dunce
DUNSS · noun
English
Origin
The word comes from John Duns Scotus, a Scottish thinker who died around 1308. His followers later resisted the new ideas of the Renaissance, and by 1530 their name had curdled into a word for someone clinging stubbornly to old, outdated learning.
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Journey
It began narrowly, aimed at those rejecting new knowledge, but widened over time to describe any person thought simply stupid.
Related words
'dunce' stands alone here, a name worn down into an insult.