up the wazoo/kazoo

[Douglas G. Wilson]

>RHDHAS lists "kazoo" to mean "anus" from 1965.  I tend to think, at least
>in the US, that the term "wazoo" has, in the last 10-20 years,  overtaken
>"kazoo" in phrases such as "blow it out your wazoo" and "up your wazoo."

In my own experience (not necessarily representative) "wazoo" was more
prevalent than "kazoo" for "anus" all along ... that's since ca. 1965.
There is also "gazoo" (in HDAS), and there are many variants (e.g., one
acquaintance uses "[up the] gazooby").

>Along with "wazoo" we would also like to know about the use of "...out
>your ying/yang."

I've heard this since the 1970's. Chapman's dictionary shows 1960's, and
shows "ying-yang" for "penis" as well as "anus". I've heard both, and I've
also heard "wazoo" used for "penis". I think all of these terms (also
"flimflam", "ding-dong", etc., in similar use) are basically
pseudo-euphemisms equivalent to "thingamajig" or "whatsis" or "dingus" or
"whangdoodle" (which is the likely ancestor of "wang" = "penis" IMHO). A
word which means "nameless organ" can easily be transferred from "penis" to
"anus", and MAYBE this is what happened to "kazoo" (originally a tubular
musical instrument). [I do NOT believe "ying-yang" is a direct descendent
of Chinese "yin-yang", nor a calque.]

-- Doug Wilson