Maverick

Origin

The term 'maverick' gallops straight out of the dusty plains of 19th-century Texas, thanks to an eccentric rancher named Samuel A. Maverick. Unlike his fellow cattlemen, Maverick held a peculiar belief: branding was cruel. So, he refused to mark his calves, letting them roam wild and free of any identifying stamp. Soon, any unbranded calf found wandering the range became known as 'a maverick' – one of Maverick's. From there, it wasn't long before the word leaped from the pasture to common speech, evolving into a vivid descriptor for any individual who, like those untamed cattle, stood out from the herd, unbranded by convention and fiercely independent.