beatnik

Etymology

Coined by American columnist Herb Caen in 1958. From beat (generation) + cutesy or ironic use of the Russian suffix -ник (-nik). This suffix experienced a surge in English coinages for nicknames and diminutives after the 1957 Soviet launch of the Sputnik satellite. Compare jazznik.

noun

  1. A person who dresses in a manner that is not socially acceptable and is supposed to reject conventional norms of thought and behavior; nonconformist in dress and behavior.
  2. A person associated with the Beat Generation of the 1950s and 1960s or its style.
    In tight black jeans and black polo-neck sweater he reminded her of an old-fashioned beatnik. 2014, Ian McEwan, The Children Act, Penguin Random House (2018), page 185

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