Taboo Word Origins & Cross-Cultural Swearing

Taboo Word Etymologies and Grammar

• Proto- ইন্দো-European is the common ancestor of all Indo-European languages.
• Latin comes from the Indo-European Italic language branch.
• English comes from the Germanic branch of Indo-European.
• "Fuck" originates from the Germanic proto-Indo word "fuk-", meaning to rub back and forth, hit, or strike.
• A false origin theory suggests it comes from "fornication under consent of the king" or "pluck yew".
• Imperatives do not need to directly address the subject of a sentence to function within that sentence.
• "Fuck" can be a normal verb referring to sex.
• "Fuck" acts as an emphatic invective, but not as a normal verb.
• Emotive taboo words are used interchangeably despite semantic differences.
• Frigative substitution involves replacing historical religious expressions that have lost their emotional impact with words now considered more taboo.

Cross-Cultural Swearing

• Secret names hold power over a person in some cultures.
• In Mongolia, children may have bad names to mislead evil spirits.
• Names aren’t uttered after death in some cultures.
• Taboo topics vary by country.
  • Norwegian profanity often involves "devil/hell."
  • Dutch mortology focuses on "death/disease."
  • Quebec French profanity relates to the church.
  • Spanish profanity relates to family.
  • German profanity relates to anal/excrement.
• Word magic means uttering taboos inflict harm or cause bad luck.

L1 Swearing

• The acquisition timeline for swearing begins in toddlerhood with scatology.
• By the time someone is a young child, their lexicon expands to include slurs significantly.
• By the time someone is an older child, their lexicon expands to include obscenities significantly.
• Punishment may enhance the power of swear words, making them more memorable.

L1 vs. L2+ Swearing

• Findings by Delwaele in 2004, explore swearing in native (L1) versus second or subsequent languages (L2+).
• Swearing in L1 has a stronger emotional force due to childhood learning and emotional ties.
• L1 swearing often occurs in naturalistic settings, strengthening emotional connections.
• People prefer to swear in their L1 because it feels less risky.
• Swearing in L2 can lead to inappropriate usage and excessive swearing.
• Electrodermal skin conductance can measure the emotional impact of swearing and language association.

Swearing and the Brain

• The corpus callosum connects the two brain hemispheres.
• Contralateral control means the right side of the brain controls the left side of the body, and vice versa.
• Lateralization means each side of the brain has specialized functions.
  • The left hemisphere is analytical.
  • The right hemisphere is holistic.
• Split Brain refers to a person whose corpus callosum has been severed.
• Aphasia is language deficiency due to left hemisphere damage.
  • In Broca's aphasia, damage to the frontal lobe results in ungrammatical, abrupt sentences.
  • Wernicke's aphasia involves damage to the back lobe, resulting in coherent sentences with nonsensical semantics and syntax.
• The left hemisphere is responsible for grammar, propositional speech, and denotative language.
• The right hemisphere processes figurative language, metaphors, emotional connotations, and automatic speech.
• The limbic system regulates emotions and motivation.
• Basal ganglia control voluntary movements, while the amygdala processes emotions and maps them to memories.
• The hippocampus is also part of the limbic system.
• Tourette’s Syndrome is a neurological condition characterized by involuntary motor and vocal tics.
• Coprolalia is uncontrollable swearing occurring in 10-15% of those with tics.
  • Coprolalia involves linguistic and culturally specific traits, non linguistic traits, often involves an internal trigger and can disrupt and cause disorganization of speech.
• The limbic system's role in swearing is supported by memory tests showing better retention of taboo words when triggered by emotional responses.
• Electrodermal skin conductance tests reveal increased sweatiness during swearing.

Other Swearing Research

• Taboo Stroop tests show that people take longer to process the color of taboo words.
• Lalochezia is the relief from stress or pain experienced when swearing.
• Observer's paradox notes that observation alters the behavior of those being observed.

