Origin of the word "Tinnie"

[John Bart]

Hi all,
Something I've been wondering about for a long time.......
Does anyone know who coined the word "Tinnie?"
Why weren't they simply called a "tin?" or "tins?"
Any thoughts?

Regards,
John

[James Noble]

John, I can' tell you who was the first person to use this term to describe these Day badges but IM sure it was used as a means of to degrade them as collectibles by dealers in the early days of this hobby when you only found them in the cheap junk box for a couple $ each at gun & military shows. Man if I only knew then what I know now.

[Rick Research]

They were being called this universally when I was a kid waaaay bcak in the 1960s. Actual material never had anything to do with it, since whether glass or bakelite or aluminum or whatever, they were always "tinnie."

I suspect the derivation is ultimately British Commonwealth, picked up by GIs from the use of "tinnie" as a beer can (Foster's?) over there...

in the same sense that Vietnamese made unit distinctives are called "beer can" by American collectors, the implication being something cheap and, mockingly, recycled.

[John Bart]

Tinnies

John, I can' tell you who was the first person to use this term to describe these Day badges but IM sure it was used as a means of to degrade them as collectibles by dealers in the early days of this hobby when you only found them in the cheap junk box for a couple $ each at gun & military shows. Man if I only knew then what I know now.

James,
Thanks for your thoughts. Yes, you are right! I remember going into a large
Army/Navy surplus store here in Chicago. They had a large goldfish bowl filled almost to the top with tinnies. The smaller ones were .25 cents each, the larger heavier solid pieces were .50 cents! Those were the good old days. This was around 1962.

John

[John Bart]

Tinnie Origins

Rick,
Thanks for your post. I'll bet we're about the same age as I was also a kid in the 1960's. Interesting terminology, "beer can," I wasn't aware of that.

John

They were being called this universally when I was a kid waaaay bcak in the 1960s. Actual material never had anything to do with it, since whether glass or bakelite or aluminum or whatever, they were always "tinnie."

I suspect the derivation is ultimately British Commonwealth, picked up by GIs from the use of "tinnie" as a beer can (Foster's?) over there...

in the same sense that Vietnamese made unit distinctives are called "beer can" by American collectors, the implication being something cheap and, mockingly, recycled.

[Ralph A]

Wow, dude.

And I always thought a tinnie was a quarter wrapped in tinfoil.

[Ralph A]

...or maybe it comes from...

"...the Oxford dictionary defines Tinnitus as 'a ringing, hissing or booming sensation in one or both ears... The word Tinnitus is derived from the Latin 'tinnier' meaning 'to ring'."

That would explain a lot.

[John Bart]

Tinnie Word Origin

"...the Oxford dictionary defines Tinnitus as 'a ringing, hissing or booming sensation in one or both ears... The word Tinnitus is derived from the Latin 'tinnier' meaning 'to ring'."

That would explain a lot.

Thanks for your observations, Ralph!
The "ie" at the end word might imply small or tiny, hence the cheaply
more enconomy made item?.............John