Where does the word blackmail come from

On the subject of blackmailhowever, we may provide some information. Did it come from an arcane custom of sending a threatening letter in a black-tinged envelope, in order to indicate to the addressee that woeful betidings awaited them if they did not comport with the instructions of the where does the word blackmail come from The word does indeed come from mailbut it is not quite the same word that serves as the basis for email.

Part of a two-week series on the pull of bad influences in our lives and in the culture. Nine letters to connote all the dirtiness and manipulation that comes with the threat of disclosure. Confidential missives that threaten to enter the wrong hands? In daytime soaps and murder mysteries, blackmail regularly happens through the transfer of mail. The first textual account of black-maill appears in a Scottish document where serial looter, one Adam Scot, ended his career with a beheading. While we may no longer think of blackmail in terms of material objects of exchange, the initial meaning of blackmail actually stays pretty close to contemporary understandings of the act.

Where does the word blackmail come from

The word comes from the freebooting clan chieftains who ran protection rackets against farmers in Scotland and northern England. The custom persisted until midc. Black from the evil of the practice. The sense expanded by to mean any extortion by means of intimidation, especially by threat of exposure or scandal. Compare silver mail "rent paid in money" s ; buttock-mail Scottish, s "fine imposed for fornication. Related: Blackmailed ; blackmailing. The same root produced Middle English blake "pale," from Old English blac "bright, shining, glittering, pale;" the connecting notions being, perhaps, "fire" bright and "burned" dark , or perhaps "absence of color. Black was used of dark-skinned people in Old English. Of coffee with nothing added, attested by The meaning "fierce, terrible, wicked" is from late 14c. The figurative senses often come from the notion of "without light," moral or spiritual. Latin niger had many of the same figurative senses "gloomy; unlucky; bad, wicked, malicious".

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Blackmail is an act of coercion using a threat. As a criminal offence, blackmail is defined in various ways in common law jurisdictions. In the United States, blackmail is generally defined as a crime of information, involving a threat to do something that would cause a person to suffer embarrassment or financial loss. A person is guilty of blackmail if, with a view to gain for himself or another or with intent to cause loss to another, he makes any unwarranted demand with menaces In popular culture, 'blackmail' involves a threat to reveal or publicize either substantially true or false information about a person or people unless certain demands are met. It is often damaging information, and it may be revealed to family members or associates rather than to the general public. Acts of blackmail can also involve using threats of physical, mental or emotional harm, or of criminal prosecution, against the victim or someone close to the victim.

There is one meaning in OED's entry for the verb blackmail. Etymons: blackmail n. Sign in with library card. Sign in as administrator on Oxford Academic. Revisions and additions of this kind were last incorporated into blackmail, v. Please include your email address if you are happy to be contacted about your feedback. OUP will not use this email address for any other purpose. Skip to main content. Dictionary Historical Thesaurus. What does the verb blackmail mean?

Where does the word blackmail come from

Claim: The word "blackmail" came about because it referenced letters of extortion sent via mail. Origins: "Blackmail," a word for the extortion of money or other considerations to forestall the making public of injurious revelations or accusations, derives not from the intuitively obvious source of relating to letters dispatched by those looking to make a buck off their knowledge of the missteps of others. The "mail" in "blackmail" has nothing to do with missives delivered by the postal service nor does it have anything to do, as claimed in one outlandish theory, with freelance knights gone brigand whose chain mail turned to black in concert with their dark deeds. Blackmail instead began its linguistic career as a descriptor for the process of paying off those who would otherwise inflict physical harm i. Its "mail" portion derives from the Old Norse word "mal," meaning "agreement," which subsequently expanded in Old and Middle English to encompass payments made pursuant to bargains struck between two or more parties and then to payments in general. The word did not shift to its current meaning of a bribe tendered in exchange for silence about embarrassing personal matters until around Prior to that time, what was being safeguarded were tangible items houses, cattle, one's physical person rather than intangible one's reputation and secrets. Blackmail need not always be about the extortion of hush money, as demonstrated by a common urban legend about a child's threat to reveal something Mommy would rather not have made public knowledge. Last updated: 10 April

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Post navigation Previous Post Fallopian Forward. It is often damaging information, and it may be revealed to family members or associates rather than to the general public. Word Icons. In popular culture, 'blackmail' involves a threat to reveal or publicize either substantially true or false information about a person or people unless certain demands are met. Black flag , flown especially by pirates as a signal of no mercy, is from s. Encouraging or assisting a crime Conspiracy Accessory Attempt Common purpose. Archived from the original on 15 August Felony or Indictable offense Infraction also called violation Misdemeanor or Summary offense. People have the opportunity to give in to temptation since they are anonymous and possibly commit criminal acts such as blackmailing. My Book Joy. In Blackmail.

The word comes from the freebooting clan chieftains who ran protection rackets against farmers in Scotland and northern England.

Actus reus Mens rea Causation Concurrence. The word does indeed come from mail , but it is not quite the same word that serves as the basis for email. As originally used, mail probably referred to rent paid to a landlord. Missing Letter A crossword with a twist Play. In addition to restitution of whatever has been paid to you, possible penalties for extortion in Nevada can include:. Blackmail was originally a term from the Scottish Borders meaning payments rendered in exchange for protection from thieves and marauders. Although blackmail was originally used to refer to something that was done to farmers who lived on or near the border of Scotland and England, it proved to be too useful a word to be bound by such geographic constraints, and soon came to be used in reference to money extracted in exchange for protection in other locales. The same root produced Middle English blake "pale," from Old English blac "bright, shining, glittering, pale;" the connecting notions being, perhaps, "fire" bright and "burned" dark , or perhaps "absence of color. The wrongdoing is self-evident. Word of the Day.