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From: michael@brueer.UUCP (Michael Fourman)
Newsgroups: net.nlang,net.nlang.africa
Subject: Re: Derivation of O.K.
Message-ID: <180@brueer.brueer.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 19-Jun-85 15:21:48 EDT
Article-I.D.: brueer.180
Posted: Wed Jun 19 15:21:48 1985
Date-Received: Sun, 23-Jun-85 01:07:37 EDT
References: <280@mhuxj.UUCP>
Reply-To: ukc!brueer!michael (Michael Fourman)
Followup-To: net.nlang
Organization: Dept of EE & E, Brunel University, Uxbridge, U.K.
Lines: 21
Keywords: O.K.
Xref: watmath net.nlang:3228 net.nlang.africa:56
Xpath: reading gateway.cs

In article <280@mhuxj.UUCP> daa@mhuxj.UUCP writes:
>I just read that the word "Okay" stems from the
>Wolof word "wawkay", which means "by all means",
>or "certainly."  The word was brought into American
>English by slaves brought over from West Africa.
>Does anybody know more about this?  Does anybody
>know of any other possible sources of the use
>of "O.K." in English?
>
>Debra Ansen
>inhp4!mhuxj!daa

The story they tell here is that it dates from WWII radio slang for
 "Orl Korrect".
Of similar vintage (and still current here) is "U.S." meaning terminally
non-functioning (as in "this terminal is U.S., I need a new one). This
is said to derive from the label of origin.
(Please don't take this personally over there. We love y'all - well, most of
you are probably O.K. anyway :-))

mike