Learn English – the etymology of “yonks”

etymologyorigin-unknown

How did we come to say "yonks" meaning a long period of time?

"I haven't been to the cinema in yonks."

Etymonline has nothing and Oxford dictionaries has:

noun:
British informal:
a very long time:
I haven’t seen him for yonks

1960s: origin unknown; perhaps related to donkey's years (see donkey)

If it has indeed spawned from "donkey's years", when and whereso?

Best Answer

The OED says the origin of yonks is unknown and has it from 1968 in the Daily Mail:

I rang singer Julie Driscoll... She said: ‘I haven't heard from you for yonks.’

The Shorter Slang Dictionary (Partridge, Beale, Fergusson, 1994) agrees it's from the 1960s and suggests:

Probably from years, perhaps influenced by donkey’s years.

Donkey's years (also donkeys' years) is a play on "donkey's ears" which are long, therefore a long time. The OED has it from 1916 but I found an earlier example in the Australian Trove newspaper archive in "THE WAISTCOAT MAKER" (1905, October 24), West Gippsland Gazette:

'Thank 'heaven fer that,' I says. 'I want to git back to work. It seems donkeys' years to me.'

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