beatnik

English

Etymology

Coined by American columnist Herb Caen in 1958. From beat (generation) +‎ -nik (“person who exemplifies or endorses something”). Compare jazznik.

The suffix, a cutesy or ironic use of the Russian suffix -ник (-nik), experienced a surge of use in English coinages for nicknames and diminutives after the 1957 Soviet launch of the Sputnik satellite.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbiːtnɪk/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

Noun

beatnik (plural beatniks or (rare) beatniki)

1. A person who dresses in a manner that is not socially acceptable and is supposed to reject conventional norms of thought and behavior; nonconformist in dress and behavior.
   • 1963, George Sherman, “Soviet Youth: Myth and Reality”, in Erik H[omburger] Erikson, editor, The Challenge of Youth (Doubleday Anchor Books; A438), Garden City, N.Y.: Anchor Books, published 1965, →ISBN, page 318:

     The drive against the stilyagi has hampered but not destroyed the development of (Soviet-style) “beatniki” among the younger artistic and literary intelligentsia. […] The tendency of Soviet “beatniki” is to emulate what they consider the Left-Bank bohemianism of Paris. It is a faint whisper of a similar movement among young East European intellectuals, particularly in Poland, to make ultrasophistication their mark of separateness from “proletarian” society.

2. A person associated with the Beat Generation of the 1950s and 1960s or its style.

   Synonym: beat

   • 2003 May 25, Nick Paton Walsh, “Macca’s back in the USSR – a few years late”, in The Observer‎^[2], number 11,041, London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 27 August 2013, page 21, column 5:

     The Beatles first surfaced in the USSR in 1964, when the style of dress of the ‘Beatniki’ was enthusiastically copied.

   • 2004, Yngvar Bordewich Steinholt, “The twists and turns of popular music policies”, in Rock in the Reservation: Songs from the Leningrad Rock Club 1981-86, New York, N.Y.: Mass Media Music Scholars’ Press, published 2005, →ISBN, chapter 3 (Before the Rock Club: A historical survey), section 4 (The 1970s), page 31:

     Worrying news from the west upset Soviet authorities even further. Punk rock was already causing trouble in Poland and other east-European countries. Did someone in the administration fear a repetition of Beatlemania, with decent, twist-dancing beatniki being replaced by pogo-dancing, sneering and gobbing impersonators of Johnny Rotten?

   • 2014, Ian McEwan, The Children Act, Penguin Random House (2018), page 185:

     In tight black jeans and black polo-neck sweater he reminded her of an old-fashioned beatnik.

Derived terms

• beatnikery
• beatnikish
• beatnikism
• Bootnik
• jazznik
• peacenik
• wordnik

Translations

beatnik

• Belarusian: бі́тнік m (bítnik)
• Czech: beatník m
• Estonian: biitnik
• Finnish: beatnik (fi)
• French: beatnik (fr) m
• German: Beatnik (de) m
• Hebrew: ביטניק
• Japanese: ビートニク (bītoniku)
• Korean: 비트족 (biteujok), 비트닉 (biteunik)
• Macedonian: битник m (bitnik)
• Norwegian: beatnik m
• Polish: beatnik (pl) m, bitnik m
• Portuguese: beatnik m or f
• Russian: би́тник (ru) m (bítnik)
• Spanish: beatnik m or f
• Ukrainian: бі́тник m (bítnyk)
• Yiddish: ביטניק m (bitnik)

See also

• Baghdad by the Bay (also coined by Herb Caen)
• fringie
• hepcat
• hippie, hippy

Finnish

Etymology

From English beatnik.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbiːtnik/, [ˈbiːt̪n̪ik]
• IPA^(key): /ˈbiːtnikːi/, [ˈbiːt̪n̪ikːi]
• Rhymes: -iːtnik

Noun

beatnik

1. beatnik

Usage notes

Partitive plural is commonly spelled with double-k as beatnikkejä, which may be considered erroneous.

Declension

Inflection of beatnik (Kotus type 5/risti, no gradation)
nominative		beatnik	beatnikit
genitive		beatnikin	beatnikien
partitive		beatnikiä	beatnikejä
illative		beatnikiin	beatnikeihin
		singular	plural
nominative		beatnik	beatnikit
accusative	nom.	beatnik	beatnikit
	gen.	beatnikin
genitive		beatnikin	beatnikien
partitive		beatnikiä	beatnikejä
inessive		beatnikissä	beatnikeissä
elative		beatnikistä	beatnikeistä
illative		beatnikiin	beatnikeihin
adessive		beatnikillä	beatnikeillä
ablative		beatnikiltä	beatnikeiltä
allative		beatnikille	beatnikeille
essive		beatnikinä	beatnikeinä
translative		beatnikiksi	beatnikeiksi
abessive		beatnikittä	beatnikeittä
instructive		—	beatnikein
comitative		See the possessive forms below.

