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In American usage, "Bubba" is a
term of endearment A term of endearment is a word or phrase used to address or describe a person, animal or inanimate object for which the speaker feels love or affection. Terms of endearment are used for a variety of reasons, such as parents addressing their ch ...
mainly given to boys. Being formed from the word "
brother A brother (: brothers or brethren) is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a family, familial relationship, it is sometimes used ende ...
", it often indicates that someone is an "older brother".


Etymology and history

The linguist Ian Hancock has described similarities between the African Krio language and
Gullah The Gullah () are a subgroup of the African Americans, African American ethnic group, who predominantly live in the South Carolina Lowcountry, Lowcountry region of the U.S. states of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida within ...
, the creole language of the Black people of the isolated Sea Islands of South Carolina, and points out that the Krio expression ('boy') appears in Gullah as , which may account for the "Bubba" of the American South. Robert Ferguson notes in his book ''English Surnames'' that "Bubba" corresponds with the German , "boy". This matches Saxon and Hibernian tradition. Because of its association with the southern part of the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, "Bubba" is also often used outside the
South South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...
as a
pejorative A pejorative word, phrase, slur, or derogatory term is a word or grammatical form expressing a negative or disrespectful connotation, a low opinion, or a lack of respect toward someone or something. It is also used to express criticism, hosti ...
to mean a person of low economic status and limited education. "Bubba" may also be taken to mean one who is a "good ol' boy". At times, it may be used as a term of endearment (or in an insulting sense) for a person, especially to a man, who is either overweight or has a seemingly powerful large body frame.


Other meanings

In the US Army and Marines, "Bubba" can mean a lazy soldier, similar to "grunt", but with connotations of endearment instead of derision (e.g., "Can you make that device easier to work with, because every Bubba is going to have to use it?"). The word exists in other languages and carries similar meanings. "Bubba" is common in Australia and New Zealand as a noun to refer affectionately to a baby. For example, in Australia, the Queensland State Government has a baby immunisation programme called "BubbaJabs" for Aboriginal babies within
Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...
. In gun culture, "Bubba" is a term used for a person who permanently alters or modifies historic firearms, with no regard for its historical value, or as a verb or adjective to describe the act of or an already modified historical firearm. In Yiddish, the word ''Bobe'' ith a vowel similar to a shortened version of the vowel of ''caught'' + ''beh''means "grandmother" and as a form of address, is often rendered by English speakers as "Bubba" or "Bubbie".


People


Nickname

* Al Baker (born 1956), American former National Football League player * Bubba Bolden (born 2000), American football player *
Bubba Brooks David Kenneth Brooks, Jr., better known as Bubba Brooks or Bubber Brooks (May 29, 1922 in Fayetteville, North Carolina – April 11, 2002) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. He was the brother of Tina Brooks. Brooks's first professional ...
(1922-2002), American jazz tenor saxophonist * Bubba Carpenter (born 1968), American Major League Baseball player in 2000 * Lester Carpenter (born 1970), American politician * Bubba Cathy (born 1953/4), American businessman * Charles "Bubba" Chaney (born 1946), Louisiana politician * Bubba Church (1924–2001), former
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
player *
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
(born 1946), 42nd president of the United States * Bubba Copeland (1974–2023), American politician and pastor who committed suicide after explicit material he had posted online was noticed * Bubba Crosby (born 1976), Major League Baseball outfielder * Bubba Dickerson (born 1981), PGA Tour golfer * Tommy Facenda (1939–2022), rockabilly singer and dancer * Bubba Franks (born 1978),
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...
player * Bubba Green (1957–2019), American football player * Bubba Jenkins (born 1988), American mixed martial artist and former amateur wrestler * Merald "Bubba" Knight (born 1942), soul singer, member of
Gladys Knight & the Pips Gladys Knight & the Pips were an American Rhythm and blues, R&B, soul music, soul, and funk family music group from Atlanta, Georgia, that remained active on the music charts and performing circuit for over three decades starting from the early ...
* Bubba Marriott (born 1938), American football player * Bubba Nickles (born 1997), American softball player * Bubba Paris (born 1960), former National Football League player * Bubba Phillips (1928–1993), Major League Baseball player * Bubba Pollard (born 1987), American stock car racing driver * Bubba Shobert (born 1961), former motorcycle racer * Bubba Smith (1945–2011), American National Football League player and actor * Clinton "Bubba" Smith, on the reality television show '' Storage Wars: Texas'' * Bubba Starling (born 1992), American Major League Baseball player * James Stewart Jr. (born 1985), American former professional motocross rider * Bubba Wallace (born 1993), American stock car racing driver * Bubba Watson (born 1978), American golfer * Bubba Wells (born 1974), former basketball player


Middle name

* Bubba Trammell (born 1971), former Major League Baseball player


Stage name

* Bubba Ray Dudley, an American professional wrestler, best known for his appearances with Extreme Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment * Bubba Sparxxx (born 1977), Southern rapper * Bubba the Love Sponge Clem, radio talk show host


