the new taboo

[Arnold Zwicky]

sam clements:
 >I think the word "cunt," used to describe a woman, is still pretty
 >taboo in the US.  Evidently, from a discussion over at the
 >StraightDope
 >http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=185861&highli
 >ght=cunt, the word has started to be used in England in reference to
 >a male.  The UK posters suggest that it is no worse than calling a
 >guy a wanker, at least in some circles.

Monty Python's "man who couldn't say the letter C" sketch (he says B
instead, as in Beble Bollege, Oxford) ends with the bloke saying,
under his breath, "silly bunt".  to another man, i think, but i'm
unable to find it in my sources right now.

certainly i heard this usage in the UK thirty years ago.  it's the
sort of thing a yank like me would notice.

arnold (zwicky at csli.stanford.edu)