Origins of Bad Words: Part 1

According to a recent poll from LinkedIn, nearly 30% of respondents swear at work “constantly.” An additional 42% said they were “comfortable” cursing at their workplace. The remaining 28% were not comfortable cursing at work. Nonetheless, we’re all adults here. If we use a word, we might as well know its etymology.

Curse words naturally attract urban legends and classroom lore.

You might have heard it is an acronym for manure or something similar. I will not debunk those false narratives. Let’s cut to the truth. Or at least what etymologists believe based on etymological evidence.

$#it can trace its origins to 6,000 years ago!

According to Mark Forsyth’s fantastic book The Etymologicon, $#it can trace its origins to 4,000 B.C. That makes it 6,000 years old. Its etymology is older than the pyramids of Giza (estimated to be built around 2,500 B.C.). It’s older than the world’s oldest religion. Hinduism traces its roots to around 2,000 B.C.

S#!t evolved from the middle English (1,150 - 1450 A.D.) word Schitte. It meant excrement as it does today. Schitte grew from the Old English (1,150 - 450 A.D.) word Scitan, still referring to feces. Scitan derives from the Proto-Germanic word skit. Proto-germanic refers to the earliest traces of the German language around 500 B.C. Or during the Nordic bronze age.

We can go even further.

Skit comes from the Proto-Indo-European (4,500 - 2,500 B.C.) word Skhei. Skhei means to separate. There are a few modern English words that can trace themselves to Skhei. It was most likely not used as a curse. However, it is believed that Skhei became associated with fecal matter because we separate ourselves from it.

Do me a favor.

Next time you use this curse, for whatever reason, imagine a prehistoric person living 6,000 years ago. There was no written language to read, no money to worry about. They farmed, hunted, and survived. Yet, as the swear leaves your lips, know you are connected to those ancient people through language.