Socioswearing

• Boys swear more than girls at age 5.
• Both men and women use swear words to emphasize emotions or express anger.
• Women swear to express trust and intimacy.
• Men swear out of habit or expectation.

Social Factors Affecting Swearing

• Gendered slurs against women have a higher taboo rating.
• Those aged 15-24 swear the most.
• 15-16 year old high school dropouts swear the most.
• All ethnicities swear with "fuck" as the most common word.
• Blacks are more likely to use the word "shit."
• Reappropriation involves marginalized groups reclaiming slurs.

Censorship

• Censorship involves restricting taboo words institutionally and individually to prevent harm.
• Speech not protected by the First Amendment includes threatening, inciting violence, defaming, and libelous language.
• Speech posing an imminent danger is also not protected.
• Schenck v. US (1919) established restrictions during wartime if speech creates a clear and present danger.
• Fighting words, as defined in Chaplinsky vs. New Hampshire (1942), are unprotected if they inflict injury or incite fighting.
• Obscene material lacks First Amendment protection since 1868.
• The Miller v. California case outlines three conditions to determine obscenity.
  • Obscenity must relate purely to sex.
  • Obscenity must depict pooping offensively.
  • Obscenity must be patently offensive when taken holistically.

FCC- Federal Communication Commission

• The FCC regulates communication on radio, TV, wire, satellite, and cable.
• The FCC follows complaints and distributes fines to broadcasters involved with obscene or indecent content.
• Indecent material depicts or describes sexual or excretory organs or activities, and is patently offensive by community standards.
• A ‘safe harbor’ allows indecent material to be broadcasted between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m.
• In 1973, the FCC reported on George Carlin’s "Seven Words", granting complaint.
• Pacifica appealed, but SCOTUS favored the FCC in 1973 (5-4), setting a precedent.

FCC Timeline

• 1995: Parents Television Council Founded
• 2000: FCC received 111 complaints and issued $48K in fines
• 2001: G. Bush became president
• 2004: The FCC reversed the U2 decision following Janet Jackson’s halftime show nipple exposure, which drew 56,000 complaints.
• By the end of 2004, the FCC received over 1 million complaints, totaling $8 million in fines, largely due to the PTC.
• A new FCC policy banned any single vulgar words, including previous instances
• In 2009, SCOTUS sided with the FCC, claiming it had the right to curb free speech.
• In 2012, the Supreme Court overturned the FCC’s fines, deeming the changes unjust.

Campus Speech Codes

• Campus speech codes restrict speech that is legally protected.
• The "water buffalo" incident at UPenn (1993) involved a man who screamed "water buffalo" and was charged with violating the campus code for racism.
• A chilling effect occurs when people censor their speech due to fear of being fined, disrupting their First Amendment right.

Other Taboo Related Research

• Swearing can be used for social bonding and in-group purposes.
• The word for menstruation is found in Akan (Ghana).
• Terms related to the Catholic Church are found in Quebec French.
• The English word "fuck" is historically related to the Germanic branch of the Proto-Indo-European language family, meaning to strike, hit, rub back and forth.

L1 and L2 Swearing Studies

• Dewaele’s 2004 L2-L1 study examined reasons for preferring to swear in one’s L1.
  • Participants are less risky to swear in L1.
  • Swearing in L2 can lead to swearing inappropriately.
• Taboo words are less emotional in L2 because L1 words are learned in childhood and form stronger emotional attachments.

Swearing in Children

• Only 40% of 11-12 year olds' swearing lexicon is shared with adults.
• Children's first taboo words appear as soon as they start to speak.

Gender and Profanity

• Women express anger or negative emotions stronger with profanity versus men.
• Men typically have larger vocabularies of taboo words.
• Generally speaking, the less educated someone is, the more they tend to swear.

Racial Factors in Swearing

• Black people have the highest percentage of swearing being used for social in-group purposes.
• Reappropriation reclaims disparaging terms to remove their power.
• With the exception of the N-word, swearing by black people is determined as more offensive than swearing by white people.