The Finger/the birdbi

[Baker, John]

        Although the bird itself, I understand, is quite old, the OED takes
this meaning of "bird" back only to 1968 - 1970 (which is shortly before I
first heard the "finger" so called).  So:  Which came first, the bird or the
perch?

John Baker


> -----Original Message-----
> From: Dennis R. Preston [SMTP:preston at PILOT.MSU.EDU]
> Sent: Tuesday, January 22, 2002 6:36 PM
> To:   ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
> Subject:      Re: The Finger/the birdbi
>
> Good one Paul! Not just Chicago, Louisville too. There's that dang bird!
>
> dInIs
>
>
>
> >Does anyone else remember the fifties, in Chicago, when, when giving the
> >"finger", it was common to say, "Perch on this"?   Thereby neatly tying
> >together bird and finger.