Sheep-shagger (also spelt sheepshagger or sheep shagger) is a derogatory term, most often used to refer to Welsh people, implying that the subject has sex with sheep. [1] In a court case in Britain, the use of the term directed at a Welsh person was ruled to be a "racially aggravating" factor in a disorderly conduct offence. [2] It has been used in South Africa to refer to Australians and by Australians and New Zealanders to refer to one another. [3]
The use of the term sheep-shagger to refer to a Welsh person has arisen from the prevalence of sheep and sheep farming in Wales. [1] It is often viewed as offensive in Wales,[ citation needed ] for the same reason [4] [5] as it is in South Africa to refer to Australians. [6] In response to complaints over the use of phrase, in an Australian television advertisement for Toyota, the New Zealand Advertising Standards Authority determined the phrase was not viewed as offensive by the majority of New Zealanders. [7] [8]
At football matches in England, supporters of Welsh teams as well as Welsh players are often called sheep shaggers in football chants from opposing fans. [9] [10] [11] It is also used in Scotland to refer to supporters of Aberdeen. [12] In 2001, Cardiff City signed English player Spencer Prior and jokingly included a contract clause that he would be obliged "to have a physical liaison with a sheep", in response to their fans being called sheep shaggers. [11]
The name "Sheep Shaggers" has been used for at least two football fanzines – those for Bedford Town and for football in Western England. [13]
Manic Street Preachers frontman James Dean Bradfield routinely dealt with sheep-related heckles from gig audiences (including shouts of "sheep shagger", bleats and stuffed toy sheep thrown onstage) with the stock response ‘Yeah, we shag ‘em, then you eat ‘em!" [14]
In Prestatyn, Wales, the phrase was the subject of a 2013 court case, after Anthony Taaffe of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, when staying at a holiday park in Gronant, North Wales, called an off-duty policeman and security staff "a bunch of sheep-shaggers". Taaffe asserted that the phrase was simply "a term for people living in the countryside", but pleaded guilty to racially aggravated disorderly behaviour and to a second, similar offence, when he called a police officer a "Welsh sheep shagger". He was fined £150. [2] [15]
The term four-letter word serves as a euphemism for words that are often considered profane or offensive.
The culture of Wales is distinct, with its own language, customs, festivals, music, art, mythology, history, and politics. Wales is primarily represented by the symbol of the red Welsh Dragon, but other national emblems include the leek and the daffodil.
Gringo (masculine) or gringa (feminine) is a term in Spanish and Portuguese for a foreigner, usually an English-speaking Anglo-American. There are differences in meaning depending on region and country. In Latin America, it is generally used to refer to non-Latin Americans. The term is often considered a pejorative, but is not always used to insult, and in the United States its usage and offensiveness is disputed.
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Bugger or buggar can at times be considered as a mild swear word. In the United Kingdom the term has been used commonly to imply dissatisfaction, refer to someone or something whose behaviour is in some way inconvenient or perhaps as an expression of surprise. In the United States, particularly in the Midwest and South, it is an inoffensive slang term meaning "small animal".
Nicholas Allen Jones, known as Nicky Wire, is a Welsh musician and songwriter, best known as lyricist, bassist and secondary vocalist of the Welsh alternative rock band Manic Street Preachers.
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The Welsh are an ethnic group native to Wales. Wales is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. The majority of people living in Wales are British citizens.
The English word football may mean any one of several team sports, depending on the national or regional origin and location of the person using the word; the unqualified use of the word football usually refers to the most popular code of football in that region. The sports most frequently referred to as simply football are American football, association football, Australian rules football, Canadian football, Gaelic football, rugby league football and rugby union football.
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A sheep station is a large property in Australia or New Zealand, whose main activity is the raising of sheep for their wool and/or meat. In Australia, sheep stations are usually in the south-east or south-west of the country. In New Zealand the Merinos are usually in the high country of the South Island. These properties may be thousands of square kilometres in size and run low stocking rates to be able to sustainably provide enough feed and water for the stock.
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St Helen's Rugby and Cricket Ground, commonly known simply as St Helens Ground, is a sports venue in Swansea, Wales, owned and operated by the City and County of Swansea Council. Used mainly for rugby union and cricket, it has been the home ground of Swansea RFC and Swansea Cricket Club since it opened in 1873.
"Nigger in the woodpile" or "nigger in the fence" is a figure of speech originating in the United States meaning "some fact of considerable importance that is not disclosed—something suspicious or wrong".
Chinaman is an offensive term referring to a Chinese man or person, or widely a person native to geographical East Asia or of perceived East Asian ethnicity. The term is noted as having pejorative overtones by modern dictionaries. Its derogatory connotations evolved from its use in pejorative contexts regarding Chinese people and other East Asians, as well as its grammatical incorrectness which resembles stereotypical characterizations of Chinese accents in English-speaking associated with discrimination. The usage of the term Chinaman is strongly discouraged by Asian American organizations.
Agriculture in Wales has in the past been a major part of the economy of Wales, a largely rural country which is part of the United Kingdom. Wales is mountainous and has a mild, wet climate. This results in only a small proportion of the land area being suitable for arable cropping, but grass for the grazing of livestock is present in abundance. As a proportion of the national economy, agriculture is now much less important; a high proportion of the population now live in the towns and cities in the south of the country and tourism has become an important form of income in the countryside and on the coast. Arable cropping is limited to the flatter parts and elsewhere dairying and livestock farming predominate.
Welsh cuisine encompasses the cooking styles, traditions and recipes associated with Wales. While there are many dishes that can be considered Welsh due to their ingredients and/or history, dishes such as cawl, Welsh rarebit, laverbread, Welsh cakes, bara brith and Glamorgan sausage have all been regarded as symbols of Welsh food. Some variation in dishes exists across the country, with notable differences existing in the Gower Peninsula, a historically isolated rural area which developed self-sufficiency in food production.
'Their judgment was another setback for Donald. It is official: in New Zealand, the term "sheep shagger" is not offensive. You may speculate just why that might be.'
Aberdeen fans are known as 'sheep shaggers' by fans of southern teams.