Word for Word

Pornographic Etymology: Cunt

The Oxford American Dictionary (the American cousin of our great lexical authority, the Oxford English Dictionary) defines the word "cunt" (noun, vulgar slang) as 1) a woman's genitals; 2) a woman

The word "cunt" first appeared in the year 1230 as part of a street name: Gropecunt Lane--a thoroughfare in London where prostitutes conducted their business.

In 1390 Geoffrey Chaucer used the word "cunt" in The Miller's Tale (part of The Cantebury Tales):

"Pryvely he caught her by the queynte"
(In modern English: "Privately, he caught her by the cunt")

Parenthetically--if anyone is interested in reading some old school smut, Geoffrey Chaucer is your guy.

Some believe that Chaucer's use of the word "queynte" also invoked the word "quaint," forming what is known as a "double entendre." So the next time someone calls you a "cunt," they may, in fact, mean that you are simply "attractively unusual or old-fashioned."


Hey, what are you pointing at?

What's happening in Mongolia?

If this isn't hillarious, I don't know what is.

From The New York Times
October 6, 2006:

Genghis Khan Beer?
Mongolia Grimaces

ULAN BATOR, Mongolia, Oct. 5 (AP)--Mongolia's legislature on Thursday began debating a bill to regulate the use of the name Genghis Khan to prevent it from being comercially misused.

Since Mongolia emerged from the shadow of the Soviet Union in 1991, the name of the its legendary conqueror and revered national symbol has been used for a half-dozen commercial brands, including vodka and beer.

Under the proposed law, commerical use of the name would be granted only by the government, which would set fees for its licensing.

"We are not showing enough respect to Genghis Khan," said one lawmaker, E. Bat-Uul. "If today somebody produces toilet paper with Genghis Khan's name, we do not know what to do about it, as currently there is no law to regulate this issue."


A woman checks vodka bottles featuring an image of legendary Mongolian leader Genghis Khan at the vodka factory of Gem International Co. in Ulan Bator, the capital of Mongolia

Film Recommendation

I would like to recommend the documentary film Jesus Camp. It is a "must-see."



For more info, click here

To see the trailer, click here