Etymology: The word “daddy” has been on an adventure ever since it moved beyond the purely paternal in the 1920s. Starting, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, as a word “most commonly used in children’s language,” “daddy” has become a term of endearment when used between adults in non-familial or sexually intimate relationships. These relationships tend to be ones with potent power dynamics, commonly involving submission to masculine authority. The internet has toyed with the term and subverted it. Twitter is awash with people addressing the likes of Barack Obama, Drake and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as “daddy.” Bernie Sanders is also not immune. This story is from Kinfolk Issue Thirty-Four Buy Now Related Stories Arts & Culture Issue 43 Word: Knolling The fascinating history of the flat lay. Arts & Culture Issue 42 Word: Hyperobject A word for things too huge to name. Arts & Culture Word: Negentropy A physicist’s fix for a messy home. Arts & Culture Issue 40 My Word In praise of cursing. Arts & Culture Issue 39 Word: Umarell The men who stare at construction sites. Arts & Culture Issue 38 Word: Hauntology The study of cultural ghosts.
