(cry) uncle

[prettygoodword]

(cry) uncle - v., concede defeat, surrender, ask for mercy.


This is apparently unrelated to the usual uncle (brother of one's parent) and its derived meanings (including the slang sense of pawnbroker), but rather an alteration of Irish anacal, protection/quarter -- in which last sense, one can see it being used as a cry of surrender. The actual evidence for this is not solid, but the first intimation of the word are in Anglo-Irish sources. TBH my favorite usage citation is from P.G. Wodehouse: "There sat a nephew capable of facing the toughest aunt and making her say Uncle."

Bonus word: uncle three balls

---L.

Comments

[full_metal_ox]

Huh—I never suspected such an etymology.

(Not immediately finding a cite, but I seem to recall an analogous Japanese practice of saying “aniki”—big brother, in vernacular and particularly gangland usage—to surrender in a fight, thereby acknowledging your antagonist as your senior (and superior, the concepts being implicitly linked in Japan.)

[prettygoodword]

I've also seen "uncle" and "grandfather," depending on the age of the antagonist, used to surrender in Japanese. Thus also the taunt "Who's your grandfather!" (which is also used in Chinese).

[full_metal_ox]

And thank you for teaching me another thing: I’d never before heard “Uncle Three Balls”, although my educated guess at its meaning proved correct; the Medici have had an enduring impact.

[prettygoodword]

They have indeed.

[med_cat]

Fascinating etymology and an interesting bonus word.

And hee re: Wodehouse quotation ;)

[prettygoodword]

'Ware the Aunts!