Boondocks
The boondocks is an American expression that stems from the Tagalog word bundok. It originally referred to a remote rural area, but now it is often applied to an out-of-the-way city or town considered backwards and unsophisticated.
Origins
The expression was introduced to English by U.S. military personnel serving in the Philippines at the turn of the 20th century. It derives from the Tagalog word "bundok", which means "mountain". According to military historian Paul A. Kramer, the term originally had "connotations of bewilderment and confusion", due to the guerrilla warfare the soldiers were engaged in.
In the Philippines, the word bundok is also a colloquialism referring to rural inland areas, which are usually mountainous and difficult to access, as most major cities and settlements in the Philippines are located on or near the coastline. Equivalent terms include the Spanish-derived probinsiya ("province") and the Cebuano term bukid ("mountain"). When used generally, the term refers to a rustic or uncivilized area. When referring to people (taga-bundok or probinsiyano in Tagalog; taga-bukid in Cebuano; English: "someone who comes from the mountains/provinces"), it acquires a derogatory connotation of a stereotype of unsophisticated, ignorant, and illiterate country people.
