From where comes the saying, "Has the cat got your tounge?"

Flem-ish

Could there be a link with the French saying: "donner sa langue au chat" (when one gives up trying to find an answer to a question)? Apr 05 07, 1:38 PM

zbeckabee

Cat got your tongue -- The phrase probably comes from a custom in the Mideast hundreds of years ago, when it was common to punish a thief by cutting off their right hand, and a liar by ripping out their tongue. These severed body parts were given to the king's pet cats as their daily food. http://www.olympusdolls.com/humor/phrases/Cat-Related%20Phrases%20and%20their%20Origin.htm Apr 05 07, 2:53 PM

star_gazer

Being that I don't speak french, I don't understand that response. Apr 05 07, 2:53 PM

zbeckabee

"Donner sa langue au chat" - To give one's tongue to the cat - "To give up" http://www.sasked.gov.sk.ca/docs/elemsoc/g3u32ess.html Apr 05 07, 2:55 PM

lanfranco

I think this is one of those folk sayings of which the origin will never be determined. Both the French and the middle eastern explanations don't make much sense to me. The French "donner sa langue au chat" doesn't have any relationship with the meaning, and ancient punishment customs also seem to be rather outside of the issue, which is, basically, "Why aren't you saying anything?" The site below offers some possibilities. I was interested both by the "cat o' nine tails" explanations (colorful, but perhaps too cute) and the information that the phrase is no older than 1911. http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board/24/messages/760.html Apr 05 07, 5:46 PM

Flem-ish

Looking for more information I found that Spanish has a similar saying: "Te ha comido la lengua el gato?" [Has the cat eaten your tongue?] Serbian has: "Pojela ti maca jezik." ¨[The cat has eaten your tongue.] When studying the origin of proverbs, it may help to compare languages Madame de Sévigné (seventeenth century) used the expression "donner sa langue aux chiens"( give one's tongue to the dogs- when unable to answer a question). As there are various other sites where similar forums are discussing this topic and all seem unable to find a convincing solution I prefer to leave the solution to that Sphynx-like animal that itself has always posed such a riddle to humans, the Cat. Apr 05 07, 7:32 PM