picture the pair paints of Indians and their culture was not pretty. During their legendary journey West in 1804, explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark often encountered Indians over the course of their travels.