faggot : Gay & Black Glossary

home page up local find full screen, hide local find menu Google search web for more information on this topic jump to foot of page translate this page with Babelfish punctuation 0-9 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z (all) ©1997-2012 Roedy Green, Canadian Mind Products
faggot
A derogatory term for a male homosexual. It implies frivolousness and ineffectiveness. I have heard two explanations for the dervation. One is that the word comes from a derogatory English/Scottish dialect word for a fat, slovenly woman or baggage. According to Wayne Dynes Homolexis: A Historial and Cultural Lexicon of Homosexuality, faggot was first used for gay male in 1914. The other explanation is that it is derived from the Christian habit of burning gay people at the stake. Gays were considered no better than firewood, faggots. The term is commonly used in situations where violence is threatened, so modern users may actually have the second meaning more in mind even if it is not lexicographically correct.
dyke
gay
lesbian
queer
CMP homejump to top You can get the freshest copy of this page from: or possibly from your local J: drive (Java virtual drive/mindprod.com website mirror)
http://mindprod.com/ggloss/faggot.html J:\mindprod\ggloss\faggot.html
logofeedback Please email your feedback for publication, letters to the editor, errors, omissions, typos, formatting errors, ambiguities, unclear wording, broken/redirected link reports, suggestions to improve this page or comments to Roedy Green : feedback email If you want your message kept confidential, not considered for posting, please explicitly specify that.
mindprod.com IP:[65.110.21.43]
viewYour face IP:[38.107.179.212]
You are visitor number 13,370.