chamcha

n. a sycophant, toady, or hanger-on. Subjects: English, Hindi, Urdu, India, Pakistan, Politics

Etymological Note: From the Hindi and Urdu word for ‘spoon.’

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Citations: 1989 Stuart Auerbach Washington Post (Mar. 26) “Nehru and His Nation”: Akbar has been called a chamcha (which means spoon in the Hindi language and has become a slang word for sycophant) to the Gandhi family, and some of that slavish devotion shows up in his uncritical acceptance of Nehru’s government-dominated economic program and the erosion of the country’s grass roots political structure as a result of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty. 1994 William Dalrymple City of Djinns: A Year in Delhi (Dec. 1) “Glossary” p. 340: Chamcha Sycophant (lit. ‘spoon’). 1997 Ghulam Nabi Azad India Today (June 23) p. 13: I have my own standing in the party. I cannot be anybody’s chamcha (stooge). 1997 Sudhir Vaishnav Times of India (Aug. 24) “A very political exercise”: Several hangers-on. They are available aplenty everywhere in the country and are often known in the local market as Chamcha. 1998 P.S. Sharma Times of India (Jan. 17) “In Praise of Chamchagiri”: No doubt, the British also had their sycophants—toadys, bachhas, jholichuks and hukkabardars—but chamchas of the modern vintage they had none. Chamchas are a breed apart. A chamcha, verily is more than a favourite. He is a catalytic agent to activate the Sahib’s ego and cloud and obfuscate his thinking. 2004 Krishnakumar Mid Day (Mumbai, India) (Sept. 21) “Leaders’ chamchas get lucky”: All three have pulled strings in their respective parties to get Assembly poll tickets for their puppets and close confidants, better known in political parlance as chamchas. 2004 [Ambar] rvinst (Bangalore, India) (Oct. 2) “Advanced Kannada Slang”: Chamcha: A Person who uses lot of “Maska” to promote his self interest. The villan in old kannada movies, nowadays potrayed as a statesman. 2005 Asra Nomani American Prospect (Mar. 5) “Pulpit Bullies”: Speaking in Urdu, the language of South-Asian Muslims, local Muslims who opposed the posse had taken to calling its members chumcha, or “spoons,” a cultural concept akin to being a lackey. For an American Muslim like me, born in India but raised in Morgantown, the shorthand was obvious: chumps.

Posted 23 Sep 04 | Permalink | Tell a Friend