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Boston Brahmin

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Boston Brahmins, also called the First Families of Boston, are the blue-blooded class of New Englanders who claim hereditary and cultural descent from the Anglo-Saxon Protestants who founded the city of Boston, Massachusetts and settled New England. They are part of the historic core of the East Coast establishment, along with the wealthy families of New York City and Philadelphia.

Contents

Characteristics

The term Brahmin comes from the Indian caste system, of which the Brahmins are the highest caste. The assertion that they are "Brahmin" is not just a claim of high social class, but also of cultural, intellectual, and spiritual leadership; these roles were performed by the namesake caste that exists in India. The American phrase was likely coined by writer Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr., as part of a January 1860 article in the Atlantic Monthly called "The Professor's Story."

The nature of the Brahmins is summarized in the doggerel "Boston Toast" by John Collins Bossidy.

"And this is good old Boston,
The home of the bean and the cod,
Where the Lowells talk only to Cabots,
And the Cabots talk only to God."
Today, Brahmin families often refer to themselves as Yankees. Members of these families are generally known for being financially conservative, socially liberal, and well educated. These families often have deeply established traditions in the Episcopalian or Unitarian faiths. According to Yankee magazine, many Brahmin families intermarried and were perceived as marked by their distinctive elocution, the Boston Brahmin accent.

Brahmin families

Many of the Brahmin families trace their ancestry back to the original founders of Boston while others bought their way into society during the nineteenth century with their profits from commerce and trade or by marrying into established Brahmin families like the Emersons and Winthrops. Some prominent families are listed here.

The Adamses

Adams family

The Cabots

Cabot family Descendant by marriage:

The Choates

Choate family

The Cushings

Cushing family Descendant by marriage:

The Crowninshields

Crowninshield family Descendant by marriage:

The Delanos

Delano family Descendant by marriage:

The Eliots

Eliot family Descendant by marriage:

The Emersons

Emerson family

The Endicotts

Endicott family

The Forbeses

Forbes family Descendant by marriage:

The Holmeses

Holmes family

The Jacksons

Jackson family Descendant by marriage:

The Lawrences

Lawrence family Descendant by marriage: Abbott Lawrence Lowell (1856–1943)

The Lodges

The Lowells

Lowell family Descendant by marriage:

The Peabodys

Peabody family

The Phillipses

Phillips family

The Putnams

Putnam family

The Quincys

Quincy family Decent by marriage:

The Saltonstalls

Saltonstall family

The Winthrops

Winthrop family

See also

References

External links

 

From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.

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