Boycott

Boycott
Recorded as Boycott and Boykett, this is an English and sometimes Irish surname, although the origins are the same. It is a name which has at various times has been very much in the international limelight. Surprisingly perhaps it is locational from either Boycott in Berkshire, or Boycott in Shropshire. According to the Oxford Dictionary of English Place names, both mean 'Boia's cot' with Boia being an Olde English pre 7th century personal endearment name which does mean boy or young man. The surname lived a quiet time for the first five hundred years of its existence, with the earliest recording being possibly that of the William de Boycote of Berkshire in 1278. He was probably the lord of the manor of Boycott. The surname first came to real prominence in the 19th century through the activities of Captain Charles Boycott (1832 - 1897). He was the land agent to the earl of Erne in County Mayo, Ireland, and was 'socially excommunicated' for his refusal to bow to the growing power of the Land League in Ireland. He gave his name to the verb 'to boycott', a term which it is said, is now used in every European language. So much for fame. The second time the name came to prominence was with the English cricketer Geoffrey Boycott. He was the first English batsman to average over 100 runs per innings in a season of county cricket, and he also scored over one hundred centuries. Since retirement his subsequent personal relationships have however provided even more international headlines than even his illustrious career.

Surnames reference. 2013.

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  • boycott — boy·cott / bȯi ˌkät/ vt: to engage in a concerted refusal to have dealings with (as a store, business, or organization) usu. to express disapproval or to force acceptance of certain conditions see also primary boycott, secondary boycott ◇ A… …   Law dictionary

  • boycott — [ bɔjkɔt ] n. m. • 1888; mot angl. ♦ Anglic. Boycottage. Le boycott des Jeux olympiques par un pays. Boycott commercial, économique. ⇒ blocus, embargo. Des boycotts. ● boycott ou boycottage nom masculin (mot anglais boycott) Action de boycotter,… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Boycott — Boy cott , v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Boycotted}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Boycotting}.] [From Captain Boycott, a land agent in Mayo, Ireland, so treated in 1880.] To combine against (a landlord, tradesman, employer, or other person), to withhold social or… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • boycott — [boi′kät΄] vt. [after Capt. C. C. Boycott, land agent ostracized by his neighbors during the Land League agitation in Ireland in 1880] 1. to join together in refusing to deal with, so as to punish, coerce, etc. 2. to refuse to buy, sell, or use… …   English World dictionary

  • boycott — 1880, noun and verb, from Irish Land League ostracism of Capt. Charles C. Boycott (1832 1897), land agent of Lough Mask in County Mayo, who refused to lower rents for his tenant farmers. Quickly adopted by newspapers in languages as far afield as …   Etymology dictionary

  • boycott — ► VERB ▪ refuse to have commercial or social dealings with (a person, organization, or country) as a punishment or protest. ► NOUN ▪ an act of boycotting. ORIGIN from Captain Charles C. Boycott, an Irish land agent so treated in 1880 in an… …   English terms dictionary

  • Boycott — Boy cott, n. The process, fact, or pressure of boycotting; a combining to withhold or prevent dealing or social intercourse with a tradesman, employer, etc.; social and business interdiction for the purpose of coercion. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Boycott — Boycott, Name eines engl. Kapitäns (gest. im Juni 1897 zu Flexton in Suffolk), der die Güter des Grafen Erne in der irischen Grafschaft Mayo verwaltete und sich durch seine Strenge gegen die Pachter so verhaßt machte, daß das Volk ihn förmlich in …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Boycott — Boycott, s. Boykottieren …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • boycott — → boicot …   Diccionario panhispánico de dudas

  • boycott — [v] ban; refrain from using avoid, bar, blackball*, blacklist, brush off, cut off, embargo, exclude, hold aloof from, ice out*, ostracize, outlaw, pass by*, pass up*, prohibit, proscribe, refuse, reject, shut out*, snub, spurn, strike, withhold… …   New thesaurus

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