Education - Hillbilly and Redneck

Many individuals coin the terms hillbilly and redneck to poor southern white people. In reality the term redneck came along because farmers had sunburned necks due to continuous exposure to sunlight on a daily basis. Since they were in the song for such devastating periods of time, their necks were permanently brown or red because of the exposure.

         The term hillbilly came about much later because of a type of country music referred to as folk music. The origin of the term "hillbilly", an American nickname for mountain folk in Ozarks and in Appalachia, comes from Ulster. They brought their traditional music with them to the new world. Since the supporters were known as Orangemen and Billy Boys it was later translated to hillbillies.  Many people still have festivals to embrace and show respect for these stereotypes. An annual festival held in Kentucky, is called Hillbilly Days in support of this culture. It is also known as “Mardi Gras of the Mountains.”

Tennessee culture is shifting in many ways, which has and will continue to shift what these terms really mean. However, history has shown that there is some true significance behind the terms and not just what is now known derogatorily.

This was done as a response to a group conversation about Tennessee history. It was very helpful to gain this information.

A few additional sources follow:

http://www.tartansauthority.com/global-scots/us-scots-history/hillbillies-and-rednecks/

classroom.synonym.com "What Is the Origin of the Word Redneck?" by Jonathon Vankin, Demand Media

Online Etymology Dictionary. Ed. Douglas Harper. Sponsored Words, n.d. Web. 3 Oct. 2015. .

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