Geek

A geek (pronunciation /gi:k/ ) is a person who is fascinated, perhaps obsessively, by obscure or very specific areas of knowledge and imagination. Geek may not always have the same meaning as the term nerd (see nerd for a discussion of the disputed relation between the terms).

The definition of geek has changed considerably over time, but the use is colloquial and there is no definite official meaning. The social and rather derogatory connotations of the word makes it particularly difficult to define. Below are some definitions of the word; all are still in use to varying degrees.

• A person who is interested in technology, especially computing and new media. Comparable with the classic definition of hacker. (Late 20th century and early 21st century.)
• A person who has chosen concentration rather than conformity; one who pursues skill (especially technical skill) and imagination, not mainstream social acceptance. Geeks usually have a strong case of neophilia. Most geeks are adept with computers and treat hacker as a term of respect, but not all are hackers themselves - and some who are in fact hackers normally call themselves geeks anyway, because they (quite properly) regard 'hacker' as a label that should be bestowed by others rather than self-assumed.
• A person with a devotion to something in a way that places him or her outside the mainstream. This could be due to the intensity, depth, or subject of their interest. This definition is very broad, and allows for mathematics geeks, aviation geeks, band geeks, computer geeks, politics geeks, modelmaking geeks, music geeks, theatre geeks, history geeks, linguistics geeks, sports geeks, SCA geeks (SCAdians), gaming geeks, Comics geeks, ham radio geeks, public transit geeks (metrophiles), literature geeks, anime and manga geeks (otaku), Star Wars geeks, Star Trek geeks (Trekkies and Trekkers, the latter noted for costuming), Tolkien or fantasy geeks, and even Wikipedia geeks. (Late 20th century and early 21st century.)
• G.E.E.K., as an acronym, reputedly came from the United States Military; it stands for General Electrical Engineering Knowledge. It is unclear if this was the origin of the current meaning for geek, or if the acronym was used as a humorous reference toward the pre-established meaning for geek (i.e., a backronym).
• A derogatory term for one with low social skills, regardless of intelligence. Similar to common use of the word dork. (Late 20th century.)
• A person who seems to act younger than their chronological age, and may dress like and enjoy things that people younger than their age like.
• A performer at a carnival who swallows various live animals and bugs. Sometimes this extends to biting off the heads of chickens. The Geek would usually perform in a "geek pit". This sense of the word dates back to the 1920s, and possibly comes from the 16th century word geck, originally of Low German origin. In English the precursor word "geck" or "gecke" was used by Shakespeare: "Why have you suffer'd me to be imprison'd, kept in a dark house, visited by the priest, and made the most notorious geck and gull That e'er invention play'd on?" (Twelfth Night, V.i). The word also thought to appear in Cymbeline (wordorigins.org).

Geek has always had negative connotations within society at large, especially being called "Geekazoid", where being described as a geek tends to be an insult. The term has recently become less condescending, or even a badge of honor, within particular fields and subcultures; this is particularly evident in the technical disciplines, where the term is now more of a compliment denoting extraordinary skill. There is an increasing number of people who self-identify with the term, even when they don't fit the classic geek profile which emphasizes high intelligence but social isolation and loneliness as a result.

Because geek is no longer purely pejorative, there are many self-labeled geeks who disagree over the use of the label. Similarly many older geeks in whatever field of devotion become upset when their field becomes popular and wish to set up standards that exclude late adopters or whole subjects of interest as not being truly geeky. While in the past the dispute would not have been over use of the term geek this is not a new phenomenon by any means. There were loud disagreements in the 1960s and 1970s among sf fans over the use of sci-fi or science fiction, with some science fiction geeks trying to get sci-fi to be only used for what they defined as bad sf. Later there were fierce debates among geeks over the use of hacker and cracker and the adoption of leet speak by less technically adroit computer users.

Today geeks devoted to technical pursuits want to distinguish themselves from people they see as falsely holding themselves out to be intellectuals, in particular people who are most interested in the arts or entertainment rather than techie subjects. For the most part the general public and even most geeks are unaware of the distinction and would be likely to see the computer geek and the genre fandom geek as being more similar than dissimilar.

While technical geeks are grudgingly acknowledged for being absorbed in a craft that at least has real life career potential, the derogatory definition of geeks remains popularized as that of a person engrossed in his area of interest at the cost of social skills, personal hygiene, and the general responsibilities of adulthood such as having a job and one's own place to live. One widely popularized characteristic of a geek is an adult male who still lives in his parents' basement. Often they are underemployed and may spend what money they have on indulging their geek interest instead of saving it for moving out on their own. Elements of the slacker culture have merged with the geek culture in this respect. The characters Jay and Silent Bob of Kevin Smith's Jersey movies are examples of self styled geeks who are adept at absorbing fandom or entertainment trivia but not particularly intelligent or educated otherwise.

• Anorak
• Asperger's Syndrome
• Beat the Geeks
• Boffin
• Freaks and Geeks
• Geek Code
• Geek chic
• Geek Squad
• Geek canon
• Geekcorps
• Gling Gling
• Hacker
• Leet
• Nerd
• Otaku
• Social anxiety
• Whiz Kid

• Geek Fu Action Grip A podcast by Mur Lafferty about geeks and geeky things
• Geek Culture Home of the Joy of Tech cartoon
• The Original Geek Test 507 questions to determine how much of geek you are
• The Geek Code A part of geek history
• Geek Of The Day Real profiles of real geeks
• Geeksinside.com All geek all the time
• A Portrait of J. Random Hacker A detailed description of the programming variety of geek
• UserFriendly.org Comics about geeks, sysadmins and IT department by Illiad
• Grub for Geeks by the Geeks Geeks news and opinions

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