- This article is about a British slang word for a scientist. For other uses of the word see boffin (disambiguation).
In the slang of the United Kingdom, Australia and South Africa, boffins are scientists, engineers, and other people who are stereotypically seen as engaged in technical or scientific research. The word conjures up a stereotype of mature men in thick spectacles and white lab coats, obsessively working with complicated chemical apparatus. Alongside eccentric genius, portrayals of boffins usually highlight a naive ineptitude in social interaction. A classic and substantial English portrayal of an eccentric and obsessed boffin can be seen in The Man in the White Suit (1951).
Usage among children
After the war, as anti-intellectualism came to the fore, the word came to have a more pejorative connotation. This was especially so among children, where it came to mean a nerdy young "teacher's pets" swot at school - lapping up their school work while also often persuing their own research interests. Boffin was usually shortened to 'boff'. Similar words beginning with 'b' were 'brains' and 'Bamber' (after the chairman of the University Challenge TV quiz game). Since around 1990 the term is still used among children, but is increasingly giving way to the more widespread U.S.-inspired label of "nerd".
Origin of the word
The word's origin is unknown. The word appeared during World War II, where it was applied with some affection to the people who invented radar, early digital computers, the atomic bomb, and other technologies that gave the Allies an advantage over the Axis during the war. Word-substitution in conversation was a common practice at the time, to foil spies. After the war, the word boffin persisted but also came to have a slightly more perjorative meaning.
There are several theories as to the origin:
- that the origin of the name boffin comes from a name of a restaurant in East Anglia. During World War II the British scientists developing radar would often frequent an eaterie going by the name of Boffin's.
- that it is a contraction of puffin, a bird that is both serious and comical at the same time. Apparently an elderly naval officer used to be termed 'a Boffin' in the Royal Navy.
- that it was inspired by the Heath Robinsonish appearance of the Blackburn Baffin aircraft.
- Eric Partridge points to Nicodemus Boffin, a fictional character who appears in Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens, and who although being only a clerk is described there as a "very odd looking old fellow."
Usage in modern popular culture
In modern British English, the word is mainly used in a semi-amusing way, especially by the British Red Top newspapers who frequently, almost universally, use the word when referring to any scientist; e.g.:
Boffins strain for answers - BOFFINS are launching a £650,000 study into constipation, it was announced today.
The Sun, 25 September 2005.
The 1970 UK children's TV series Bright's Boffins featured the adventures of an eccentric scientist, Bertram Bright, and his team of equally-eccentric fellow inventors. [1] [2]. One can also see the type portrayed in 1970s TV series such as The Goodies and The Double Deckers (the character of 'Brain').
The word has found little favour in the United States, where the corresponding pejorative terms are geek and nerd.
See also
External links
- Boffin: World Wide Words entry by Michael Quinion