Theres
April 1st, 2002, 02:26 PM
among the many wonderful things we have gotten from the English is this...
in medieval times the wood of the Yew tree was traditionally used for weapons. due to it's characteristic of being strong and straight, it was particularly well suited for arrowshafts. it was SO effective that it was considered magickal in nature.
the arrow was drawn back by archers using the middle finger, fostering the term 'plucking the yew'.
at the 15th century Battle of Agincourt, the British soldiers faced overwhelming numbers by French opposition. the French were SO optimistic of victory, they let it be known that they would cut off the middle fingers of all captured English soldiers, thus making them unable to fight again.
however, due to the incredible accuracy of the English 'longbow', the French suffered a brutal defeat. after the battle, the English soldiers mockingly waved their middle fingers at the French, shouting "See, we can still 'pluck the yew'!".
and this expression, slightly contracted, has been passed down through time to us, although these days it is mistakenly interpreted as a reference to an act of intimacy.
and the gesture has been preserved too, being a favorite signal in the secret sign language of taxi-drivers. in fact, the term 'flipping the bird' comes from the pheasant feathers used on those very same arrows.
have a nice day... ,,l,,
in medieval times the wood of the Yew tree was traditionally used for weapons. due to it's characteristic of being strong and straight, it was particularly well suited for arrowshafts. it was SO effective that it was considered magickal in nature.
the arrow was drawn back by archers using the middle finger, fostering the term 'plucking the yew'.
at the 15th century Battle of Agincourt, the British soldiers faced overwhelming numbers by French opposition. the French were SO optimistic of victory, they let it be known that they would cut off the middle fingers of all captured English soldiers, thus making them unable to fight again.
however, due to the incredible accuracy of the English 'longbow', the French suffered a brutal defeat. after the battle, the English soldiers mockingly waved their middle fingers at the French, shouting "See, we can still 'pluck the yew'!".
and this expression, slightly contracted, has been passed down through time to us, although these days it is mistakenly interpreted as a reference to an act of intimacy.
and the gesture has been preserved too, being a favorite signal in the secret sign language of taxi-drivers. in fact, the term 'flipping the bird' comes from the pheasant feathers used on those very same arrows.
have a nice day... ,,l,,