2022: Creating a Lexicon of Future

O is for Oath

Oath is a word that is equally sacred and profane.

Traditionally an oath is either a statement of fact or a promise taken by a sacrality as a sign of verity. A common legal substitute for those who conscientiously object to making sacred oaths is to give an affirmation instead. Nowadays, even when there is no notion of sanctity involved, certain promises said out loud in ceremonial or juridical purpose are referred to as oaths. “To swear” is a verb used to describe the taking of an oath, to making a solemn vow. ~ Wikipedia

A minced oath is a euphemistic expression formed by deliberately misspelling, mispronouncing, or replacing a part of a profane, blasphemous, or taboo word or phrase to reduce the original term’s objectionable characteristics. An example is “gosh” for “God”.

Many languages have such expressions. In the English language, nearly all profanities have minced variants. ~ Wikipedia

What in tarnation is “tarnation?” Why do people in old books exclaim “zounds!” in moments of surprise? And what could a professor of linguistics possibly have against “duck-loving crickets?”

I’ll get to the crickets later. But what unites all these expressions is a desire to find acceptable versions of profane or blasphemous words. “God” becomes “gosh,” “hell” becomes “heck,” and “damnation” becomes “tarnation.” In a similar vein, the rather antiquated phrase “God’s wounds” turns into “zounds.”

This lexical skirting of religious sensitivities falls in the category of expressions known as “minced oaths.” They are a kind of euphemism: an indirect expression substituted to soften the harsher blow of the profane. ~ Zounds! What the fork are minced oaths? And why are we still fecking using them today?