[Ads-l] Holy cow! 1905; "by the holy cow" 1826

[Peter Reitan]

Both of those references arenoted in my post about the expression.

The expression apoears to have bee popularized among baseball players avoiding violations of the rules of decorum.

https://esnpc.blogspot.com/2014/05/holy-cow-hinduism-and-baseball.html<https://esnpc.blogspot.com/2014/05/holy-cow-hinduism-and-baseball.html?m=1>

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From: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU> on behalf of Stephen Goranson <goranson at DUKE.EDU>
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Subject: Holy cow! 1905; "by the holy cow" 1826

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Subject:      Holy cow! 1905; "by the holy cow" 1826
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1905, Nov. 24, Fri. Minneapolis Journal, 24/1-2, newspapers.com.
[start] A lover of the cow writes to this column to protest against a certa=
in variety of Hindoo oath having to do with the vain use of the name of the=
 milk producer. There is profane exclamations, "holy cow! " and, "By the st=
omach of the eternal cow!" These are Hindoo cuss words of great fierceness =
and antiquity and probably correspond to the American farmer's hostile inve=
ctive, "by hen." Then there's grandma's blasphemy in times of great stress:=
 "Cat's foot!" [end]

1826,  January to March. The Oriental Herald and Journal of General Literat=
ure, Pandurang Hari..., London, vol. VIII, 74. Google books.
[start] The Musulman swears by "Allah," and the Hindoo by "the holy cow;" [=
end]

1826. Pandurang Hari, Or, Memoirs of a Hindoo, by William Browne Hockley, L=
ondon, I:307 gb.
[start] I heard him swear by the holy cow he would have my life [end]

sg

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