The Portland daily press., 1895-07-24
DAeos AND oRINaos.
Origin of Some National Nicknames.

(From the Kansas City Star.
There can be no doubt that the word
Dago is derived from the Portuguese
word Diego (James), the patron saint of
Portugal About 35 years ago an exhaus-
tive research was made by the New York
Ledger to ascertain the derivation Of this
word, with this result. The first record
ed instance of it's use was customs en-
try, about the year 1920, of a ship belong
ing to Davis: & Brooks, which traded
between New York and Mediterranean
ports. The skipper, after writing in the
entry his name and that of his mates and
American sailors, wound up with "and
three Dagos." He was asked for an ex-
PLANTATION by the custom house people,
showing that the word and it's meaning
was new to them. He replied that he
meant three Portuguese, all of the same
name, Diego, which he had spelled incor-
rectly, and that he had shipped them at
Funchal.
In those days italian sailors were seldom
| found out of the Mediterranean, and
Spanish only on Spanish ships; but the
| Portuguese sailors would take berth on
any craft without regard to the flag it
sailed under. so that it was very hard to
of either the Azores Canary or Cape
Verd islands among thu crew. They
made splendid sailors and worked cheap,
an important consideration in the eyes of
Yankee shippers, particularly whalers,
who invariably sought these islands on
their way to the Pacific to complete their
crews and catch the southwest trade
winds.
| The name Diego was so plentiful
among these Portuguese sailors that it
got to be the custom to call them all
Diego, or dago, much as all Gilman en-
are called John. AS they were a good
natured lot they took it kindly, until
along in the 40's he manner of it's ap-
Since then it has been applied to Span
iards, Italians, and all darkskinned
people other than negroes
| An equally interesting story can be told
| OF the word gringo, so much used by our
Mexican neighbors. The accepted version
of this word S origin is to the effect that
some American sailors, ashore on the har-
j ~ y. 1A11esui0ii, SOuuinS WtttcI, Sttu5 bue
old ditty Green grow the rushes o.
and the natives took kindly to the melody
ever afterward calling the Americans
gringos The year 1916 is given as the
date of this happening.
Now as long ago as 1926, the firm of
Rowland & Aspinwall did an immense
business with the west coast of Mexico.
Their agents in Mazatlan were the
Messrs. Barre & Kennedy. There is in
New Yory city, in the family of Robert
Lennox Kennedy, letter from Lewis
Barre of this firm, dated Mazatlan, 1925,
which speaks of an entertainment at hi S
house, and that on the recommendation
OF one of the captains of Howland & As
plnwalls ships then in the harbor, a
sailor furnish ed the music. The captain
Vouched for him as being very talented
hddler, and it turned our that the fellow
played but one tune, "Green grow the
PUSHES o." this was his entire repertory.
They danced everything to this tune,
singing the song at the same time, and
the entertainment furnished lots of fun.
In subsequent letter he writes that
from this entertainment his Mexican
friends had evolved a nickname fo1
Americans that was coming greatly into
use, gringo, which was as near as they
could come to the pronunciation OF
green grow" 1t is easy to see how this
word could become word of opprobrium
among people who did not know its ori-
gin. Certain it is that Mr. Barre, an old
and respected merchant in Mexico, had
never heard of it previous to this time,
1926.