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<blockquote type="cite" cite>We've discussed this Britishism before,
but this comes from today's New York<br>
Observer. What are the odds it's true?<br>
</blockquote>
<blockquote type="cite"
cite>http://www.observer.com/pages/simon.asp<br>
<br>
"I recently found out the origin of the word naff. Now widely
used in the U.K. to<br>
mean "a depressing lack of style," naff was originally a
gay slang acronym for "Not<br>
Available For Fucking," i.e., "straight" (i.e.,
"dreary"). Naff is a great word with no<br>
American translation. Remember, tacky means "cheap or
glitzy," whereas naff is about<br>
stylistic shortcomings which are horrifyingly average and
pathetically un-groovy. Use<br>
the word naff and become a connoisseur of naff. After all, it is a
vanishing<br>
commodity"<br>
<br>
--</blockquote>
<blockquote type="cite" cite>Grant Barrett</blockquote>
<div><br></div>
<div>Looks to me like another candidate for the pseudo-acronym
files. Is there any evidence for this derivation? Might
as well opt (to take a few random possibilities suggested by
google.com) for the "National Association For Fathers", the
"North Alabama Fishing Forum", or the "North Atlantic
Folk Festival". OK, pretty unlikely, but I don't see the
proposed source as any more plausible. "Naff" doesn't
appear in Bruce Rodgers's<i> Gay Talk,</i> one of the standard
lexicons of gay slang, and and while at least one dictionary of
polari/parlare, the now evanescent British "secret" gay
lingo includes the above etymology, it also derives "camp"
as an acronym for Known As Male Prostitute, so that's not terribly
convincing. The much more authoritative polari lexicon at
http://www.nz.com/NZ/Queer/Polari/polari<span
></span>.html, compiled by Hugh Young, provides "Not Available
For Fucking" along with "Normal As Fuck" and
"Naffuckinggood" as dubious sources and comments
"acronyms probably back-formed". Indeed. Since
it does appear that<i> naff</i> may have (not did, but may have)
originated in polari/British gay slangI'll cross-post this query on
OUTiL and see if anyone there has a more likely story.</div>
<div><br></div>
<div>As for the standard sources, AHD4 has<i> naff</i> as "of
unknown origin", the OED refers to related entries in the
English Dialect Dictionary (naffhead, naffy, naffin) and Scots<i>
naffy</i> as an analogous term of contempt, but also has "origin
unknown". Farmer & Henley has no listing for<i>
naff </i> or<i> naffy</i> but has one for<i> naf: </i>
(back-slang [from<i> fan(ny)</i>]) 'the female pudendum'.
I'd wager that's unrelated too. </div>
<div><br></div>
<div>The OED's definition for naff is</div>
<div><br></div>
<div>Unfashionable, outmoded, or vulgar; unselfconsciously lacking
style, socially inept; also, worthless, faulty, `dud'</div>
<div><br></div>
<div>larry </div>
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