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Kathy Burke's Personal Usage
- Kathy Burke described using "cunt" jokingly among friends and sparingly in anger or public criticism.
- She picks the word deliberately, avoiding using it for relatives and choosing context carefully.
Medieval Origin And Semantic Shift
- "Cunt" was originally a common, non-taboo word in medieval English, appearing in place names and bynames.
- Its shift to offensiveness happened over centuries as it became a derogatory metonym for women and then men.
Surviving Medieval Street Names
- Deborah notes medieval place names like "Gropecunt Lane" reflected blunt naming of sexual commerce or topography.
- She recounts surviving street names and bynames that directly used the term without apparent taboo.