The origin of OK

Okay may be the most widely spread English word in the world besides Yes and No. But where does it come from? Historically, linguists have disagreed.

Some people say that okay was invented by Indians. There is such an Indian tribe called the Chocktaw, who live in the fertile Mississippi Valley and make a living by planting and fishing. Whenever a problem occurs, the Chocktaw leaders sit in a circle with the tribal leaders to discuss it together. If someone agrees with the opinions of others, they nod and say "Okeh", which means "that's it." When Europeans first arrived in America, they heard a large number of Indian words and developed them into English vocabulary. Many cities, rivers, and mountains in the United States now have names derived from Indian languages.

There is also a more credible theory: the word Okay was invented by a political group in the 19th century. There is a man named Martin Van Buren who is preparing to run for president. His supporters set up a club to promote him. The name of the club is "Okay Club". It is said that the two letters O and K are taken from Van Buren's hometown. Old Kinderhook, New York, where he was born.

For such a popular word, naturally everyone may have their own story. However, I believe the whole world will agree on one thing: okay is a purely American word, and it is a word that spans different languages. Excellent example. Just a little reminder: okay is usually used in spoken language. In written language, we can replace it with words such as agree, assent, approve, conform, etc. to make it more formal.

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There are also the following explanations:

In the boxing ring, knocking the opponent down and winning is called konck-out, abbreviated as KO, or written as kayo, which can be used as a noun (He won by a K.O.) or a verb (The champ K.O.'d him in the third round) , or adjective (That was a K.O. punch). If the opponent is not knocked down but his head is bleeding and he is unable to parry, the referee will stop the game, which is called TKO (technical konckout).

Reverse KO and it’s OK. Undoubtedly, OK is the most popular and useful two letters in American English. When someone talks to you, you should say OK - "Yes", "Okay", "Right", "Not bad", "Okay", "Okay, okay"...it may contain various meanings. OK is also written in various ways: okay, okey, okeh, oke. You can also play tricks and imitate children to say it as okey-doke or okey-dokey. What do the two letters OK actually represent? American English experts and dictionary editors have made many different researches, and each explanation is legendary. Here are a few:

1. The sailing trade of sailboats in New England, shipped from China Silk tea, sugar and wine were imported from the Dominican Republic of Central America, and the top strain comes from Haikou, where the place name is Aux Cayes (pronounced like OK).

2. During the Civil War between the North and the South more than 100 years ago, there was a businessman named Orrin Kendall (abbreviated OK) who made biscuits. His products wholesaled grain for the army and were extremely popular. Each biscuit was printed with OK Two letters serve as trademarks.

3. During the pioneering period of the American West, there was an Indian chief, nicknamed Old Keokuk, who was an upright man. All treaties signed by white people with him were signed with the letters OK, and there was never any breach of contract.

4. Jackson, the seventh president of the United States, served as a court clerk in his early years. After each record was reviewed and found to be correct, he would approve it with the word OK, which means Oll Korrect (All Correct). Later, when Jackson ran for president, some people on the other side used this legend to slander him, calling him an uneducated person who wrote other words.

5. The Choctaw tribe of Indians has the word Okeh, which means "right!" Many years later, President Wilson also used the word Okeh to express approval when he reviewed official documents.

6. When the eighth President Van Buren ran for the second time in 1840, his supporters organized the "Democratic O.K. Club" to support his candidacy. The OK here refers to Van Buren's hometown, a village called Old-Kinder-hook in New York State.

Of the above anecdotes about OK, most American English authorities believe that the last one about Van Buren is the most reliable. Regardless of the origin of OK, these two letters may be the most popular American words spread throughout the world through the spread of the two world wars and American movies.