Bohunk

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An offensive term for a person from Central or Eastern Europe, particularly one of Hungarian or Slavic background
2. A derogatory label applied to immigrants or descendants of immigrants from Central and Eastern European regions
3. A slur referring to someone perceived as being of Hungarian, Polish, or other Eastern European ethnic origin

Etymology: "Bohunk" is a derogatory American slang term for a Central or Eastern European immigrant, especially a laborer, and it is generally thought to blend "Bohemian" and "Hungarian," two groups that were prominent among the immigrant workforce in the industrial United States. The name for a Bohemian (from the region of Bohemia in the Czech lands) and the name for a Hungarian were squeezed together into a single label that lumped many Slavic and Hungarian-speaking newcomers into one dismissive category. The word's exact formation is only probable rather than certain, and it sits in a family of ethnic slurs ending in a similar "-unk" or "-onk" sound. Its linguistic kin include "hunk," "hunky," and "honky," which are often mentioned alongside it, though the connections among these are not fully settled. The clipped form it takes reflects the way American slang often shortened and reshaped ethnic labels into punchy, easily spoken insults.