Anorak (slang)
In British slang an anorak is a person, typically a man, who is an enthusiast interested in information regarded as boring or unfathomable by the rest of the population. The best known explanation of the term, is the use of anoraks (a type of rain jacket) by train spotters, a prototype group for this seemingly unfathomable interest in detailed trivia.
Another explanation is that the usage derives from the weatherproof upper clothing worn by enthusiasts of offshore radio who would, despite their lack of familiarity with maritime life, sometimes travel from British ports in small boats to visit the ships from which their outcast 'heroes' broadcast during the 1967–76 period. The collective impression of their brightly coloured garments in the coastal murk of the North Sea was presumably memorable to the crews of those 'pirate ships' who had restricted contact with the mainland due to the Marine Broadcasting Offences Act and the visits might have had an important morale-boosting role, although the wearers of the garments might often have regretted the discomfort of those sea-tossed journeys. In rough weather, the anoraks were far more visible than their distressed wearers; hence, they were identified by the style of their outer garments. The term was, reportedly, coined by Andy Archer, a disc jockey of the period. The usage became generalized to mean an obsessive enthusiast of any outdoor activity and later to mean an enthusiast of other unfashionable activities.
The word can be qualified by the area in which the person takes an excessive interest; a "timetabling anorak" would be someone who finds the process of timetabling classes fascinating.
British Prime Minister John Major, derided by many for perceived dullness, was described by Anthony Seldon as an "obsessive political anorak."[1]
Roy Cropper, a character from the popular British soap opera Coronation Street, is a stereotypical portrayal of an "anorak".
See also
References
- ^ Seldon, Anthony. John Major: A Political Life. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1998.