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WASP (an acronym for White Anglo-Saxon Protestant) is a term that originally denoted the culture, customs, and heritage of the American élite Establishment. The term was first popularized ¹ by E. Digby Baltzell in his 1964 book The Protestant Establishment: Aristocracy & Caste in America. It originally included members of the U.S. Protestant upper class: the descendants of colonial-era immigrants from the British Isles—especially England and Scotland—who belonged to the Presbyterian, Congregationalist, and Episcopalian (Anglican) denominations of Protestantism. Usage of the term is growing in other English-speaking countries settled in part by similar groups, such as Australia. Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Acronyms and initialisms are abbreviations formed from the initial letter or letters of words, such as NATO and XHTML, and are pronounced in a way that is distinct from the full pronunciation of what the letters stand for. ... For other uses, see White (disambiguation). ... The Anglo-Saxons refers collectively to the groups of Germanic tribes who achieved dominance in southern Britain from the mid-5th century, forming the basis for the modern English nation. ... Protestantism is a general grouping of denominations within Christianity. ... Elitism is a belief or attitude that an elite— a selected group of persons whose personal abilities, specialized training or other attributes place them at the top of any field (see below)— are the people whose views on a matter are to be taken most seriously, or who are alone... The Establishment is a pejorative term used in Western societies to refer to the controlling (elite) structures of those societies. ... 1964 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... The term upper class refers to a group of people at the top of a social hierarchy. ... Starting in the late 16th century, the English began to colonize North America. ... The British Isles consist of Great Britain, Ireland and a number of much smaller surrounding islands. ... Royal motto: Dieu et mon droit (French: God and my right) Englands location within the UK Official language English de facto Capital London de facto Largest city London Area  - Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population  - Total (2001)  - Density Ranked 1st UK 49,138,831 377/km² Ethnicity... Scotland (Alba in Scottish Gaelic) is a country in northwest Europe, occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain. ... Presbyterianism is part of the Reformed churches family of denominations of Christian Protestantism based on the teachings of John Calvin which traces its institutional roots to the Scottish Reformation, especially as led by John Knox. ... Congregational churches are Protestant Christian churches practicing congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation indepedently and autonomously runs its own affairs. ... The Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul in the nations capital is the national cathedral of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. ... The term Anglican (from the Angles or English) describes those people and churches following the religious traditions developed by the established Church of England. ... Protestantism is a movement within Christianity. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ...

