# Origin of Swag: "Secretly we are gay" **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 3, 2012, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551 "2012-09-03T16:55:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2012, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551/21 "2012-09-03T18:44:15Z")
DrCube, it’s clear that “swag” is a much more common term. I suspect that “schwag” was a later joking version of the word. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2012, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551/22 "2012-09-03T18:45:02Z")
> [@ExTank](#): > > I admit that it’s entirely possible my friend may have said 'schwag" and I heard/misunderstood it to be “swag.” > > I’m not going to pop in my copy of PotC to see if Barbossa was really saying “schwag” or “swag.” > **[Promotional merchandise](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Promotional_item)** > > Promotional merchandise are products branded with a logo or slogan and distributed at little or no cost to promote a brand, corporate identity, or event. Such products, which are often informally called promo products, swag (mass nouns), or freebies (count nouns), are used in marketing and sales. Often they are of the tchotchke type. They are given away or sold at a loss to promote a company, corporate image, brand, or event. They are often distributed as handouts at trade shows, at conference Th... Apparently it’s both swag and schwag. Actually my dad said “schwag” thinking about it some more, not swag. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2012, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551/23 "2012-09-03T19:27:51Z")
> [@Kenm](#): > > From my computer’s dictionary: The Middle English dictionary [cite?], reflects a wonderful portmanteau in “swag” of the words “sway” and “sag.” ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2012, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551/24 "2012-09-03T19:46:47Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > After reading the Urban Dictionary entry, I have a theory that “swag” in the meaning you’re talking about is a fairly recent fake etymology, not going back anywhere nearly as far as the early 1960’s. . . > It appears that this term became so common among this youth culture that some members of this culture became sick of it and made up a joke etymology for it. They claimed (as part of the joke) that it was actually invented in gay culture thirty or forty years before and was derived from the phrase “Secretly we are gay.” In this way whenever another member of this culture used the term, they could say, “Well, we know that you must be homosexual to use the term.” I think it’s blatantly obvious that this is EXACTLY what what happened. That’s why it’s in Urban Dictionary. ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2012, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551/25 "2012-09-03T21:19:21Z")
[Swag](http://2media.nowpublic.net/images//4a/95/4a95ad79210650e23b0f287c1651794c.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Ruby\_Slippers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/94ad74/32.png) [@Ruby\_Slippers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruby_Slippers)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2012, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551/26 "2012-09-03T21:29:47Z")
[SWAG](http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/SWAG) is an acronym meaning Speculative Wild-Ass Guess. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2012, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551/27 "2012-09-03T21:34:48Z")
> [@Hero\_From\_Sector\_7G](#): > > [Urban Dictionary](http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=swag) supports the meaning. Which pretty much establishes that it’s complete bullshit. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2012, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551/28 "2012-09-03T22:28:22Z")
“Secretly We Are Gay” is very clearly a [backronym](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backronym). Another example of a backronym is the Amber alert. It was originally named after a missing girl named Amber; eventually some oh-so-clever official decided it should be an acronym for “America’s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response”. mmm ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2012, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551/29 "2012-09-03T22:35:06Z")
> [@guizot](#): > > I think it’s blatantly obvious that this is EXACTLY what what happened. That’s why it’s in Urban Dictionary. Precisely. It’s just like how people go around saying, “You know, the real origin of jeans sagging is based on gay men in jail advertising themselves as available.” It’s simple sour grapes in this case…some people look at men who are cocky and over confident and they just can’t stand it. They feel the need to ‘pull them down’ in some way. Put them back in their place. “Well, now you aren’t any better than me, mr. cool guy, because your confidence and style is really a secret code for the GAY!” I understand how it can annoy, though. I mean, the hip hop culture used to be much less saturated with the word…and over-saturation can drive people up the wall. Once you have every rapper and pop star naming their songs after a word, you really do feel like, ugh. But that’s the nature of slang…if a cornball gets a hold of a catchy slang term, they will over-use it and make it corny. “Swagger” has been around forever, obviously, like many posters have pointed out. I have noticed it in black culture to mean “cool, cocky, lots of style” for many years. In hip hop culture, I can remember some songs that go back nearly 25 years! (Brand Nubian used the term on more than one song way back in 1990 at least). It being shortened to ‘swag’ is pretty old too, with Jay Z making a song about it at least 10 years ago. So the idea that now, 20 years later, Urban Dictionary would come up with some retarded backronym is just silly. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2012, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551/30 "2012-09-04T01:46:05Z")
> [@Nzinga\_Seated](#): > > It’s just like how people go around saying, “You know, the real origin of jeans sagging is based on gay men in jail advertising themselves as available.” It’s simple sour grapes in this case…some people look at men who are cocky and over confident and they just can’t stand it. They feel the need to ‘pull them down’ in some way. Put them back in their place. “Well, now you aren’t any better than me, mr. cool guy, because your confidence and style is really a secret code for the GAY!” It can work because gay scholars often play pretty loose when “outing” historical figures. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2012, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551/31 "2012-09-04T16:22:07Z")
So Tarantino was making it up in _Pulp Fiction_ when he said the purpose of a tongue stud was to aid in fellatio? ---
**Author:** ![yearofglad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/b782af/32.png) [@yearofglad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yearofglad)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2012, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551/32 "2012-09-04T16:33:27Z")
> [@md2000](#): > > So Tarantino was making it up in _Pulp Fiction_ when he said the purpose of a tongue stud was to aid in fellatio? That was Jody’s purpose in getting one, but I don’t think the implication was that’s why tongue studs were invented or that’s everyone’s purpose in getting one. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2012, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551/33 "2012-09-04T16:33:28Z")
‘Secretly We Are Gay’ doesn’t even flow nicely. \*\*MMM \*\*is right - like posh, or gorp, it’s an explanation (and not even a good one) looking for a question. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2012, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551/34 "2012-09-04T16:38:06Z")
> [@md2000](#): > > So Tarantino was making it up in _Pulp Fiction_ when he said the purpose of a tongue stud was to aid in fellatio? Everything Tarantino says is made up. Some of it happens just to be true, but that’s just a coincidence. ---
**Author:** ![Rich\_G7subs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85e7bf/32.png) [@Rich\_G7subs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rich_G7subs)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2012, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551/35 "2012-09-04T18:36:23Z")
> [@Ruby\_Slippers](#): > > [SWAG](http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/SWAG) is an acronym meaning Speculative Wild-Ass Guess. THIS… Only it’s a **SCIENTIFIC** Wild Assed Guess ---
**Author:** ![steronz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steronz/32/11765_2.png) [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2012, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551/36 "2012-09-04T18:50:45Z")
When I first heard of swag (in the context of free goodies) it was combined with the obvious backronym “stuff we all get.” It appears people have now out-backronymed the backronym. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2012, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551/37 "2012-09-04T19:40:40Z")
> [@yearofglad](#): > > That was Jody’s purpose in getting one, but I don’t think the implication was that’s why tongue studs were invented or that’s everyone’s purpose in getting one. I took it as Tarantino’s snide way of saying that of course it’s the only reason… ---
**Author:** ![orcenio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/orcenio/32/1036_2.png) [@orcenio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/orcenio)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2012, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551/38 "2012-09-04T20:06:59Z")
[Lost in space](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKbawIq3w7U). ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2012, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551/39 "2012-09-04T20:24:51Z")
Wait, “gorp” isn’t an acronym? \ Huh, apparently it’s from a root word meaning “eat greedily”. I never knew. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2012, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551/40 "2012-09-04T20:33:41Z")
I always thought those swag light fixtures from the 70’s were gay. Go figure. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-swag-secretly-we-are-gay/633551.md?page=3)