Etymological Myths and Compound Etymologies in Rhyming Slang

Abstract

Knowledge of how rhyming slang works has often led scholars and laypeople to assume, without a shred of evidence, that many words of unknown derivation have their origins in this form of slang. Some of these assumptions are based on the premise that, if two synonymous words or phrases rhyme, one of them must derive from the other, while others hinge on the supposed existence of a full form whose second element helps unravel the puzzle. This tendency to folk-etymologise by resorting to rhyme is also reflected in many terms resulting from a conflation of a non-rhyming slang word and an underlying rhyme, the former usually being regarded as an elliptical version of the full rhyming slang term, rather than one of its etymons. Drawing on data from a range of primary and secondary sources, this article examines the inner workings of a number of false but widely entertained rhyming slang etymologies and shows how some of the mechanisms that triggered them have long been used in the creation of genuine folk-etymological elaborations.

A bit o’ footy rabbit: Some notes on football rhyming slang

“…Other than its inclusion in Wilkes (2004), where lollipop stick is glossed as 'quick / trick' (two separate uses for the price of one, neither of which is supported by examples, citations or references to sources), the only use, or rather mention, of this form I know of is precisely as an explanation (e. g. Dent 2003: 53;Dalzell/Victor 2006) of the origin of lollipop. And that in itself does not prove anythingexcept that RS is a hot favourite when it comes to etymologising (see Lillo 2018). Most revealingly, not only does the word's putative inventor, former player and manager Ron "Big Ron" Atkinson, 9 not acknowledge that origin, but among the many other terms and phrases he introduced into the football vernacular while working as a commentator (little eyebrows 'a glancing header', Hollywood ball 'a long-range pass', etc.…”

“…This theme is elaborated upon inLillo (2018). 8 The earliest occurrence of nutmegging (as a verb and gerund) I have discovered is also in Rodney Marsh's Shooting to the Top: "As for the business of nut-megging, it is something I am always looking for a chance to pull off.…”