Modern use

Use of the term WASP has broadened significantly since its coinage. Today any English-speaking Protestant of European descent may be called a "WASP", though most are not descended from Angles, Saxons, or members of closely-related tribes. Jews, Catholics, and Orthodox Christians are excluded. This usage is ahistoric, simplistic, and trite: white Protestants in the U.S. comprise myriad national backgrounds and denominations. They may be the descendants of English, Scots, Welsh, Cornish, Scotch-Irish (Irish Protestants, who composed about a quarter of the early colonial population), German, Dutch, Scandinavian, or French Huguenot people. They may belong to Episcopalian, Presbyterian, Lutheran, Methodist, Congregationalist, Dutch Reformed, Quaker, Baptist, Evangelical, or even Mormon denominations. They are found among all social classes, even those derogatorily called "poor white trash". Angles (German: Angeln, Old English: Englas, Latin: singular Anguls, plural Anglii) were Germanic people, from Angeln in Schleswig, who settled in East Anglia in the 5th century. ... This article is about the Saxons, a Germanic people. ... The Anglo-Saxons refers collectively to the groups of Germanic tribes who achieved dominance in southern Britain from the mid-5th century, forming the basis for the modern English nation. ... Eastern Orthodoxy (also called Greek Orthodoxy and Russian Orthodoxy) is a Christian tradition which represents the majority of Eastern Christianity. ... Royal motto: Dieu et mon droit (French: God and my right) Englands location within the UK Official language English de facto Capital London de facto Largest city London Area  - Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population  - Total (2001)  - Density Ranked 1st UK 49,138,831 377/km² Ethnicity... The Scots tribe originated from Ireland, from the now-called counties Antrim and Down. ... National motto: Cymru am byth (Welsh: Wales for ever) Waless location within the UK Official languages English(100%), Welsh(20. ... Joe Cornish, British TV presenter. ... Ulster-Scots is a term mainly used in Ireland and Britain (Scotch-Irish or Scots-Irishis commonly used in North America) primarily to refer to Presbyterian Scots, or their descendents, who migrated from the Scottish Lowlands to Ulster (the northern province of Ireland), largely across the 17th century. ... Scandinavia, Fennoscandia, and the Kola Peninsula. ... Huguenot - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... The Lutheran movement is a group of denominations of Protestant Christianity by the original definition. ... The Methodist movement is a group of denominations of Protestant Christianity. ... The Dutch Reformed Church or Netherlands Reformed Church (in Dutch: Nederlandse Hervormde Kerk (NHK)) is a denomination of Christian Protestantism based on the teachings of John Calvin. ... The Religious Society of Friends, commonly known as Quakers, or Friends, is a religious community founded in England in the 17th century. ... Baptist churches are part of a Christian movement often regarded as an Evangelical, Protestant denomination. ... Evangelicalism, in a strictly lexical, but rarely used sense, refers to all things that are implied in belief that Jesus is the savior. ... The term Mormon is a colloquial name referring to Latter Day Saints, derived in the 1830s from the Book of Mormon, one of their scriptures, whose purported Native American author was named Mormon. ... // General Social class describes the relationships between people in hierarchical societies or cultures. ... White trash (extended: poor white trash) is a racial epithet usually used to describe certain low income caucasians, especially those characterized by crude manners or abnormally low moral standards. ...

The term is most commonly heard in the East Coast region of the United States, and generally is used to contrast 'old stock' white Americans with the descendants of later European immigrants, such as Irish-American Catholics, Jewish-Americans, Italian-Americans, and other "white ethnics". The East Coast (also known as the Eastern Seaboard) is a term referencing the easternmost coastal states in the United States of America. ... Irish Americans are residents or citizens of the United States who claim Irish ancestry; the term usually refers to Roman Catholics. ... A Jewish American (also commonly American Jew) is an American (a citizen of the United States) of Jewish descent who maintains a connection to the Jewish community, either through actively practicing Judaism or through cultural and historical affiliation. ... An Italian-American is an American of Italian descent. ...

In the Southern states, where relatively few immigrants settled after the Civil War, WASP is less commonly used. Outside of areas such as southern Louisiana and south Florida, where French settlement and Latin American immigration have been prominent, white Southerners are mostly descended from people of British Isles origin. However, a historical divide between English settlers of the tidewater areas of coastal Virginia and the Carolinas and the heavily Scotch-Irish upland areas in the interior is still reflected in speech patterns and other aspects of culture. The American Civil War was fought in the United States from 1861 until 1865 between the United States – forces coming mostly from the 23 northern states of the Union – and the newly-formed Confederate States of America, which consisted of 11 southern states that had declared their secession. ... State nickname: Pelican State Other U.S. States Capital Baton Rouge Largest city New Orleans Governor Kathleen Blanco Official languages None; English and French de facto Area 134,382 km² (31st)  - Land 112,927 km²  - Water 21,455 km² (16%) Population (2000)  - Population 4,468,976 (22nd)  - Density 39. ... State nickname: Sunshine State, Everglade State Other U.S. States Capital Tallahassee Largest city Jacksonville Governor Jeb Bush Official languages English Area 170,451 km² (22nd)  - Land 137,374 km²  - Water 30,486 km² (17. ... For other uses, see White (disambiguation). ... The British Isles consist of Great Britain, Ireland and a number of much smaller surrounding islands. ... In the United States: Tidewater is a name used to refer to an area in Virginia, in the region around Hampton Roads, Newport News, Norfolk, and Virginia Beach: see Tidewater region of Virginia. ... State nickname: Old Dominion Other U.S. States Capital Richmond Largest city Virginia Beach Governor Mark R. Warner Official languages English Area 110,862 km² (35th)  - Land 102,642 km²  - Water 8,220 km² (7. ... The Carolinas is a collective term used in the United States to refer to the states of North and South Carolina together. ...

