Originally Posted by
Thor
Kike can be:
- In English-speaking countries, Kike is a pejorative word for "Jew."
- In Spanish-speaking countries, "Kike" is a common diminutive of the forename Enrique, pronounced "kee-kay."
Did you know that Kike was shortened from kikel, which is yiddish for circle, by immigration officers on Ellis island?
I have heard Kee-Kay before. I've just never seen it spelled out before. I apologize for jumping to conclusions.
I did know that Kike is from Ellis Island however my yiddish vocabulary is limited to put downs and cuss words. I am from Brooklyn after all.
From Wikipedia:
When asked to sign the entry-forms with the customary "X," the Jewish immigrants would refuse, because they associated an X with the cross of Christianity. Instead, they drew a circle as the signature on the entry-forms. The Yiddish word for "circle" is kikel (pronounced ky-kul), and for "little circle," kikeleh (pronounced ky-kul-uh). Before long the immigration inspectors were calling anyone who signed with an "O" in place of an "X" a kikel or kikeleh or kikee or, finally and succinctly, kike.