Where Did The term "ok" Originate From?
827790
Probably no one knows for sure. One theory I like is that "okay" derives from the Scottish "auch aye", meaning "ah yes". \n\nI hope this helps.
44737
Did you mean okey-dokey?o·key-doe·key      \nadj. & adv.  okey-dokey is an informal "OK"
1012394
A Sooner is a person that settled in Oklahoma in the 19th century. They came "sooner" than they were supposed to by law and "sooner" than other folks.
940108
That would be B - nice.  It used to mean foolish, ignorant, etc.  It comes from the Latin "nescire - to not know".
531512
You are quite right, the vast majority of acronyms are from the 20th century.  19th century acronyms include WC (water closet) which has spread throughout much of Europe as an acronym for toilet.  Probably the most famous acronym of all time though is OK, which started life as an acronym for "Old Kinderhook", Martin Van Buren, during his presidential campaign.  He was the "correct" candidate to vote for (he won), so the acronym OK came to mean "right".\n\nAs a note, ichthus for Christians, is NOT an acronym.  An acronym is an abbreviated phrase that becomes a NEW word.  Ichthus was a word in Greek independent of Christianity, so it is NOT an acronym.  No one says "ichthus" in Greek and means "Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior", they mean "fish".\n\nAnd, "f**k" is also NOT an acronym.  It has a good Germanic pedigree stretching back at least 2500 years to Proto-Germanic *fukan 'to have intercourse'.
45776
In what context was the word used?
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On the Origin of OK\nThe following passage is from the book, By the Flow of the Inland River - The Settlement of Columbus, Mississippi to 1825, by Samuel H. Kaye, Rufus Ward, Jr., and Carolyn B. Neault. Columbus, MS 1992. \n". . .During the Creek War the Choctaws, principally under the leadership of Pushmataha, not only sided with the Americans but contributed 500 men to Andrew Jackson's army (Niles 1-1-1824)\n- Although the Creek war was over, the Choctaw contingent would help the Americans in one last battle. In January, 1815, tradition has it that Pushmataha and his warriors, while serving under Andrew Jackson at the Battle of New Orleans, gave a lasting contribution to the English Language. During the battle, Jackson is said to have asked Pushmataha if the fight against the British was going well for the Choctaw detachment. Pushmataha supposedly answered with a Choctaw word which meant that things were all right. Jackson liked the word and began using it himself. The word was OK. According to the Dictionary of Word Origins, the favored source for the symbol OK ". . seems to be the Choctaw word OKEH, it is so" (Shipley). The use is also attributed to President Andrew Jackson among others." [Rufus Ward intimates it may have actually been Pushmataha's nephew who had this reported exchange with Jackson. Also, it may have been Jackson's adjutant who made the inquiry.]\n\n-----------------------------------------------------\n\nOK\n\nOklahoma (approved esp. for use with zip code).\n\nOK\n\nPronunciation: (ō'kā', ō"kā', ō'kā"), [key]\n—adj., adv., interj., n., pl. OK's,\n—v., OK'd, OK'ing.\n\n—adj.\n1. all right; proceeding normally; satisfactory or under control: Things are OK at the moment.\n2. correct, permissible, or acceptable; meeting standards: Is this suit OK to wear to a formal party?\n3. doing well or in good health; managing adequately: She's been OK since the operation.\n4. adequate but unexceptional or unremarkable; tolerable: The job they did was OK, nothing more.\n5. estimable, dependable, or trustworthy; likable: an OK person.\n\n—adv.\n1. all right; well enough; successfully; fine: She'll manage OK on her own. He sings OK, but he can't tap dance.\n2. (used as an affirmative response) yes; surely.\n3. (used as an interrogative or interrogative tag) all right?; do you agree?\n\n—interj.\n1. (used to express agreement, understanding, acceptance, or the like): OK, I'll get it for you.\n2. (used as an introductory or transitional expletive): OK, now where were we?\n\n—n.\nan approval, agreement, or endorsement: They gave their OK to her leave of absence.\n\n—v.t.\nto put one's endorsement on or indicate one's approval of (a request, piece of copy, bank check, etc.); authorize; initial: Would you OK my application? Also,O.K.,okay.
232019
Where did u hear this from? (place, person)
310992
all about okra\nThe word okra is of African origin and means "lady's fingers"
259390
It is a variation of okay.  Abbreviation of all korrect
914159
Consult AskOxford.com… and take your pick of meaning and origin!
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1. It is an abbriviation from the 19th century that was used in some writing, like magazines, meaning 'All Correct,' the joke being that  neither are correct.  Also came to prominence during the Martin Van Buren run for the presidency.\n\n2. to take action, to execute
1144858
o_O what do you mean?
394571
Let me tell you this story from a Chinese Idioms:\n\nMr. Fine (Said of someone who shows approval to everything and tries not to offend anybody for the sake of peace.)\n\nA man named Sima Hui who lived at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty was known to have never spoken ill of anybody.  Whatever the others spoke about, he always said that it was fine.  Once he met an acquaintance on the street, the man asked him, "How are you, sir?" He said "fine".  At brokenheartedly told him that his son had died.  He was surprised to hear that Sima Hui said, "That's fine."  After the man had left, Sima's wife rebuked him, saying, "He thought you were a man of virtue and trusted you.  That's why he told you what was on his mind.  Why did you say "It's fine" when he told you that his osn had died?"  After hearing his wife's words, Sima said unhurriedly, "Fine.  What you said is fine."  From then on, Sima Hui become known as Mr. Fine.
