In my books, I tend to let my characters be realistic, hence their use of bad language on occasion. Readers sometimes think that expletives are more modern, but they are in fact, quite old. Now, some of the words I’ve used aren’t in written documents until the later medieval days, and there is no way to know just how long they were used before recorded. So your words for this week...
- The F-word—first written documentation in the 1400’s, so in essence could be much older than that.
- Shite – this is where the word shit comes from. It actually means excrement. Has been around since before 1508 when it was first documented to be used. Seen as a very taboo word however.
- Zounds – Actually a variation of God’s Wounds.
- Damn – from the late 13th century.
- Mo creach – a Gaelic exclamation, meaning Good Heavens.
- Bite Your Thumb -- Basically this is a gesture much like the finger or in words - F-You
So, next time you stub your toe on the coffee table, shout ZOUNDS! It may be a fun topic of conversation :)
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