Well, Yankee was a derogatory name for a colonist (we weren’t even Americans yet!).  It is unclear exactly how it was coined (one theory is it’s a Native American mispronunciation of English (Yen-gees), another blames the Dutch settlers –‘Janke’ is a term of endearment for ‘little Jan’.) But it is clear the British army officers called the Colonists Yankees to insult them.

Over the 4^th of July weekend, odds are that you heard at least some snatches of the tune Yankee Doodle.

If you watched the fireworks televised on PBS’s A Capitol 4^th, you surely heard it, for John Phillip Sousa liked it so much he incorporated it into his march America First. It’s a catchy tune, but did you know it was first sung by the British as a slam of rag-tag Colonial soldiers during the French and Indian War?

A ‘doodle’ back in the day (1600s) was a loser, an insignificant person. A ‘dandy’ was, and still is, a fop. Other great 18^th Century terms to define a dandy include ‘popinjay’, ‘peacock’ and ‘poseur’.

And of course – ‘macaroni’ does not mean ‘pasta’. In the 1700s, a macaroni person was a well-dressed trendsetter, who might be a little ostentatious. This song mocks us for being so dumb we think we look great just by sticking a feather in our caps.

We have the last laugh about the term Yankee and the song Yankee Doodle. It is sort of like “ObamaCare” – even if it started as a putdown – we embraced it!

With each successful battle of the Revolutionary war (legend has it) the Continental Army would sing Yankee Doodle to the retreating British forces. As in ‘yeah! If we are so dumb why are you running away?’ Or  ‘look at what losers you are – beaten by a bunch of soldiers without even proper uniforms.’
The good news is we have let by-gones be bygones, and we like the British now!

Did you know Yankee Doodle is Connecticut’s official state song? Even though it has fallen out of favor to call us “nut-meggers” (we have been upgraded to Connecticutians) we are still considered a ‘fife and drum’ state.

And just like my main character, Cornelia Rose, we still sing Yankee Doodle on happy, festive occasions.

© Jane F. Collen July 7, 2025 IndexCardCure™ keeping the spirit alive