popo?

[Peter A. McGraw]

--On Tuesday, April 16, 2002 9:37 AM -0400 Benjamin Fortson <fortson at FAS.HARVARD.EDU> wrote:

>> <<Großformatig lockt das Weib. An sich zeigt Elke uns ihre Frontansicht.
>> Aber dabei bleibt es nicht. Denn mit dem Klick kommt der Kick. Kaum wird
>> einem die Kehrtwende gewahr, da zeigt sie ihren Popo bar.>>
>>
>> So Elke shows her front side and then her popo ... I suppose the "bar"
>> might could mean "bare" (like in "barfuß"), but is this normal German? Or
>> is this a double-entendre or pun or whatever? Maybe somebody who is
>> familiar with German can tell me/us.
>
> It must mean what you think (i.e. bar = 'bare, naked'). If it were a
> "butt-bar" (whatever that might be) it would have to be "ihre (fem.!)
> Popobar" or "Popo-Bar". That sounds weird in any language, though...
> So "bar" is an adverbial secondary predication in "da zeigt sie ihren Popo
> bar".
>
> Ben

Correct.  The primary meaning of the adjective "bar" today refers to money:
cash as opposed to other forms of payment.  The big Duden confirms my sense
that a meaning 'naked' is now archaic.  It survives in "barfuss" 'barefoot'
(which is not in the least archaic), and the example under discussion shows
that the older meaning is still clear enough, making the word still available for a rhyme if needed, especially a humorous one.

The Duden gives "Popo" as a reduplicated form of "Po," deriving it from children's language, then turns around and says Po is a short form for Popo.  It cites Latin "podex" as the source.

Peter Mc.

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                               Peter A. McGraw
                   Linfield College   *   McMinnville, OR
                            pmcgraw at linfield.edu