REGIONAL:
Many considered the Bogomils heretical and thus, said they approached sex in an "inverse way." In Hungarian, a related word still means a slur for homosexual men.
7. "Hooligan"
This phrase started appearing in London newspaper around 1898. The Oxford Online Dictionary speculates it evolved from the fictional surname, "Houlihan," included in a popular pub song about a rowdy Irish family.
Other sources, like Clarence Rook's book, "The Hooligan Nights," claim that Patrick Houlihan actually existed. He was a bouncer and a thief in Ireland.
Whatever the case, somewhere an Irish family landed a bad rap. Most notably, the term evolved into "football hooliganism," destructive behavior from European football (but really, soccer) fans, many of them Irish.
8. "Eskimo"
"Eskimo" comes from the same Danish word borrowed from Algonquin "ashkimeq," which literally means "eaters of raw meat." Other etymological research suggests it could mean "snowshoe-netter" too.
Either way, when we refer to an entire group of people by their perceived behaviors, we trivialize their existence and culture. Let's start using the proper term: Inuit.
9. "Sold down the river"
Today, if someone "sells you down the river," he or she betrays or cheats you. But the phrase has a much darker and more literal meaning.
During slavery in the U.S., masters in the North often sold their misbehaving slaves, sending them down the Mississippi river to plantations in Mississippi, where conditions were much harsher.
10. "Eenie meenie miney moe"
This phrase comes from a large children's rhyme:
Eenie, meenie, miney, moe / Catch a tiger by the toe / If he hollers let him go / Eenie, meenie miney, moe
This modern, unoffensive version comes from a similar, older one, where n***er replaces tiger. Rudyard Kipling mentions it as a "counting-out song" (basically a way for kids to eliminate candidates for being "It" in hide-and-seek) in "Land And Sea Tales For Scouts And Guides."
11. "Hip hip hooray!"
Though steeped in controversy, this first part of this phrase might relate to the Hep Hep Riots — anti-Semitic demonstrations started in Germany in the 19th century. Nazis reportedly cheered "hep hep" as they forced Jews from their homes across Europe.
"Hep" is likely an acronym for "Hierosolyma est perdita" which means "Jerusalem has fallen" in Latin. The Crusaders may have used this as a battle cry, although little proof exists. Or German shepherds or hunters may have used "hep hep" as a traditional command to rally trained dogs.
Just to be safe, avoid the first two words. "Hooray" conveys just as much merriment as the full version and comes from hurrah, a version of huzzah, a "sailor's shout of exaltation."
Bonus: "Rule of thumb"
No, this phrase didn't originate in some misogynistic judge's chambers. But the idea has permeated etymological discussions so often, we had to debunk it.
For example, The Telegraph reported just this year that Sir Francis Buller ruled in 1886 that a man could beat his wife with a stick no thicker than his thumb, which thus created the popular, and sexist, idiom.
But way back in 1998, wordsmith William Safire told a different story in The New York Times. He cites "rule of thumb" as early as 1692 and then again, as an established proverb in 1721.
Buller did, however, make a similar comment much later in history. Someone should have knocked some sense into him — preferably with a stick much wider than a thumb.
Read more: https://www.businessinsider.com/offensive-phrases-that-people-still-use-2013-11#ixzz2kQ7XcuL5
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