hippen
A baby's cloth diaper.
Also called hippin, hippens, hippin's.
Updated September 24, 2026
hippen pronunciation
/HIP-un/
Meaning
Old mountain word for a diaper, the cloth kind wrapped around a baby's hips. Grandmas and midwives said hippens the way town talk says diapers. You packed a stack of them when you hauled a baby over to somebody's house.
How folks use it
- “Don't forget the baby's hippens when you bring her over.”
- “She had a line of hippens drying on the porch rail.”
Origin and etymology
From Scots and northern English hippin/hippen, built on "hip" plus an ending, for a napkin wrapped around an infant's hips. Scotch-Irish settlers carried it into Appalachia and the South Midland. Merriam-Webster still lists it as dialect for a baby's diaper.
Frequently asked questions
Does hippen mean hidden?
No. That is a mix-up. Hippen means diaper.