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Hillbilly is a term used for rural Americans with Caucasian skin, with stereotypical characteristics including speech patterns, dress, economic background, musical taste, and place of origin. The term is context-dependent and may be derogatory or affirmative. Self-identifying hillbillies are rural residents who appreciate the ethos of hillbilly life. The stereotype of hillbillies is uneducated, simple-minded, and ignorant, with common activities such as moonshining and sitting on the porch with a gun. Hillbilly caricatures are offensive to those who identify as hillbillies, and the term is offensive when used derogatorily.
A hillbilly is a term used for a person who conforms to certain stereotypical characteristics of rural, country Americans, or a person who identifies as a member of the hillbilly culture. This term is used almost exclusively for people with apparently Caucasian skin. Identifying characteristics of hillbillies are not clearly delineated, but may include unique speech patterns, style of dress, economic background, musical taste, and place of origin.
When used as a derogatory term, the word usually has a very loose definition referring to a general character of a person, but when used in an affirmative way people generally have specific characteristics in mind. Like most slang terms and ethnic slurs, the meaning and intention are highly dependent on context.
People who self-identify as hillbillies are almost always rural residents. Most of the time, they bear little resemblance to the stereotypes of hillbillies, but often appreciate what they see as the ethos of hillbilly life. They may find themselves especially grateful for the simple things in life, or they may be especially proud of their rural community, for example. The nature and origins of personal connections to this term vary widely, but the term is generally either widely accepted or widely despised by members of a single community. Embracing the term is generally a community-wide phenomenon.
The stereotype that hillbillies are thought to conform to is a picture of life in the rural mountains of the United States, mainly Appalachia and the Ozarks. In derogatory contexts, this stereotypical mountain dweller is usually seen as uneducated, simple-minded, and ignorant. Having a large family that can’t be supported on one’s salary, moonshining, and sitting on the porch with a gun are all stereotypical common hillbilly activities.
While these images of rural life may be drawn from the social problems that exist in the poor areas with which highlanders are associated, it is far more likely that this character has taken on a life of its own since becoming a popular comic figure, and thus bears little resemblance with the true rural populations existing today. Hillbillies are typically depicted speaking in a Southern dialect. In many portraits, the men are wearing oversized overalls.
The women are often portrayed wearing shirts that reveal a bare midriff and frayed, cut-from-jeans shorts. Missing or yellowed teeth are a common feature of hillbilly caricatures, as are bushy beards for men. While men are almost always portrayed as alcoholics and goofs in parodies of this culture, women often play a variety of roles, though none are viewed as positive.
To people who self-identify as hillbillies, most of these caricatured features are offensive. This is why even people who identify as hillbillies typically do not like being called hillbillies by people who are perceived as belonging to a different cultural group, such as those from a metropolitan area. Even people who would otherwise joke about these same characteristics, engaging in a kind of self-parody, usually don’t appreciate the use of the term by outsiders. When the term is used derogatorily, it implies a sense of superiority on the part of the non-highlander, which is probably why it is so offensive.
