I was reminded by the erudite responses to my mention of the late Lord Chancellor (now Saint) Thomas More that as a London lad I was always fascinated by the ingenuity and wit of so much of the rhyming slang that I heard day by day. One word puzzled me for years: when I was on drinking terms with quite a few police officers 'tom' made a regular appearance to refer to a prostitute, and I was puzzled, because I thought that the connection was with a tom, or male, cat. Then the penny dropped. D'oh!
I had to google it. Looks like there are several theories: http://www.guardian.co.uk/notesandqueries/query/0,5753,-26198,00.html
ReplyDeleteIn similar vein, what's the definitive origin of 'rozzer' for policeman? 'Twas commom parlance decades ago (in London, at least) but seems barely heard nowadays
ReplyDeleteFor those of us across the pond, would you mind filling in the blanks?
ReplyDeleteOld Tom brand of gin? Barrels labeled thus were common in old pubs.
ReplyDeleteI guess the connection is Tom as in Thomas More, but why should he be associated with prostitutes?
ReplyDeleteMike
Tom - Thomas More - Whore (I imagine).
DeleteRhyming slang which, depending on whose account you believe, was either Georgian costermongers' patois, or Victorian thieves' code, or an invention of the 19th century equivalent of the London Tourist Board...
It's been out-of-print for some years, sadly, but if you can find it second-hand, by far the funniest primer is "Fletcher's Book of Rhyming Slang" by the late but unsurpassed Ronnie Barker, which contains the full version of the sermon by the vicar of St. Cain and Abel, Hampstead Heath.
Which word that starts with w rhymes with More?
DeleteAnd speaking of the police, where does "Old Bill" come from? More generally, I could spend a lifetime ferreting around in the English language; it's such a rich vein.
ReplyDeleteOld Bill: unknown per OED. There are at least a dozen competing theories, according to the Met Police museum.
ReplyDeleteRozzer: unknown per OED. One suggestion is that it is early Polari dating back to the 18th century, and hence unwritten; may relate to Robert, where 'Robber' would obviously not have worked. However, Rozzer Peeler is unrecorded.
Copper: Probably one who cops. To cop has a meaning to catch (OED).
Dicky Bird's suggestion is elegant: Bill and Coo, Boys in Blue.
ReplyDeleteI have always believed that the origin if "Old Bill" was a reference to a much loved and respected village policeman named William but always referred to as "Old Bill".
ReplyDeleteAnd there was me thinking it was: -
ReplyDeleteTom (foolery) - jewellery !!
Does that mean that furry creature that sleeps on my bed every night is a pro...?
ReplyDeleteWar?
ReplyDeleteRather than the OED, try looking in Partridge. I haven't got time at the moment to look these various words up in my copy, but it contains a lot of rhyming slang, as well as numerous colloquialisms, idiomatic expressions, etc.
ReplyDelete