2007-02-17 00:50:35 · 2 answers · asked by carboncruncher 2 in Education & Reference ➔ Words & Wordplay
If you are talking about the slang for a-s-s, then it comes from Scots English. It was written ars.
2007-02-17 00:56:00 · answer #1 · answered by macruadhi 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
First used in the 1400s, "ar se" comes from Old English ærs "tail, rump" and from Proto-Germanic root "arsoz" meaning "anus" with many similar spellings in many other European languages. Up until the late 18th century it was a harmless word that referred to a donkey.
Some suggest the word play of Nick Bottom's transformation into a donkey in "A Midsummer Night's Dream" and a later age of Victorian propriety pushed this word into the impolite realm and made the word define the stupid or egotistical person we know today.
2007-02-18 15:47:05 · answer #2 · answered by D Piddy 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