Golliwog or golly was a black character in
children's books in the late 19th century usually depicted as a type of rag
doll. It was reproduced, both by commercial and hobby toy-makers as a
children's toy called the "golliwog", and had great popularity in
North America, Europe and Australia into the 1970s. The doll is characterised
by black skin, eyes rimmed in white, clown lips and frizzy hair. While
home-made golliwogs were sometimes female, the golliwog was generally male. For
this reason, in the period following World War II, the golliwog was seen, along
with the teddy bear, as a suitable soft toy for a young boy.
The image of the doll has become the subject of heated
debate. While some see the golliwog as a cherished cultural artifact and
childhood tradition, others argue that the golliwog is a destructive instance of
racism against people of African descent, along with pickaninnies, minstrels,
mammy figures, and other caricatures, and has been described as "the least
known of the major anti-Black caricatures in the United States".[1] In
recent years, changing political attitudes with regard to race have reduced the
popularity and sales of golliwogs as toys. Manufacturers who have used
golliwogs as a motif have either withdrawn them as an icon, or changed the
name. In particular, the association of the golliwog with the pejorative term
"wog" has resulted in use of alternative names such as
"golly" and "golly doll"
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