July 21, 2005, 16:09
CaterwaullerBy Golly
OK, kids - it's time to educate CW again. I know that folks in the UK (everywhere, or just in some regions?) will use the term
lolly for money. (If it weren't for Monty Python I would be even more obtuse about your slang usage.)
Can someone please explain why? I've checked a few online slang dictionaries without success.
July 21, 2005, 16:19
BobHaleIt is said to originate in the Romany word
loli meaning red, used by gypsies to mean copper coins and hence money in general. It may also derive from
lolly meaning sweet or candy which itself originated in dialect with the meaning of
tongue.
Dictionary of Contemporary Slang, Tony Thorne
July 22, 2005, 04:10
CaterwaullerThanks Bob! Ok - now can you explain the etymology of these other slang terms for me?
Dosh
Spoondulicks
July 22, 2005, 04:27
BobHaleWhy not.
According to that same source the origin of
dosh is obscure but could be either related to the African colonial term
dash denoting a tip or a bribe, or related to
doss in the sense of the price of a bed for a night.
Spondulicks on the other hand is said to have originared a witticism (doesn't sound terribly witty to me though) borrowing the Greek term
spondylikos relating to the
spondylos, a seashell used as currency.