[thechat] Faggots (was: Recipe: Tom Yam Gai (Thai Hot n' Sour soup))

Chris Marsh chris at webbtech.co.uk
Wed Jan 8 10:58:09 CST 2003


> On 8 Jan 2003 at 17:30, Madhu Menon posted a message which said:
> > >He was responsible for the rebirth of 'British' cookery,
> ie lots of
> > >traditional recipies (faggots, stews, steamed puddings etc).
>
> > There's a traditional dish called "faggots"?
> > [raises eyebrow]
> > Oh my!
>
> Did your mother call herself "Mrs. Something"?  You need look
> it what "Mrs" stands for. You'll *really* oh-my *that* one.

"Mrs" is merely a contraction of "mistress", as in Master [Mr] Marsh and
Mistress [Mrs] Marsh. When this was in current usage it was merely an
expression of respect for a lady.

> A "faggot" is a bundle of twigs, sticks, or branches bunched
> together. Obviously, it's not too far to define tobacco
> bundled into a cigar or cigarette as a faggot. Of course,
> *anything* that gets inhaled into a mouth could end up
> getting called a faggot. Of course, there are no homosexual
> sex acts, so why the term "faggot" only gets applied to male
> homosexuals, not to all sexually-active males, is beyond me.

I can find no evidence that the use of the word "fag" as slang for a
cigarette is in any way related to the word "faggot", counter to my
previous assumptions.

"fag - sense of "drudgery" is 16c., apparently an alteration of flag in
its sense of "droop." This in turn may be related to the obsolete
fag-end (1613) "extreme end, loose piece," the source of British slang
fag "cigarette" (1888).

"faggot - 1279, from O.Fr. fagot "bundle of sticks," from It. faggotto,
dim. of V.L. *facus, from L. fascis "bundle of wood" (see fasces). Used
from 1591 through 19c. as a contemptuous term for "woman" (cf. baggage),
especially an old and unpleasant one, which probably is the source of
Amer.Eng. derogatory term for "male homosexual" (1914; shortened form
fag is from 1921). It may also be reinforced by Yiddish faygele
"homosexual," lit. "little bird;" and by Brit. university slang fag "boy
servant of an upperclassman" (with suggestions of "catamite"), from fag
(v.)."

http://www.geocities.com/etymonline/f1etym.htm

I have found plenty of support for the supposition that because
homosexuals were burnt to death [using faggots] throughout history the
term "faggot" was adopted to describe them. Pretty sick, huh?

As far as the foodstuff goes, you could do worse than check out "The
Good Faggot Guide", courtesy of Grorty Dick. It's fully illustrated,
dontchaknow...

http://www.brewinbooks.com/Birmingham%20files/faggottext.htm

Regards

Chris Marsh







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