The Encyclopedia Americana (1920)/Junkers

JUNKERS, yoong'kėrz, a name given to the younger members of the nobility of Prussia and the adjoining states. &ldquo;Junkerthum&rdquo; (aristocratic manners) was a term of reproach used in the 19th century to designate the party of reaction in Prussia, which found its most strenuous supporters among the nobility, &ldquo;Junkerei&rdquo; signifies the behavior of young aristocrats; aristocratic arrogance; in German slang a baker's apprentice is sometimes called a junker.