This word derives from the Italian bimbo, derived from bambino (Italian for child), a masculine-gender term that means (male) baby or very young (male) child (its feminine equivalent is bimba).
Its first usage in English was for stupid men; it now is understood to mean a woman unless modified as male bimbo, himbo, or mimbo. Some still prefer the explicitly female variant, bimbette, which has also entered The American Heritage Dictionary. Others use bimbette for a younger bimbo, because the suffix -ette signifies a smaller version, as in French.
Like so many words the meaning of 'bimbo' changed over time. According to the book Flappers 2 Rappers by Tom Dalzell, "bimbo" meant "great person" in the 1920s'. It wasn't until the 30s' that it was even associated with females. Often times songs like "My Little Bimbo Down on the Bamboo Isle" (1920) are characterized as being blatantly sexist when in reality the listener is simply ignorant of the original meaning of the words used in the lyrics.
