Earlier Known Usage of "Sod"

[Jonathan Lighter]

The Old Bailey Online has a printed "sod------l" (for "sodomitical") from so early as 1759, with another from 1785:

  http://www.oldbaileyonline.org/facsimiles/1750s/175907170008.html

  http://www.oldbaileyonline.org/facsimiles/1780s/178512140117.html

  This printing practice (if widespread) might have encouraged shortening in speech.  Here is the earliest Old Bailey ex., from 1814 :

  http://www.oldbaileyonline.org/facsimiles/1810s/181407060006.html

  "_A_....The other man, I saw the blow coming, I stooped my head, and in stooping
I fell. Ashton directly collared me; he called me a b - y sod, and said he would take me to the guard-house.
  "_Q._ He called you a sod; did you know what he meaned by that expression - _A_. I know now; I did not at that time. He said he would take me to the guard-house."

  "Bloody" was apparently more offensive than "sod."

  JL

Fred Shapiro <fred.shapiro at YALE.EDU> wrote:

  ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
Sender: American Dialect Society
Poster: Fred Shapiro
Subject: Earlier Known Usage of "Sod"
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Question for Jonathon Green, Jon Lighter, etc.: The OED's first use for
_sod_ 'sodomite' is dated c1855. Has anyone found earlier evidence than
this?

Fred Shapiro


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Fred R. Shapiro Editor
Associate Librarian for Collections and YALE BOOK OF QUOTATIONS
Access and Lecturer in Legal Research Yale University Press
Yale Law School ISBN 0300107986
e-mail: fred.shapiro at yale.edu http://quotationdictionary.com
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