Weird words

[giraffe]

What is a toe-rag? I was just reading the today I've been.... thread about minor crimes in various neighbourhoods and the words Toe rag came to mind. Why would toes need rags? Or perhaps it's tow rag, a bit like a tow rope? Where did that expression come from?

Any daft ideas as to the origin of it? (Or sensible ones if you know )

Anybody else got weird words with no apparent origin?

[Bunnylump]

Good question. Which I can't answer, even though I tried looking it up in my dictionary of word origins. That did, however tell me this about TOE:
Many European languages use the same word for finger and toe, e.g. Russian and Polish Palec.

Oh and GIRAFFE: Did you know that in the 16th century the giraffe was called a CAMELOPARD?
(Cross between a camel and a leopard!)

[giraffe]

I thought that was the technical term still!

[Biscuit]

I just found this on the www

The original form — in the nineteenth century — was toe rag. It referred to the strips of cloth that convicts or tramps wrapped around their feet as an inadequate substitute for socks. The first recorded use is by J F Mortlock in his Experiences of a Convict of 1864: “Stockings being unknown, some luxurious men wrapped round their feet a piece of old shirting, called, in language more expressive than elegant, a ‘toe-rag’ ”. It didn’t take long to become a term of abuse — in 1875 a book on British circus life said that “Toe rags is another expression of contempt ... used ... chiefly by the lower grades of circus men, and the acrobats who stroll about the country, performing at fairs”.

Biscuit

[giraffe]

Ah so it's like calling someone a "hoodie" because they wear one. It all makes sense now.

[Bunnylump]

Yeah, but then surely you'd have to be called a shortie if you wore shorts!!

[giraffe]

I'd be called lots of things if I wore shorts in public!

[MBH]

Nice find Biscuit - I always knew of the term as someone virtually worthless, and figured it was the humanised version of a Tinker's Dam (that which one "Couldn't give.."). I could imagine for an average poor person a bought shirt over time becoming a vest, then maybe a section becoming a headscarf until finally it has no further use except as Toe Rags. Last thing before they get discarded.

[Biscuit]

this reminds me of my childhood. Mum even made my brother a pair of trousers out the tarten lining of a raincoat. and looking at the photos I can see mum in a dress, me in a dress of the same material and finally me in swimming costume of the same material. Even today we send all our scape material to work to use as cleaning rags etc and our empty coffee jars to store woodglue.

young people think recycling is a new issue. How old do i sound

[clvrlad]

How old do i sound

woudnt knoow but you type very young :-p

[giraffe]

I threw a T shirt with a hole in it out earlier and felt guilty because I didn't chop it up to use for dusters. I've been wearing it with the hole for a couple of years, so it didn't owe me much.

[clvrlad]

youll be asking what shoddy and mungo is next...

btw im a dewsbury lad so i know allready
so who can define them both without looking them up (test your General Ledge )

[fernando]

I didn't know but I was so curious that I had to look it up. You learn something new every day.

[maisie ladybird]

Well, I'm originally from Derbyshire and we use shoddy to mean poor workmanship or something that doesn't look up to scratch. But no idea what mungo means.

[Looby]

I knew shoddy but hadn't come across mungo before

[fernando]

I might be wrong but I think it is more of a term with the two words rather than seperate definitions but yes I too know what shoddy means and it springs to mind when I look at the state of my magazine

[MBH]

How old do i sound

woudnt knoow but you type very young :-p

Good answer clvrlad - you're learning

[clvrlad]

well ok just for the record they are two different words
shoddy is a method of reclaiming used wool (clothes etc)
they grind it up and mix it with fresh wool giving a hard wearing wool cloth
mungo is a related term which uses off cuts which hasnt been used in a similar process but producing a much higher quality of cloth (the developer of shoddy couldnt use the off cuts his nephews developed mungo)
basically because of the Napoleonic wars and the trade embargoes britain was struggling to get enough wool for our production needs and so this was a response to make cheap wool which need less new wool to produce and was of a hardwearing construct
it is usually discussed as "shoddy and mungo" because the process and suppliers were the either the same or very similar

the slang use of shoddy comes from the poor quality materials used in this mass produced product so things that were made of poor quality picked up the shoddy name and its expanded a bit since

:-p who else wants to "present" some weird words

[Bunnylump]

I particularly like Peely Wally, which my OH uses occasionally when he lapses back into being a Scot!! It means pale, washed out.

[Laura]

we had a scottish Brownie Leader a while ago, who, when we took the Brownies away and they started moaning about this and that used to say 'oh, are you feeling a bit peely wally?', and they'd just look at her, completely baffled, and go, 'er, yeah.' In a pathetic sort of voice. But it was quite obvious they didn't have a clue what she meant.

it was also rather amusing when we had to translate for them. If someone spilt something, she'd get stressed and shout at them to get a pail and a cloth, and they had no idea what a pail was.