Okay, I need your help!

[Guest]

I'm developing a period piece story set in Victorian America. I need to know common "slang" terms for various things like breasts, penis, vagina, and even having sex/making love.

If anyone knows of any, please respond to this thread! Thank you.

 

[peterpan]

The only Victorian I know is 'lower extremities' to avoid saying something as crude as 'legs'



dunno if this helps.. But I tried searching under Victorian Slang and Victorian Euphemism and found this random junk:

http://www.tlucretius.net/Sophie/Castle/victorian_slang.html

Tipping the Velvet" is a Victorian euphemism for cunnilingus

Marsh, Joss Word Crimes: Blasphemy, Culture, and Literature in Nineteenth-Century England. viii, 354 p., 22 halftones. 1998

Boston Marriage': barbs beneath Victorian propriety. ... Their "Boston marriage"
(a euphemism for a committed female relationship) is in trouble..
----

Hmmm... a lot of references to Victorian Euphemism, each with a single example but I could not find a list of victorian euphemisms

 

[Guest]

dunno if this helps.. But I tried searching under Victorian Slang and Victorian Euphemism and found this random junk:

You found more than I did. Thank you.

 

[Screaming Grace]

I'm developing a period piece story set in Victorian America. I need to know common "slang" terms for various things like breasts, penis, vagina, and even having sex/making love.

If anyone knows of any, please respond to this thread! Thank you.

I am not sure this will help but I do hope so.

http://www.georgetown.edu/labyrinth/library/oe/oe.html

http://www.victorianlondon.org/

http://landow.stg.brown.edu/victorian/vn/victor4.html

 

[pop_54]

Hi

Hi BlessedBe, don’t know how much help I can be, I’m old but not that bloody old.

I think you’ll find a lot of English slang words would have been in use in certain parts of US in Victorian times, but in other parts American English and other foreign slang words would have been developing with totally different meanings and phrases.

In the UK sex and sexual slang would not have been mentioned in public much among the Gentry, but would be very coarse in private.
The ‘unmentionable’ would have been a common phrase to describe sexual activity.
Rape, was ‘A fate worse than death’ to polite society.

Some old slang words that are still in use by older folks and probably stem from Victorian times are:

‘Corey’ (pronounced Cor-ee), ‘Knob or Knob-end’ ‘Mutton dagger’ and of course ‘cock’ were in use, for the male appendage. (As well as Penis of course).

‘Fanny’ ‘Silk Purse’ ‘Cunny’ ‘Twat’ for the female orifice. (Also vagina)

I think ‘tits’ is quite an old description of the chest lobes, also ‘Knockers’ ‘boobs’ and of course in polite society ‘breasts’ could have been used.

‘Rump’ and ‘Bum’ also the English ‘Arse’ would have been about for the rear entry.

A gay man would have been referred to as ‘Not the marrying kind’ rather than queer, or maybe “I understand he bowls from the pavilion end” (a cricket term) may have been used to describe such a person, not too sure about ‘queer’ it could have been about, a lot of old folk use the term still over here.

My favourite ‘Trollop’ was used to describe a girl of loose morals; I understand ‘Wench’ is used a lot in North America for this purpose. In UK ‘Wench’ was just a term used by the Gentry to describe a girl of lower class and not in any way derogatory. “My you’re a pretty wench” as a compliment, as opposed to “Bloody loose Trollop” to describe the local slut.

The sex act, well, ‘Humping’ is quite an old term, as is ‘Mounting’ and ‘Riding’ ‘Covering’ (a term from farming that often gets borrowed, “Oh I could cover you my girl”), ‘Shagging’ is an old term, ‘fuck’ may have crept in among the lower classes about that period and would have been pronounced ‘fock’.

These are just terms and words used by old folks over here, of course they would have got them from their elders years ago and that would take you back to late Victorian times. As I say the effect of dialect and immigrant citizens on slang use in the US back then, I’m not sure about.

Hey if in doubt, invent it, I don't think there are many members who were about back then to comment.

Pops………….

 

[Guest]

Thank you!

 

[Screaming Grace]

Thank you!

I don’t suppose the thanks was meant for me, but I hope the links were of some use.
SG