Is English especially prudish in its self-inflicted linguistic censorship of genitalia and sex, or is this something that most modern cultures have? Does it have to do with puritanical religions? Are there cultures that don’t find a need to come up with euphemisms for penis and vagina, etc.?
Since penis (Latin, a tail) and vagina (Latin, a scabbard) are themselves euphemisms and came into English already euphemised, I’m going to hazard a guess that this is pretty universal.
Are you saying that the Kamasutra which is explicit in every other way euphemised sexual organs ?
At what point does a euphemism become not a euphemism but a synonym?
If I tell someone who speaks English I’m sucking a cock, they aren’t going to think of domestic fowl.
The question isn’t whether that particular written work used euphemisms. The question is whether the Sanskrit (I’m guessing) language has euphemisms.
The assertion was (bolding mine):
And I challenged that assertion …
Tastes like chicken?
Does the existence of Hustler magazine suggest the English language does not use sexual euphemisms?
I would guess innuendo and euphuisms about sex are common to any language where the behaviour and subject is itself a matter of some social taboos.
So really it seems the question is, are there any societies where sex is open and discussed, not hidden away, people don’t need privacy to do their thing (so to speak) and issues like monogamy and sexual jealousy are not part of the social situation?
I don’t recall off hand any such society in what I’ve read. As long as people feel a need to hide what they’re doing - from other adults, from children, from parents - then I assume there will also be the coded language to hide those acts. There aren’t to many societies where people run around naked, it seems the very first instinct once clothing is invented in any society, is to cover up the genitalia even when the climate does not call for it.
Sure - if hustler was published at the time Latin or the English language originated.
Yes, it does. The root meaning of lingam is “mark, token, sign, emblem”. It’s pretty much the equivalent of adopting the word “euphemism” as a euphemism for penis.
Hustler used euphemisms. They aren’t so much socially embarrassed or sensitive ones but when the whole thing is about sex you need to have some variety.