[Sca-cooks] "Bugger" (today's supplement of Useless Knowledge)

[Laura C. Minnick]

At 04:01 PM 10/30/02 -0700, you wrote:
>
>Actually, I seem to recall that the term wasn't "national" but
>came from a heretical sect of some sort.  That is, the term is
>NOT abusive to citizens of Bulgaria but to members of a presumably-
>now-defunct heretical religious sect.
>
>Sure enough, a Merriam-webster search on "Bulgar" turns up a
>reference to the "Bogomils" - the sect in question.  It was
>this sect that was accused of being sodomites.
>
>And, hey, it's "period", even. (10th century).
>
>>From the entry ( http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary ):
>------------------------------------------------
> One entry found for Bogomil.
>
> Main Entry: Bo*go*mil
> Variant(s): also Bo*go*mile  /"b&-g&-'mE(&)l/
> Function: noun
> Etymology: Middle Greek Bogomilos, from Bogomilos Bogomil, 10th century
>Bulgarian priest, founder of the sect
> Date: 1841
> : a member of a medieval Bulgarian sect holding that God has two sons, the
>rebellious Satan and the obedient Jesus
>------------------------------------------------
>
>Signed,
>El Hermoso Dormido, contributing to useless knowledge and fighting
>political correctness :-)

This one is true, folks- the Bogomils were a dualist sect that flourished
in the 10th-12th centuries, and yes, the word 'bugger' is related to
accusations of abberant sexual practices. I will note that this included
not only homosexual behaviours, but interesting relationships with family
members, and even animals. This was a blanket accusation made against many
of the heretical sects, and generally has no basis in fact.

Father Abelard the Lesser
by the hand of 'Lainie, who occasionally acts as scribe for her
confessor...
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