2006-10-09 07:20:12 · 10 answers · asked by Angela O 3 in Social Science ➔ Other - Social Science
All curse words were started from just that. Pagan curses. You know like a witch put a curse on you? That was the belief in medieval times and the words have stuck.
Some of the words we call swear words are really just misinterpret ted words from other languages. The F word is from German and means to err. The c word (rhymes with hunt) comes from Celtic Irish and just means woman. other words the meanings have just changed over time.
So as you can see invented is less accurate than to say they have evolved from speech.
2006-10-09 07:32:56 · answer #1 · answered by my_iq_135 5 · 3⤊ 1⤋
Originally it begins as cursing. These are the words and phrases that you say in order to curse someone. This is sort of a supernatural/magical belief. I assume that none of us believe that saying "Go to hell" to someone will actually curse them (no matter how angrily it is said).
Since the Norman Conquest there has been this battle in the English language between the Anglo-Saxon words and the Romance words (that come from Latin, especially through French influence on the English language). The elites often despised the old Anglo-Saxon words that the common (or vulgar) folk used. The Victorians take this to its furthest point by deciding that these old words for sex and bodily functions are inappropriate. Instead they used the new medical terms or those that came into English from the Romance languages. There is nothing inherently wrong with the word itself, just a cultural construct.
In the late-twentieth century there was another shift. The words that became inappropriate were racial slurs and other euphemisms that truly insult someone because of some group of folk they are a part of. Unlike the old cuss words, these words do cause injury -- it is not just that they sound vulgar (or common).
2006-10-09 14:36:45 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 4⤊ 0⤋
I do know that **** used to stand for "For Un-lawful Carnal Knowledge" and they used to label child molester's and prostitutes in France with this acronym. Imagine walking around with that stamped on your for head.
If you were an archer in the middle ages, obviously your middle finger would be the most important finger (for pulling back and releasing of the bow). Some of them would cut of the middle fingers of their enemies so they would no longer be able to properly shoot. So as a taunt to those individuals, the archers would give them the middle finger in order to show their superiority.
2006-10-09 14:33:34 · answer #3 · answered by Chi1linVi1lain 2 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Fornication Under Consent of the King
some go back quite a while.
2006-10-09 14:29:53 · answer #4 · answered by JD 2 · 1⤊ 3⤋
Some guy named Human Nature. I forget his middle name.
2006-10-09 14:40:46 · answer #5 · answered by vanamont7 7 · 4⤊ 3⤋
who freakin knows, probably a dude describing the first lawyer.
2006-10-09 14:23:45 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 6⤋
a man
2006-10-09 14:35:46 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 6⤋
S.W.Earword
2006-10-09 14:42:46 · answer #8 · answered by pasky 2 · 1⤊ 6⤋
Wasn't me
2006-10-09 14:23:25 · answer #9 · answered by bubu 4 · 2⤊ 5⤋
how the hell does anyone know? probably prisoners started it all.
2006-10-09 14:27:36 · answer #10 · answered by cadaholic 7 · 1⤊ 9⤋