View source for Skiffy

{{distinguish|skiff}}
{{wiktionary|skiffy}}
'''Skiffy''' is a deliberate humorous misspelling or mispronunciation of the controversial term "sci-fi", a [[neologism]] referring to [[science fiction]].

The term "sci-fi" was suggested as an abbreviated term for "science fiction" by [[Forrest J Ackerman]] in 1954, an analogy to the then-[[State of the art|cutting edge]] term "hi-fi" (for [[high fidelity|audio high fidelity]]). Ackerman was a long-time [[science fiction fandom|fan]], and at the time was the [[literary agent]] for science fiction authors [[Ray Bradbury]], [[Isaac Asimov]], [[A. E. van Vogt]], [[Curt Siodmak]] and [[L. Ron Hubbard]].<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1865977,00.html|title = Sci-Fi's No. 1 Fanboy, Forrest J Ackerman, Dies at 92|magazine = Time|date = 6 December 2008|last1 = Corliss|first1 = Richard}}</ref> Ackerman pronounced his new term as {{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|aɪ|ˌ|f|aɪ}} or "sigh figh". In the 1970s, some members of [[science fiction fandom]] began to pronounce the term {{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|k|ɪ|f|i}} or "skiffy" for unclear reasons.

Peter Nicholls writes that "SF" (or "sf") is "the preferred abbreviation within the community of sf writers and readers."<ref name="nicholls sf">{{cite encyclopedia |title="SF" (article by Peter Nicholls) |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Science Fiction |editor=John Clute and Peter Nicholls |publisher=Orbit/Time Warner Book Group UK |year=1993}}</ref> [[David Langford]]'s monthly fanzine ''[[David Langford#Non-fiction and editorial work|Ansible]]'' includes a regular section "As Others See Us" which offers numerous examples of "sci-fi" and "skiffy" being used in a pejorative sense by people outside the genre.

Skiffy is the name of the science fiction and fantasy club at the [[College of William & Mary]],<ref>[http://www.wmskiffy.com/ SKIFFY - the science fiction & fantasy club of the college of william and mary] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110209053748/http://wmskiffy.com/ |date=2011-02-09 }}</ref> and [[Virginia Commonwealth University|VCU]],<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://vcu.collegiatelink.net/organization/skiffy/documentlibrary |title=Science Fiction and Fantasy Club - Documents |access-date=2017-04-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170402165228/https://vcu.collegiatelink.net/organization/skiffy/documentlibrary |archive-date=2017-04-02 |url-status=dead }}</ref> as well as not always affectionate [[shorthand]] for the American cable channel once named the [[Syfy|Sci-Fi Channel]].

In 1998, [[Mike Resnick]] and [[Patrick Nielsen Hayden]] released a book called ''Alternate Skiffy''.<ref>''Alternate Skiffy'', ed. Mike Resnick & Patrick Nielsen Hayden, [[Wildside Press]] 1998. {{ISBN|1-880448-54-8}}.</ref> In keeping with the [[tongue-in-cheek]] intent of the term, this was an anthology featuring stories about what might have happened if the lives of various well-known science fiction writers had turned out differently.

==References==
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[[Category:Speculative fiction]]
[[Category:Science fiction genres]]
[[Category:1950s neologisms]]