In several English-speaking countries, the word niggerhead or nigger head is a former name for several things thought to resemble the head of a black person (cf. "
nigger").[1][2] The name is now taboo in normal usage.
The term was once widely used for all sorts of things, including nautical
bollards[3][4] and consumer products including soap,
chewing tobacco,
stove polish, canned
oysters and
shrimp, golf tees, and toy
cap pistols, among others. It was often used for geographic features such as hills and rocks and geological objects such as
geodes.[5][6] The term appears in several US patents for mechanical devices prior to about 1950.[7][8] Languages other than English have used similar terms to describe
chocolate-coated marshmallow treats.
In October 2011, while
Rick Perry was
running for president of the United States, controversial reports that his family leased a hunting camp once called "Niggerhead" caused his record on racial issues to be scrutinized.[11]