The concept of freak , which can also be written as friqui according to what is accepted by the Royal Spanish Academy ( RAE ), comes from the English word freaky . It is a notion that is used in colloquial language to refer to someone or something with eccentric, unusual or implausible characteristics .
For example: «This year the comic convention will have the geekiest edition in its history, with hundreds of international guests and thousands of people who will come dressed as their favorite superheroes» , «With his proposals, this candidate proves to be a geek who does not "He has the necessary skills to govern the country" , "I stayed in the geekiest hotel in the city: the walls and ceiling were made of glass."
One of the most common uses of the notion is linked to the individual who feels fanaticism about something or someone. This leads him to act excessively, almost obsessively. A Michael Jackson fan who, in addition to dressing like the artist and learning all his dance steps, undergoes five cosmetic surgeries to look like the American singer, can be described as a geek.
Those who engage in cosplay , using costumes to represent fictional characters, are also often called geeks, as are the people who make up a fandom (a group of fans). Other geeks are colorful subjects, whether due to physical appearance, clothing, attitude or behavior.
The use of geek is equivalent to what in certain regions is known as bizarre or even kitsch . What is exaggerated, strange or in bad taste is usually called these terms.
However, it is very important to clarify that the use of this term differs from that in its original language, in the same way that in each region (both English and Spanish speaking) it can be applied to people with different characteristics. For example, in some places it is not used with any negative connotation, but simply serves to refer to tastes , which generally include television series, comic strips, and video games of Japanese origin.
Being a geek, in this case, is neither a good nor a bad thing; In fact, many individuals who are described with this anglicism also use it to refer to themselves. On the other hand, in some of the examples presented in the previous paragraphs we can notice a clear derogatory nuance, something that also occurs with other terms that are used to describe those people who move away from the behavior considered normal by the society of which they form part. part.
Although the RAE dictionary included this term in its 2008 edition and allows us to write it in round, that is, like any other term in our language, we are facing yet another case of unnecessary imitation of English. Spanish is a rich language, which gives us millions of possibilities to express our ideas and which can evolve without having to borrow so many foreign words. It is very sad to see the deterioration that our communication suffers when we dirty it with so many strange nouns and adjectives.
One of the greatest harms that derive from this practice (so common in our times) is the impoverishment of communication in children and adolescents, something that already existed with the lack of attention that educators pay to reading, for example. How can we expect new generations to express themselves clearly if they do not approach literature, do not learn to write by hand because they have devices that do it for them and, to make matters worse, rely on a large percentage of incorrect foreign terms? interpreted? If we want to talk about someone strange we can say extravagant, eccentric or extraordinary , for example.