Antedatings for BBC List

[Wilson Gray]

On Jun 10, 2005, at 5:38 PM, Baker, John wrote:

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> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       "Baker, John" <JMB at STRADLEY.COM>
> Subject:      Re: FW:      Antedatings for BBC List
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>         In more formal contexts, especially in writing, I'd say that
> the major euphemism for condom historically has been "prophylactic,"
> but it has largely passed out of use in recent years.

In the days before The Pill, "prophylactic" was at least as common as
"rubber" among black males. I also occasionally heard "safe" used with
the meaning "condom." "Trojan" and "Ramses" were the most popular -
well, the most-often mentioned in locker-room stories, at least -
brands, but neither name was generalized.

-Wilson Gray

>
>         I'm under the impression that other terms have not really
> caught on.  In the song Little Red Corvette, Prince refers to "horses
> - Trojans, some of them used."  Some people do use Trojans as a
> generic term for condoms, but I've never heard anyone else refer to
> them as horses.  Sometimes they are called gloves, but that seems to
> be mainly so people can say "no glove no love."  Even "rubbers," the
> once ubiquitous term, seems to be less prevalent now as people just
> calmly say "condoms."
>
>         Did barbers really offer "something for the weekend," or was
> it just a cultural cliché that they did so?
>
> John Baker
>