http://www.alphadictionary.com/blog/?p=237 A Blog about Words and Language(s) from alphaDictionary.com Tue, 21 May 2013 19:53:31 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.6 http://www.alphadictionary.com/blog/?p=237&cpage=1#comment-139982 mahto Sat, 26 Sep 2009 17:29:02 +0000 http://www.alphadictionary.com/blog/?p=237#comment-139982 Dear Carol: I think the word "rube" is not a racial slur and has nothing to do with the name "Ruben". It looks more like it's derived from the German language, where a "beet" or "root", yes, just like the beetroot, is called "Rübe" (Ruebe, in case your OS can't display an "Umlaut"). Particularly the forage beet (in German "Futterrübe") is considered unfit for human consumption, and thus 'inferior'. Referring to people, it is sometimes used jokingly, so I can assure you that at least in the German language it is not much of a slur, and particularly not a racial slur. Dear Carol:
I think the word “rube” is not a racial slur and has nothing to do with the name “Ruben”. It looks more like it’s derived from the German language, where a “beet” or “root”, yes, just like the beetroot, is called “Rübe” (Ruebe, in case your OS can’t display an “Umlaut”). Particularly the forage beet (in German “Futterrübe”) is considered unfit for human consumption, and thus ‘inferior’. Referring to people, it is sometimes used jokingly, so I can assure you that at least in the German language it is not much of a slur, and particularly not a racial slur.

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