1022504
Eric Partridge, in Origins (1983), says OK derives from the OK Club, which supported Martin "Old Kinderhook" Van Buren in 1840. That isn't wrong, but it's only half the story. \n\nWilliam and Mary Morris, in the Morris Dictionary of Word and Phrase Origins (1977), mention the OK Club and give several other theories as well, including the off-the-wall idea that OK comes from "Aux Cayes," a port in Haiti noted for its rum. They imply the matter is still shrouded in mystery.\n\nBaloney. The etymology of OK was masterfully explained by the distinguished Columbia University professor Allen Walker Read in a series of articles in the journal American Speech in 1963 and 1964. \n\nThe letters, not to keep you guessing, stand for "oll korrect." They're the result of a fad for comical abbreviations that flourished in the late 1830s and 1840s. \n\nRead buttressed his arguments with hundreds of citations from newspapers and other documents of the period. As far as I know his work has never been successfully challenged.\n\nThe abbreviation fad began in Boston in the summer of 1838 and spread to New York and New Orleans in 1839. The Boston newspapers began referring satirically to the local swells as OFM, "our first men," and used expressions like NG, "no go," GT, "gone to Texas," and SP, "small potatoes." \n\nMany of the abbreviated expressions were exaggerated misspellings, a stock in trade of the humorists of the day. One predecessor of OK was OW, "oll wright," and there was also KY, "know yuse," KG, "know go," and NS, "nuff said."\n\nMost of these acronyms enjoyed only a brief popularity. But OK was an exception, no doubt because it came in so handy. It first found its way into print in Boston in March of 1839 and soon became widespread among the hipper element. \n\nIt didn't really enter the language at large, however, until 1840. That's when Democratic supporters of Martin Van Buren adopted it as the name of their political club, giving OK a double meaning. ("Old Kinderhook" was a native of Kinderhook, New York.) \n\nOK became the warcry of Tammany hooligans in New York while beating up their opponents. It was mentioned in newspaper stories around the country.\n\nVan Buren's opponents tried to turn the phrase against him, saying that it had originated with Van Buren's allegedly illiterate predecessor, Andrew Jackson, a story that has survived to this day. They also devoted considerable energy to coming up with unflattering interpretations, e.g., "Out of Kash, Out of Kredit, and Out of Klothes." \n\nNewspaper editors and publicists around the country delighted in coming up with even sillier interpretations-- Oll Killed, Orfully Konfused, Often Kontradicts, etc.--so that by the time the campaign was over the expression had taken firm root nationwide.\n\nAs time went on, though, people forgot about the abbreviation fad and Old Kinderhook and began manufacturing their own etymologies. Here's a sampling: \n\n(1) It's a derivative of the Choctaw Indian affirmative "okeh." Andrew Jackson, who figures in many stories about OK, is said to have introduced the word to the white man.\n\n(2) Another Jackson story has it that he used to mark OK for "oll korrect" on court documents. In the one example of this that was actually unearthed, however, the OK was found actually to be OR, for "order recorded," a common courthouse abbreviation. \n\n(3) It was a telegraphic signal meaning "open key," that is, ready to receive. Others say OK was used for "all right" because A and R had already been appropriated for other purposes. Big problem with this theory: the first telegraph message was transmitted in 1844, five years after OK appeared.\n\n(4) It stands for O. Kendall & Sons, a supplier of army biscuits that stamped its initials on its product
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There have been numerous attempts to explain the emergence of this curious colloquial expression, which seems to have swept into popular use in the US during the mid-19th century. Most of them are undoubtedly pure speculation. It does not seem at all likely, from the linguistic and historical evidence, that it derives from the Scots expression 'och aye', the Greek ola kala ('it is good'), the Choctaw Indian oke or okeh ('it is so'), the French aux Cayes ('from Cayes', a port in Haiti with a reputation for good rum) or au quai ('to the quay', as supposedly used by French-speaking dockers), or the initials of a railway freight agent called Obediah Kelly who is said to have written them on lading documents he had checked.\n\nThe oldest written references to 'OK' result from its adoption as a slogan by the Democratic party during the American Presidential election of 1840. Their candidate, President Martin Van Buren, was nicknamed 'Old Kinderhook' (after his birthplace in New York State), and his supporters formed the 'OK Club'.\n\nThis undoubtedly helped to popularize the term (though it did not get President Van Buren re-elected!). During the late 1830s there had been a brief but widespread craze in the US for humorous misspellings, and the form orl korrekt which was among them could explain the initials 'OK'. Such a theory has been supported by more than one distinguished American scholar, and is given in many dictionaries, including Oxford dictionaries.\n\nThe only other theory with at least a degree of plausibility is that the term originated among Black slaves of West African origin, and represents a word meaning 'all right, yes indeed' in various West African languages. Unfortunately, historical evidence enabling the origin of this expression to be finally and firmly established may be hard to unearth.
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isn't it scottish for 'alright'?  as in, 'are you alright?'