In the Western United States, 'Anglo' is often used to distinguish English speaking white Americans of European ancestry from Hispanic peoples of any race, and has a broader meaning than 'WASP'. Distinctions between British-Americans and people of other European backgrounds tend to be less prominent than they are in the East. The term Anglo can be used as a prefix to indicate a relation to England, as in the phrases Anglo-American or Anglo-America. It is also used, somewhat loosely, to refer to a person or people of English or British ethnicity in North America. ... For other uses, see White (disambiguation). ... Hispanic, as used in the United States, is one of several terms used to categorize native and naturalized U.S. citizens, permanent residents and temporary immigrants, whose background hail either from Spain, the Spanish-speaking countries of Latin America or the original settlers of the traditionally Spanish-held Southwestern United...

The original WASPs

The original WASP élite's hold on the social structure of the United States was, since the early 1800s, ironclad. Legacy admission to prep schools and Ivy League universities taught habit and attitude and formed connections which carried over to the influential spheres of finance, culture, and politics. Intermarriage preserved large inherited fortunes. Diversions such as polo and yachting marked those with sufficient wealth and leisure to pursue them. Social registers and society pages listed the privileged, who mingled in the same private clubs, attended the same churches, and lived in neighborhoods—Philadelphia's Main Line and Boston's Back Bay are two notable examples—governed by covenants designed to separate the well-bred from the merely wealthy. As the 19th century progressed, WASP enclaves sprung up in the Midwest and West, in places like Grand Rapids, Michigan and Pasadena, California, spreading the practices and perspectives of the group beyond their traditional redoubts. The social structure of the United States of America, in the technical language of social science, is characterized by moderate social mobility. ... In the United States a preparatory school, or prep school, is usually a private secondary school (or high school) designed to prepare a student for higher education. ... The Ivy League is an athletics association, founded in 1954, of eight American universities; it is named after the ivy plants traditionally covering their buildings. ... For other uses, see inheritance (disambiguation). ... Polo (also known as Cho-gan) is a team game played on a field with one goal for each team. ... A yacht A yacht was originally defined as a light, fast sailing vessel used to convey important persons. ... The Social Register was, at one time, a book detailing just who was a member of polite society in a given American city. ... Independence Hall Philadelphia (sometimes referred to as Philly or the City of Brotherly Love) is the fifth most populous city in the United States and the most populous city in the state of Pennsylvania, occupying all of Philadelphia County. ... For the historic canal, see Pennsylvania Main Line of Public Works. ... Nickname: Beantown, The Hub (of the Universe), Athens of America Location in Massachusetts Founded  -Incorporated September 17, 1630  1820, as a city County Suffolk County Mayor Thomas Menino (Dem) Area  - Total  - Water 232. ... Back Bay is the name of several places and neighborhoods in the world, including: Back Bay, Boston Back Bay, New Brunswick This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Nickname: Furniture City Location in the state of Michigan Founded County Kent County Mayor George Heartwell Area  - Total  - Water 117. ... Pasadena is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. ...

