Bindle

{{Short description|Sack stereotypically used by hobos}} {{this|the device used by hobos|other uses}} [[File:Hobos2.jpg|thumb|right|upright|Two hobos walking along railroad tracks after being put off a train. One is carrying a bindle.]]

A '''bindle''' is a small bag or sack used for carrying personal belongings.

Bindles are stereotypically depicted in American culture as a cloth bundle tied to the end of a stick and carried over the shoulder by hobos, especially in imagery of the Great Depression.<ref>{{cite web |title=bindle |url=https://www.oed.com/dictionary/bindle_n2?tab=factsheet#20535782 |website=Oxford English Dictionary |publisher=Oxford University Press |access-date=28 June 2024}}</ref> In this way, the weight of the burden is transferred to the shoulder, which allowed for a longer-lasting and more comfortable grip, which was especially useful with larger and heavier loads. One example of the stick-type bindle can be seen in the illustration entitled ''The Runaway'' created by Norman Rockwell for the cover of the September 20, 1958, edition of ''The Saturday Evening Post''.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Runaway (1958) by Norman Rockwell |url=http://www.artchive.com/artchive/R/rockwell/rockwell_runaway.jpg.html |access-date=May 30, 2023 |publisher=Artchive}}</ref>

In cartoons, the bindles' sacks usually have a polka-dot or bandanna design. Though bindles are practically gone, they are still widely seen in popular culture as a prevalent anachronism.

== History == A hobo who carried a bindle was known as a '''bindlestiff'''. According to James Blish in his novel ''A Life for the Stars'', a bindlestiff was specifically a hobo who had stolen another hobo's bindle, from the colloquialism ''stiff'', as in steal.{{page needed|date=May 2023}}

The term ''bindle'' may be an alteration of the term "bundle" or similarly descend from the German word ''Bündel'', meaning something wrapped up in a blanket and bound by cord for carrying (''cf.'' originally Middle Dutch ''bundel''), or have arisen as a portmanteau of ''bind'' and ''spindle''.<ref>{{cite web |title=Bindle Definition & Meaning |url=http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bindle |access-date=May 30, 2023 |website=Merriam-Webster}}</ref> It may also be from the Scottish dialectal ''bindle'' "cord or rope to bind things".<ref>{{cite web |title=Bindle Etymology |url=https://www.etymonline.com/search?q=bindle |access-date=July 21, 2023 |website=Online Etymology Dictionary}}</ref>

''Bindle'' is also a term used in forensics. It is the name for a piece of paper folded into an envelope or packet to hold trace evidence: hairs, fibers or powders.<ref>{{Citation |title=Evidence Packaging: A How-To Guide |date= |url=https://oag.ca.gov/sites/all/files/agweb/pdfs/cci/reference/evidence_collection.pdf |pages=32 |year= |access-date=May 30, 2023 |publisher=California Department of Justice Bureau of Forensic Services}}</ref> Similarly, ''bindle'' is sometimes used to describe a small package of powdered drugs.

==See also== * Carrying pole * Sarcina

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== {{Wiktionary}} * [http://mycrafts.com/diy/folding-a-paper-bindle-technique/ "Folding a Paper Bindle"], 2017, National Forensic Technology Training Center. * [https://www.dfs.virginia.gov/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/PAPER-EVIDENCE-FOLD-2014-08.pdf "Paper Evidence Fold"], 2014, VDFS, Virginia.

Category:Bags Category:Luggage Category:Forensic equipment