Asshole

The word asshole (often arsehole in British and Australian English), is a vulgarism to describe the anus, and often used pejoratively (as a type of synecdoche) to refer to people.

History

The word arse in English derives from the Germanic root -arsaz, which originated from the Proto-Indo-European root -ors, meaning "buttocks" or "backside". The combined form arsehole is first attested from 1500 in its literal use to refer to the anus. The metaphorical use of the word to refer to the worst place in a region (e.g., "the arsehole of the world"), is first attested in print in 1865; the use to refer to a contemptible person is first attested in 1933. In the ninth chapter of his 1945 autobiography, Black Boy, Richard Wright quotes a snippet of verse that uses the term: "All these white folks dressed so fine / Their ass-holes smell just like mine ...". Its earliest known usage in newspaper as an insult was 1965. As with other vulgarities, these uses of the word may have been common in oral speech for some time before their first appearances in print. By the 1970s, Hustler magazine featured people they did not like as "Asshole of the Month." In 1972, Jonathan Richman of Modern Lovers recorded his song "Pablo Picasso", which includes the line "Pablo Picasso was never called an asshole."

Asshole (disambiguation)

Asshole or arsehole is a vulgar term for the anus, or an insult derived from this meaning.

Asshole may also refer to:

See also

Asshole (song)

"Asshole" is a song by American comedian Denis Leary, released as the only single from his album No Cure for Cancer in 1993.

Song information

The chorus of the song is often used in The Howard Stern Show and was also utilized (along with the opening guitar riff) on The Morning Show with Ed Lover, Doctor Dré and Lisa G. on New York's WQHT Hot 97 for a brief period in the mid-1990s as the backdrop for a weekly segment called "The Jackass Wall". On the Australian TV show The Chaser's War on Everything, it was parodied with a song called "Ass Sol", making fun of Sol Trujillo, the controversial American CEO of Australian telecommunications provider Telstra.

The song made MuchMusic's "50 Most Controversial Videos of All Time" and reached spot #37 for its profanity, making fun of handicapped people, and threatening to destroy the environment. The word "asshole" is said at least 27 times, according to MuchMusic's Devon Soltendieck. The word "fuck" is said four times and also "piss" is used three times. "Goddamn" is also uttered. A censored video for the song was made, which bleeps out some words. However the word "asshole" is still present and uncensored.