Newer immigrants lacked property or connections with the U.S. political system—creating, at first, a profound difference in wealth and influence across religious and ethnic lines. In response, they formed parallel institutions in politics (e.g. the political machines of New York City and Chicago), business, and academia which, in time, eroded this concentration of wealth and influence in WASP hands. It was not until after World War II that the networks of privilege and power in the old Protestant establishment began to lose significance. The GI Bill brought higher education to the children of poor immigrants, civil rights legislation did away with explicit discrimination in the workplace, and the prosperity of the postwar era created ample economic opportunity and a large new middle class. Nevertheless, the old WASPs are overrepresented in the country's cultural, political, and economic élite. ² A political machine is an unofficial system of political organization based on patronage, the spoils system, and behind-the-scenes control within the structure of a representative democracy. ... Midtown Manhattan, looking north from the Empire State Building, 2005 New York City (officially named the City of New York and abbreviated NYC) is the most populous city in the United States, and is at the center of international finance, politics, communications, music, fashion, and culture. ... Chicago, Illinois — officially the City of Chicago and colloquially known as Chicago, the Second City and the Windy City — is the third largest city of the United States after New York City and Los Angeles and is the largest inland city of the nation. ... Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km (over 11 miles) into the air, August 9, 1945. ... The G. I. Bill of Rights or Servicemens Readjustment Act of 1944 provided for college or vocational education for returning World War II veterans as well as one-year of unemployment compensation. ... The Cold War Main article: Cold War (1953-1962). ...

Aspects of the WASP establishment remain visible today. They are still upper middle to upper class educated Protestants, members of high society, with prep school and Ivy League educations. They are concentrated in New England and the Northeast. However, these regions now have majority Catholic populations and are no longer WASP heartlands, while Ivy League schools no longer admit WASPs in disproportionate numbers. The term does not easily apply in the Midwest, where generations of Yankee, Pennsylvanian, and Virginian pioneers and farmers settled, though this region maintains a Protestant majority. In the South, the term is more common than in the Midwest, although because the South is dominated by Evangelical churches, which have different educational and cultural values than their Northern American Protestant counterparts, Southern usage of the term does not fit its traditional definition. In general, the American protestant heartland is now located in the Midwest and South, and as protestants from these regions achieve national prominence, they reflect an entirely different family of the species of WASP than once existed on the Eastern Seaboard. Class or Caste Society is split into different groups according to class (in most western countries) or caste (in most eastern countries). ... The term upper class refers to a group of people at the top of a social hierarchy. ... Modern New England, the six northeastern-most states of the United States, indicated by red The New England region of the United States is located in the northeastern corner of the country. ... The U.S. Northeast is a region of the United States of America defined by the US Census Bureau. ... Midwest States (United States of America, ND to OH) The Midwest is a common name for a region of the United States of America. ... The term Yankee has a variety of meanings. ... Categories: US geography stubs ...

WASP's are a majority of the population in the US, by heritage if not current religious affiliation (most Protestants on the Coasts are now agnostic). As such, they represent a class of people whose wealth, status, and residual power are resented, and increasingly if not already, the term is a race-based term of derogation, envy, or insult.

Connotations and stereotypes

The term is redundant because all Anglo-Saxons are white. Also, 'WASP' associates the bearer with an unpleasant stinging insect and the terms for unpleasant dispositions (e.g. waspish) which derive from its name. (The acronym ASP was briefly popular, eliminating the redundancy but keeping the association with a poisonous animal.)³ It is sometimes pejorative, intended to drag up the history of racism, nativism, anti-Semitism, anti-Catholicism, and attitudes of cultural superiority among the white Anglo-Saxon population. "To this day in America, the Wasps are the one group about which--in a politically correct atmosphere--jokes can be made with impunity." remarks Joseph Epstein, in Washington Monthly, 2001. Various stereotypes attach to the term: WASPs are thought to be boring, greedy, frugal, snobbish, distant, compulsively hardworking, emotionally undemonstrative and arrogant⁴. Nonetheless, some Americans will happily self-identify as WASPs, though not without twinges of guilt—another WASP stereotype. Because the term WASP is factually a racial epithet describing the skin color of a people, it is generally thought to be a racist term though its use heretofor has been mild. Families See text. ... Asp is an archaic term for a number of species of poisonous snake that live in the Middle East, North Africa, and Europe. ... Racism - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... The Eternal Jew: 1937 German poster. ... Anti-Catholicism is religious or political opposition to the Roman Catholic Church, particularly of a kind employing alleged mischaracterizations, stereotypes and negative prejudices. ... This article is confusing for some readers, and needs to be edited for clarity. ... For the term used in Computing, see Stereotype (computing). ... The Protestant work ethic - also known as the Puritan work ethic - is a biblically based teaching on the necessity of hard work, perfection and the goodness of labor. ...

