First recorded instance of the taboo word fuck

Cheshire County Court Rolls – TNA CHES 29/23 – photo by Dr. Paul Booth

The written word represents a very narrow subset of the language that was in use at any given time period. Writing is a learned skill that was used by a small group of the population, who usually represented an educated or upper class. The language that was written down is usually of a more formal register due to the specific purpose of the act of writing. Modern humans, especially of the digital age, write down just about every kind of speech, but this is a recent development in linguistic history. In many time periods , records of informal speech are exceedingly rare, and this is especially true for taboo words and curses, making any written discovery of swear words deeply significant.


Recently, when looking for something else entirely, Dr. Paul Booth discovered what is currently the oldest written use of the word “fuck” to have a clearly sexual connotation. The Chester County Court rolls from December 8th, 1310 to September 28, 1311, mention a man called Roger FuckbytheNavel in three separate entries. In the first two Roger Fuckbythenavel was exacted, which was a prelimiry process to being outlawed. In the last entry on September 28th, 1311, Roger Fuckbythenavel was outlawed and an arrest warrant was issued for him.


Though it is not yet known what became of Roger Fuckbythenavale, nor how he came by his name, there are a few details about surnames in this period that may aid analysis. Hereditary surnames as we know them today were not common at this time, with people being more often described by bynames: names derived from places, professions, characteristics and sometimes insults. This was usually a post-positional descriptor such as Mary the Bold or Charles the Rich, or Humphrey Golden Testicles, or Bernard Paunch-face.

Hunfrid[us] aurei testiculi: Domesday Book (f. 100v)
Bernardus Panceuolt: Domesday Book: Hampshire, page 21


Given that Roger Fuckbythenavale is consistently referenced in three separate entries in the Chester County Court Rolls it is likely that Fuckbythenavale is a byname, rather than a joke or an error. The name could be a sort of long lasting medieval revenge exacted by an unsatisfied lover, a scathing critique on his sexual prowess immortalized in writing. However, it is more likely that the byname indicates Roger was somewhat slow-witted, a 14th century version of the more modern phrase “can’t tell his ass from his elbow.”

@mathewssonya

There are two earlier recorded instances but they are disputed. This is the first definitive word that connects to the modern swear word. #thefword #medievalhistory #historicallinguistics #learnontiktok #swearwords #byname #surnames #lookwhatifound #lingtok #domesdaybook #oldenglish #middleenglish

♬ original sound – Sonya