the jig is up

[Laurence Horn]

At 5:45 PM -0400 4/12/11, Jonathan Lighter wrote:
>The "pseudo-racist origin" (or the "racist pseudo-origin") is that the
>phrase began during  lynchings.  Once the hanging was underway, whites in
>the area would smirk, "The jig is up!"
>
>According to one or two of my undergraduate classmates at NYU in 1970-71.
>I've encountered the story since then too.
>
>JL

Sounds a lot like the "picnic" etymythology, exploded by snopes.com
(inter al.) at http://www.snopes.com/language/offense/picnic.asp

LH

>On Tue, Apr 12, 2011 at 5:11 PM, victor steinbok <aardvark66 at gmail.com>wrote:
>
>>  ---------------------- Information from the mail header
>>  -----------------------
>>  Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>>  Poster:       victor steinbok <aardvark66 at GMAIL.COM>
>>  Subject:      Re: the jig is up
>>
>>
>>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>>  Pseudo-racist? In mid-1700s? You don't say!
>>
>>  Well, actually, I missed that discussion. But I did find it.
>>
>>  it's from Sep 18, 2007 and Arnold Zwicky, in response, included the
>>  link to the CBC page I brought up earlier.
>>
>>  Jon had added, at the time:
>>
>>  > Jig" was often spelled "gig" in the 17th C.
>>  >
>>  > So...well...just an observation.
>>
>>  This is true, although it was quite a jumble with j/i/g in front and
>>  single or double -g at the end. But would it be fair to say that they
>>  were all /pronounced/ the same way, unlike "gig" today? (seems to be
>>  the point of Arnold's remark within that thread as well, and Charlie's
>>  point above)
>>
>>  Now, for the "pseudo-racist" origins, I just don't see it. "Jig" as
>>  performance and dance goes deep into the 18th century and likely
>>  earlier--OED has the dance to 1560. The only records in dictionaries
>>  to racially-charged "jig" and "jigaboo" are all from the 20th century.
>>  So there may be avoidance /now/ because of assumed (but incorrect)
>>  association, but I found no "pseudo-racist" origins.
>>
>>  Of course, if there is some 16th-18th century material that I missed,
>>  I'll be glad to be educated on the subject. Yeah, maybe there is some
>>  ESA like "niggardly", but I have not seen or heard it--perhaps I'm
>>  just unaware.
>>
>>  VS-)
>>
>>  On Tue, Apr 12, 2011 at 4:01 PM, Jonathan Lighter
>>  <wuxxmupp2000 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>  >
>>  > We've discussed the pseudo-racist origin of the "the jig is up."
>>  >
>>  > By sheer coincidence, two young whippersnapper professionals in their
>>  '40s
>>  > were incredulous on Saturday when the phrase arose and I stupidly
>>  > explained that the "usual" version was "The jig is up."
>>  >
>>  > They insisted that "gig" was correct, because (get ready) "What's 'jig'
>>  > mean? A jigsaw? What sense does that make?" My explanation that a "jig"
>>  was
>>  > a kind of dance was greeted with suspicion. "Nobody says, 'The  dance is
>>  > up.' They say 'The dance is over.'"
>>  >
>>  > Kids today.
>>  >
>>  >  JL
>>
>>   ------------------------------------------------------------
>>  The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>>
>
>
>
>--
>"If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."
>
>------------------------------------------------------------
>The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org