See also

• Boston Brahmin
• Locust Valley Lockjaw
• Preppy
• Social Register
• Social structure of the United States
• Protestantism
• Anti-Protestantism

Physicaly,the stereotype remains that many in this group bear typical "English" looks; tall in stature with slight builds along with pale sunburnt skin complexions, fair hair, blue eyes. Another stereotype prevails that a propensity for alcohol often seems to give many people from this ethnic group beet red faces. This along with a physicological inability to tan in the sun may have given rise to the offensive term, redneck. This latter term is a classic racist term as it describes how pale skin color turns red when working outside or in the fields, increasingly jobs for the lowest classes. Boston Brahmins, or simply Brahmins—sometimes also called the First Families of Boston—are a blue-blooded class of New Englanders who claim hereditary or cultural descent from the Anglo-Saxon Protestants who founded the city of Boston, Massachusetts and originally settled New England. ... Locust Valley Lockjaw is the colloquial term for a stereotypical upper class American accent especially identified with members of the New England WASP aristocracy. ... Preppy is a chiefly American adjective traditionally used to describe the characteristics of White, Anglo-Saxon, patrician Protestants (usually with some personal or familial connection to New England or the American South) who attend or attended major private, secondary preparatory schools. ... The Social Register was, at one time, a book detailing just who was a member of polite society in a given American city. ... The social structure of the United States of America, in the technical language of social science, is characterized by moderate social mobility. ... Protestantism is a movement within Christianity. ... Anti-protestantism is a bias against protestants and has been found worldwide. ... The cast of The Dukes of Hazzard, representing a diverse assortment of Rednecks In modern usage, redneck predominantly refers to a particular stereotype of whites from the Southern United States. ...

WASP Humor

The essential structure of WASP jokes is that of the ethnic joke, but in the form of non-jokes: since WASPs are the putative ruling elite which has established the standards by which others are to be judged (and invariably, unfairly, fall short), there is nothing funny or amusing about a WASP. This also comports with the rather clichéd notion that WASPs are bland, diffident people lacking the genuine, earthy qualities attributed to "ethnics." A sampling of WASP jokes:

• Peabody and Southworth meet each other on the street and shake hands. Peabody asks Southworth, "How's business?" Southworth replies, "Fine, thank you."

• What does a WASP mother make for dinner? Soup, salad, rolls, entree, vegetables and dessert.

• How many WASPs does it take to change a lightbulb? One.

• What do WASPs do instead of having sex? Run the country.

WASP in the media

• WASP is a play by Steve Martin

Steve Martin (right) with Scooter, on The Muppet Show Stephen Glenn Martin (born August 14, 1945) is an American comedian, writer, producer, actor, musician and composer born in Waco, Texas and raised in Orange County, California. ...

Notes

• Note 1: Erdman B. Palmore coined the term in his article "Ethnophaulisms and Ethnocentrisms" (The American Journal of Sociology, Vol. 67, No. 4. (Jan., 1962), p. 442), but it was Baltzell who popularized it.
• Note 2: Davidson, Pyle, Reyes, p. 164
• Note 3: Allen, p. 110
• Note 4: Allen, pp. 114–116

References

• Allen, Irving Lewis: Unkind Words: Ethnic Labeling from Redskin to Wasp (NY: Bergin & Garvey, 1990)
• Cookson, Peter W.; Persell, Caroline Hodges: Preparing for Power: America's Elite Boarding Schools (NY: Basic Books, 1985)
• Davidson, James D.; Pyle, Ralph E.; Reyes, David V.: "Persistence and Change in the Protestant Establishment, 1930-1992"; Social Forces, Vol. 74, No. 1. (Sep., 1995), pp. 157-175.
• Pyle, Ralph E.: Persistence and Change in the Protestant Establishment (Westport, CT: Praeger, 1996)