Geck

Borrowed from German Geck.

Geck (plural Gecks)

1. A surname from German.

• According to the 2010 United States Census, Geck is the 35096^th most common surname in the United States, belonging to 642 individuals. Geck is most common among White (83.49%) individuals.

• Hanks, Patrick, editor (2003), “Geck”, in Dictionary of American Family Names, volume 2, New York City: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 25.

Borrowed from Middle Low German geck (“fool”). The same word has later been borrowed again from Ripuarian as jeck (“crazy”) and Jeck (“fool; carnival reveler”).

• IPA^(key): /ɡɛk/, [ɡɛkʰ]

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Geck m (weak or strong, genitive Gecken or (uncommon, nonstandard) Gecks, plural Gecken or (uncommon, nonstandard) Gecke, diminutive Geckchen n)

1. (derogatory, somewhat dated) dandy, fop, poser (vain, narcissistic man)

   Synonyms: Laffe, Stutzer, Zierbengel, (chiefly Austria, fashionable in the 1880s) Gigerl, (colloquial) Lackaffe, (colloquial, regional) Fatzke, (youth slang) Poser

   • 1766, Christoph Martin Wieland, chapter 2, in Geschichte des Agathon‎, volume 1:

     Ich versichre dich, Hippias, meine Geduld reicht nicht mehr zu, alle Torheiten dieser abgeschmackten Gecken auszustehen, welche die Sprache der Empfindung reden wollen und nichts fühlen; […]

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

• The word can be declined according to the weak or the strong pattern. The weak declension is standard and is the only one mentioned in dictionaries.

• Geckerei

• “Geck” in Duden online
• “Geck” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
• “Geck” in Deutsches Wörterbuch von Jacob und Wilhelm Grimm, 16 vols., Leipzig 1854–1961.

• IPA^(key): /ɡæk/

Geck m (plural Gecken)

1. (derogatory) madman, lunatic, maniac
2. fool, crackpot