Where did the slang "son of a gun" come from?

Answer 1

After sailors had crossed the Atlantic to the West Indies, they would take the native women on board the ship and have their way with them in between the cannons. Some of the women the sailors left behind would have boys, who were called sons between the guns.

Answer 2

Origin

There is dispute amongst etymologists about the origin of this phrase. As always, disputes only occur where there is no definitive evidence so, as you might guess, there is conflicting circumstantial evidence. I'll put the sources here and let you decide for yourself.

The two points of view are primarily these:

The phrase originated as 'son of a military man' (i.e. a gun). The most commonly repeated version in this strand is that the British Navy used to allow women to live on naval ships. Any child born on board who had uncertain paternity would be listed in the ship's log as 'son of a gun'. While it is attestable fact that, although the Royal navy had rules against it, they did turn a blind eye to women (wives or prostitutes) joining sailors on voyages, so this version has plausibility on its side. The sources for this point of view are:

- The Royal Navy Museum, who confirm that women sometimes travelled on their vessels during the age of sail.

- The Sailor's Workbook; William Henry Smyth, 1867. [son of a gun is] "An epithet conveying contempt in a slight degree, and originally applied to boys born afloat, when women were permitted to accompany their husbands at sea; one admiral declared he literally was thus cradled, under the breast of a gun-carriage”.

- Fighting Words, Christine Ammer, 1999- "A baby conceived during wartime. In World War I the term denoted the illegitimate offspring of servicemen."

- Jon Bee, a Dictionary of the Turf, 1823, ... means 'a soldier's bastard'.

Answer 3

Back with the British Navy, when they still used wooden-hulled ships, they would have prostitutes on board for long voyages. On occasion, one would get pregnant and give birth aboard ship. To help the labor along, a volley of cannon fire would be given. And, of course, since no sailor was supposed to be having such relations on board, they would say it was the "son of a gun".

Answer 4

"Gun" is slang for penis. Perhaps military in origin. Thus we have "banging" a girl and American soldiers dragging young Vietnamese girls into the woods for some "boom-boom-boom".

Answer 5

guy ne cology