Where does “figging” come from?
figging (English) comes from English fig, from Middle English fige, from Anglo-Norman figue, from Old French figue, from Occitan figa, from Old Occitan figa, from Vulgar Latin fica, from Latin ficus — Ripe fig.
figging (English): The insertion of ginger root into the anus, vagina or urethra, applied to people as a punishment (typically in BDSM), or to horses to make them deceptively lively (feaguing)
Definitions
- The insertion of ginger root into the anus, vagina or urethra, applied to people as a punishment (typically in BDSM), or to horses to make them deceptively lively (feaguing)
Ancestry of “figging”, step by step
figging traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English fig
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | fig | A fruit-bearing tree or shrub of the genus... |
| 2 | Middle English | fige | A fig tree; A fig; A kind of boil or sore |
| 3 | Anglo-Norman | figue | fig |
| 4 | Old French | figue | fig |
| 5 | Occitan | figa | fig |
| 6 | Old Occitan | figa | fig |
| 7 | Vulgar Latin | fica | fig; fig, fig-tree |
| 8 | Latin | ficus | fig tree; fig; hemorrhoids |
| 9 | Phoenician | ?? | Ripe fig |
via English feague
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | feague | To increase the liveliness of a horse by... |
| 2 | Dutch | vegen | to sweep; to brush; to wipe |
| 3 | Middle Dutch | vēgen | to sweep, to clean |
| 4 | Old Dutch | fegōn | to cleanse |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | faginōn | to gladden, rejoice |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | faginōną | to gladden, rejoice |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | pōḱ- | — |