Boor
/bʊr/noun
A rude, insensitive, or uncultured person.
Did you know?English boor ultimately traces back to a Germanic word for “dweller” or “farmer,” showing how social class can harden into a moral judgment in language.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*burō
“dweller, farmer, peasant”
Old English
OE
būr
“dwelling, chamber, cottage”
Middle Dutch / Middle Low German
MDu / MLG
boer
“farmer, peasant”
16th Century
English
boor
“rustic, peasant”
Modern English
English
boor
“rude, uncultured person”