dago

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dago

/ˈdeɪɡəʊ/ UK

Rhymes with -eɪɡəʊ

Where it comes from

Alteration of diego (“Spaniard”), from Spanish Diego (common Spanish name) by law of Hobson-Jobson.

The term originated among sailors from the Northern United States, first attested in Boston in 1838. "Diego" is the Portuguese nickname for any deckhand.

After transforming into "dago" in English, the word gradually came to denote any Southern European in a derogatory manner. From there, the word spread to England by the 1890s, and to Australia following WW1. In Australia, it has undergone a narrowing in scope, now chiefly meaning "Italian", following a mass migration of Italians to Australia post-WW2.

noun dagoes · dagos

Australia, US, ethnic, slur A person of Italian descent. The Dago element in the crew became too scared to move. Then the old humper charged. There were about twenty tons of water in that spout, and it completely enveloped him; but he did not mind.
Similar: Eyetie, goombah, greaseball, guido, guinea, wog, wop
derogatory, obsolete, often, slang A crewman who speaks Spanish, Portuguese, or Italian. The man-of-war’s-man, in sporting his money in those places, fancies himself perfectly at home; and he that dares for a moment to interrupt or oppose him, be he Dago or shipmate, will inevitably meet with a rebuff for his uninvited and indecorous intrusion; but coincide with him, extol the merits an
England, US, dated, ethnic, slur A person of Southern European descent. Detective J.J. McVea of the Charles street station, who arrested the boys, says that the robbery of the safe was a remarkable one and showed no trace of amateurism. It was committed by four boys. Besides Lyons and Murphy, he says, there were in it Albert Moquin, 14 years old, of 68 West Third street
US, derogatory, rare A Catholic.

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MLA

"dago." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/dago. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

dago. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/dago

Chicago

"dago." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/dago.

BibTeX

@misc{dago_2026,
  title = {dago},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/dago},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}