Fictional characters


Film and television

* Bubba the Caveduck from The
Walt Disney Company The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...
's series ''
DuckTales DuckTales refers to: Film and television * ''DuckTales'' (1987 TV series), original TV series ** '' DuckTales the Movie: Treasure of the Lost Lamp'' * ''DuckTales'' (2017 TV series), reboot TV series Video games * ''DuckTales'' (video game) ...
'' *Bubba Bexley, a recurring character in the sitcom '' Sanford and Son'' *Bubba Bixby, in the 2007 television film '' Shredderman Rules'' *Bubba Bo Bob Brain, Brain's fictitious country music star persona from a '' Pinky and the Brain'' segment on the U.S. cartoon series ''Animaniacs'' *Plumber Bubba, a fictional comedian based on
Larry the Cable Guy Daniel Lawrence Whitney (born February 17, 1963), known professionally as Larry the Cable Guy, is an American stand-up comedy, stand-up comedian, actor, and former radio personality. He was one of the members of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, a ...
and idolized by Rusty and Early Cuyler on the
Adult Swim Adult Swim (stylized as dult swimand s is an American adult-oriented television programming block that airs on Cartoon Network which broadcasts during the evening, prime time, and Late-night television, late-night Dayparting, dayparts. T ...
animated series '' Squidbillies'' *Benjamin Buford "Bubba" Blue, in the 1994 film ''
Forrest Gump ''Forrest Gump'' is a 1994 American comedy-drama film directed by Robert Zemeckis. An adaptation of the Forrest Gump (novel), 1986 novel by Winston Groom, the screenplay of the film is written by Eric Roth. It stars Tom Hanks in the title rol ...
'', portrayed by Mykelti Williamson *Landry Clarke, played by Jesse Plemons in the television series '' Friday Night Lights'' *Bubba Hendershot, a leading antagonistic-character from the
Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author. Dubbed the "King of Horror", he is widely known for his horror novels and has also explored other genres, among them Thriller (genre), suspense, crime fiction, crime, scienc ...
directorial debut film '' Maximum Overdrive'', portrayed by Pat Hingle * Bubba Higgins, in the sitcom ''
Mama's Family ''Mama's Family'' is an American sitcom television series starring Vicki Lawrence as Thelma Harper, Mama (Thelma Harper). The series is a spin-off of a recurring series of comedy sketches called "The Family (sketch), The Family" featured on ''T ...
'' * Bubba Ho-tep, a name given to a reanimated Egyptian mummy by
Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...
in Joe R. Lansdale's novella and film of the same name * Bubba J, a puppet of ventriloquist Jeff Dunham *Bubba Ritter, played by Larry Drake in the movie Dark Night of the Scarecrow * Leatherface, or Bubba Sawyer, from '' The Texas Chain Saw Massacre'' *Bubba Skinner, a leading character from the television series '' In the Heat of the Night'' *Ross "Bubba" Webster, in the 1983 superhero film '' Superman III'', played by Robert Vaughn *Bubba Zanetti, in the 1979 film '' Mad Max''


Games

*Bubba, one of the protagonists in the Amiga computer game '' Bubba 'n' Stix'' *Bubba, a character in ''
Jagged Alliance 2 ''Jagged Alliance 2'' is a 1999 tactical role-playing game developed by Sir-Tech, Sir-Tech Canada for Microsoft Windows and later porting, ported to Linux by Tribsoft. It is the third entry in the Jagged Alliance (series), ''Jagged Alliance'' seri ...
'' *Bubba, a zombie in an event of '' Killing Floor'' *Bubba, a monster from '' Rampage: Total Destruction'' *Bubba, one of the protagonists of '' Redneck Rampage'' *Bubba, a giant fish in '' Super Mario 64'' *Bubba, one of Spunge's default names in '' My Singing Monsters'' *Bubba, one of the protagonists of the original
Grand Theft Auto ''Grand Theft Auto'' (''GTA'') is an action-adventure video game series created by David Jones and Mike Dailly. Later titles were developed under the oversight of brothers Dan and Sam Houser, Leslie Benzies and Aaron Garbut. It is prima ...


Literature

*Bubba, a minor character in '' A Drink Before the War'' *Bubba, a character in
Charlaine Harris Charlaine Harris Schulz (born November 25, 1951) is an American author who specializes in mysteries. She is best known for her book series '' The Southern Vampire Mysteries'', which was adapted as the TV series '' True Blood''. The television sh ...
' Southern Vampire Series and a "codename" for Elvis, who is now a vampire in this series *Alvin "Bubba" Bixby, the bully in Wendelin Van Draanen's Shredderman series. *Bubba Kelly, a character in Carson McCullers' novel ''
The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter ''The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter'' (1940) is the debut novel of American author Carson McCullers, who was 23 at the time of publication. It is a Southern Gothic novel about a deaf man named John Singer and the people he encounters in a 1930s m ...
'' *Bubba Spuckler, one of two Norfolk brothers frequently lampooned i
The Suffolk Gazette


Other uses

* Bubba (fish) (d. 2006), the first fish known to have undergone chemotherapy *Bubba, character in Shoot from the Hip’s longform play ‘The Mysterious Cube’


See also

* Bubber, a nickname * Sissy, a similar nickname for girls, from "sister"


References

{{Reflist Informal personal names Nicknames Pejorative terms for men English masculine given names Masculine given names Brothers