Ask Yahoo!
Ask Home - Yahoo! - Help

 Ask Yahoo!
Thursday April 20, 2006 Previous | Next
Dear Yahoo!:
Where did the whole "give an apple to the teacher" thing come from?
Bryan
Austin, Texas
Dear Bryan:

Kids who really want good grades should consider giving their teachers Apple computers or iPods. If that's not possible, however, fruit remains a tasty option. Apples have a long history of greasing the wheels of education. Take notes -- here's how the classroom corruption began...

According to aboutapple.com, the juicy fruit is a traditional present for teachers in the United States, Denmark, and Sweden. Some think the practice originated as a simple gift of food for poorly paid teachers. Others believe the good health associated with apples made the present particularly meaningful. And a few even think it's a nice name for a child.

Giving an apple to a teacher is also the origin for the term "apple-polisher," which was first recorded in the late 1920s. Apple-polishers, also referred to as bootlickers or toadies (among other, even worse nicknames), aren't always favorably looked upon by other students. We suggest hanging onto the fruit, and using it to keep certain health professionals at bay.

 
Related Links
·How did red carpet come to be synonymous with royal treatment?
·How does a word become a swear word?
More Questions About
·Education
·Yahoo! Answers - Education & Reference
Get Ask Your Way
·Most Popular
·Yahoo! Toolbar
· View RSS Feed  add to My Yahoo!
Email this page -    Save to del.icio.us    Save to My Web    Digg This

Copyright © 2006 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy - Terms of Service - Copyright/IP Policy

All information available through or in connection with Ask Yahoo! is informational only and provided "as is" without warranties, representations, or guarantees of any kind. Yahoo! disclaims any and all implied warranties respecting Ask Yahoo!. Use of Ask Yahoo! is entirely at your own risk and is not a substitute for conducting your own research.