Possessive forms of beatnik (Kotus type 5/risti, no gradation)

first-person singular possessor singular plural nominative beatnikini beatnikini accusative nom. beatnikini beatnikini gen. beatnikini genitive beatnikini beatnikieni partitive beatnikiäni beatnikejäni inessive beatnikissäni beatnikeissäni elative beatnikistäni beatnikeistäni illative beatnikiini beatnikeihini adessive beatnikilläni beatnikeilläni ablative beatnikiltäni beatnikeiltäni allative beatnikilleni beatnikeilleni essive beatnikinäni beatnikeinäni translative beatnikikseni beatnikeikseni abessive beatnikittäni beatnikeittäni instructive — — comitative — beatnikeineni second-person singular possessor singular plural nominative beatnikisi beatnikisi accusative nom. beatnikisi beatnikisi gen. beatnikisi genitive beatnikisi beatnikiesi partitive beatnikiäsi beatnikejäsi inessive beatnikissäsi beatnikeissäsi elative beatnikistäsi beatnikeistäsi illative beatnikiisi beatnikeihisi adessive beatnikilläsi beatnikeilläsi ablative beatnikiltäsi beatnikeiltäsi allative beatnikillesi beatnikeillesi essive beatnikinäsi beatnikeinäsi translative beatnikiksesi beatnikeiksesi abessive beatnikittäsi beatnikeittäsi instructive — — comitative — beatnikeinesi first-person plural possessor singular plural nominative beatnikimme beatnikimme accusative nom. beatnikimme beatnikimme gen. beatnikimme genitive beatnikimme beatnikiemme partitive beatnikiämme beatnikejämme inessive beatnikissämme beatnikeissämme elative beatnikistämme beatnikeistämme illative beatnikiimme beatnikeihimme adessive beatnikillämme beatnikeillämme ablative beatnikiltämme beatnikeiltämme allative beatnikillemme beatnikeillemme essive beatnikinämme beatnikeinämme translative beatnikiksemme beatnikeiksemme abessive beatnikittämme beatnikeittämme instructive — — comitative — beatnikeinemme second-person plural possessor singular plural nominative beatnikinne beatnikinne accusative nom. beatnikinne beatnikinne gen. beatnikinne genitive beatnikinne beatnikienne partitive beatnikiänne beatnikejänne inessive beatnikissänne beatnikeissänne elative beatnikistänne beatnikeistänne illative beatnikiinne beatnikeihinne adessive beatnikillänne beatnikeillänne ablative beatnikiltänne beatnikeiltänne allative beatnikillenne beatnikeillenne essive beatnikinänne beatnikeinänne translative beatnikiksenne beatnikeiksenne abessive beatnikittänne beatnikeittänne instructive — — comitative — beatnikeinenne third-person possessor singular plural nominative beatnikinsä beatnikinsä accusative nom. beatnikinsä beatnikinsä gen. beatnikinsä genitive beatnikinsä beatnikiensä partitive beatnikiään beatnikiänsä beatnikejään beatnikejänsä inessive beatnikissään beatnikissänsä beatnikeissään beatnikeissänsä elative beatnikistään beatnikistänsä beatnikeistään beatnikeistänsä illative beatnikiinsä beatnikeihinsä adessive beatnikillään beatnikillänsä beatnikeillään beatnikeillänsä ablative beatnikiltään beatnikiltänsä beatnikeiltään beatnikeiltänsä allative beatnikilleen beatnikillensä beatnikeilleen beatnikeillensä essive beatnikinään beatnikinänsä beatnikeinään beatnikeinänsä translative beatnikikseen beatnikiksensä beatnikeikseen beatnikeiksensä abessive beatnikittään beatnikittänsä beatnikeittään beatnikeittänsä instructive — — comitative — beatnikeineen beatnikeinensä

French

Etymology

Borrowed from English beatnik.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bit.nik/

• Audio (France (Lyon)):

  (file)

Noun

beatnik m or f by sense (plural beatniks)

1. beatnik

Further reading

• “beatnik”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012

Polish

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English beatnik.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbit.ɲik/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -itɲik
• Syllabification: beat‧nik

Noun

beatnik m pers

1. (historical) alternative spelling of bitnik

Declension

Declension of beatnik

	singular	plural
nominative	beatnik	beatnicy/beatniki (deprecative)
genitive	beatnika	beatników
dative	beatnikowi	beatnikom
accusative	beatnika	beatników
instrumental	beatnikiem	beatnikami
locative	beatniku	beatnikach
vocative	beatniku	beatnicy

Derived terms

adjective

• beatnikowski

Further reading

• beatnik in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• beatnik in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Portuguese

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English beatnik.

Noun

beatnik m or f by sense (plural beatniks)

1. beatnik (person associated with the Beat Generation of the 1950s and 1960s)

Further reading

• “beatnik”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
• “beatnik”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026