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Herein is contained an alphabetical listing of slang words used in the 1920's. The twenties were the first decade to emphasize youth culture over the older generations, and the flapper sub-culture had a tremendous influence on main stream America; many new words and phrases were coined by these liberated women. These are the most common words and phrases of the time, many of which we still use today! Some entries were the exclusive domain of students (or rather, those of student age; only a very small percentage of the population attended college) or flappers and have been indicated as such with italicized monikers. Also, the words that emerged in a particular year are noted appropriately. Note: the majority of the entries were gleaned from a great slang dictionary called Flappers 2 Rappers, written by Tom Dalzell (Merriam-Webster, 1996). This is the resource for those interested in slang from any decade of the 20th century. The reader will find more Jazz Age slang, along with literally hundreds of other words and selected etymologies. Details can be found at the Merriam-Webster site here. Many entries have also been added from The Writer's Guide to Everyday Life from Prohibition through World War II, by Marc McCutcheon. This book is an indispensable guide to all those minutiae of life during one of the most story rich periods in history. A must have for those interested in the Twenties! Check it out (along with all the other books in the Writer's Guide series) here. I’m starting a running list to showcase all you helpful folks who have contributed to the dictionary. Unfortunately, my old computer crashed, and I don’t have everyone’s name, so check the list at the bottom of the page. If you contributed and your name’s not there, let me know and I’ll put you on! And as long as you're here, why don't you sign my guestbook? It won't bite, I promise! A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z |
