Mof (offensive)
In Dutch the most common term for the German people, after the regular/official one, is "mof". It is regarded as a derogative term, used exclusively for Germans and reflected Dutch resentment of the German occupation of the Netherlands during the Second World War and the respective German actions.[14] The use of the word has been gradually fading since the late 1990s.[citation needed] The word "Mofrika" (Germany) is a portmanteau of Africa and "mof".
In the late 16th century the area now known as East Frisia and Emsland and the people that lived there were referred to as ""Muffe". At the time that the Netherlands were by far the richest country in the whole of Europe, and these people were looked down upon greatly by the Dutch. The area of Western Lower Saxony was at that time very poor and a good source for many Dutch people looking for cheap labour. The inhabitants of this region were known to be rather reserved and were often described as "grumpy", "rude" and "unsophisticated" by the Dutch. Later the term was used to describe the whole of Germany, which, at the time, wasn't much better off economically than Western Lower Saxony, mainly due to the various wars waged on its territory by foreign powers. The term seemed to have died out around 1900 but returned following the German invasion of the Netherlands in 1940.[15]
A popular humorous (but false) etymology of the word "mof" by the Dutch is that it is actually a German abbreviation meaning "Menschen ohne Freunde" ("people without friends").
